A central aim of ELCSEE – Empowering Local Communities through Social Economy Education is to make social economy education practical and accessible for the people and communities who can put it into action. The partnership has produced two complementary resources: the ELCSEE Educational Guidebook and a practical workbook for developing a social enterprise business plan. Social Cooperative Enterprise Kalotropio leads this part of the project, with contributions from all partners.
Key facts
Project activity: Development of the Educational Guide
Timeline: From the kick-off in December 2025 to the second edition of the workbook in September 2026
Lead partner: Social Cooperative Enterprise Kalotropio
Partners: Visit Agiasos (Greece), Social Cooperative Enterprise Kalotropio (Greece), ViModo Research & Education Hub (Cyprus), Business Incubator – Gotse Delchev (Bulgaria)
Contribution of Visit Agiasos: Incorporation of good practice from the transnational meetings; testing of the materials in the local training in Agiasos
Programme: Erasmus+ Small-scale partnerships in vocational education and training (KA210-VET)
Project: ELCSEE – Empowering Local Communities through Social Economy Education
Project number: 2025-1-EL01-KA210-VET-000356255
The ELCSEE Educational Guidebook
The Guidebook is a practical manual and toolkit in English for educators and vocational trainers, youth workers, local leaders and civil society organisations, and young people. Its sections can be used on their own or as a complete programme. They cover:
- the basics of the social economy;
- the social economy ecosystems of Greece, Cyprus and Bulgaria;
- how to build a social economy initiative;
- management, operations and impact;
- digital tools;
- case studies and good practices from the three countries;
- social impact and sustainability;
- local workshops and practical activities, with worksheets, checklists and a glossary.
The practical workbook
The workbook «Πρακτικός Οδηγός – Εργαλείο: Ανάπτυξη επιχειρηματικού σχεδίου κοινωνικής επιχείρησης» (Practical Guide and Tool: Developing a Business Plan for a Social Enterprise) is a Greek-language resource that takes a group step by step from a social need to a sustainable plan with measurable social impact. Its second, enriched edition was issued in September 2026. It can be used individually, in groups or as material for a six-hour training course, and it covers:
- the social need, SWOT analysis and available resources, and the beneficiaries, customers and stakeholders of the enterprise;
- the social mission, the theory of change and the value proposition;
- products and services, a small first test of the offer, market research and the business model;
- communication, sales and digital tools;
- the team, roles, democratic governance and a team agreement;
- the legal form and the steps for founding a Social Cooperative Enterprise (KoinSEp) in Greece;
- the operational plan, pricing, a 12-month financial plan and financing;
- social impact indicators, risks and a 90-day action plan;
- a one-page summary, a 90-second pitch and a readiness checklist, with notes for trainers.
A fictional social cooperative, «Ρίζες & Διαδρομές» (Roots & Routes), set in a mountain community such as Agiasos, runs through the workbook as a worked example. It connects residents, young people, producers and visitors through sustainable routes, local workshops and the sale of local products, and can be adapted to any rural area of Greece, Cyprus or Bulgaria. The workbook combines the ELCSEE training approach with established Greek guidance on social and cooperative entrepreneurship, and credits its sources in full.
The ELCSEE Educational Guidebook and the practical workbook for developing a social enterprise business plan.
Built on the project’s activities
The materials draw on the project’s activities. After the transnational meeting in Nicosia in April 2026, the partners began incorporating the Cypriot good practices studied there into the Guidebook. The ELCSEE Guide was then presented and applied in the local training that Visit Agiasos carried out in Agiasos in August and September 2026, where participants worked through the steps of the ELCSEE method, from mapping local needs to structuring a social enterprise proposal.
The ELCSEE materials in practice: worksheets and presentations at the local training in Agiasos.
Availability
The practical workbook is available from the project for educational use. Educators and organisations interested in using the ELCSEE materials can contact Visit Agiasos at [email protected]. The project’s results will also be published on the Erasmus+ Project Results Platform.
Within the ELCSEE work plan
This work delivers the project’s Development of the Educational Guide, led by Social Cooperative Enterprise Kalotropio with contributions from all partners. The approved plan foresaw a practical guide with structured lessons, case studies and entrepreneurship models adapted to local needs, for use in the project’s training activities. The Guidebook provides this content, and the workbook turns it into a structured, step-by-step learning path for local training. Presented and applied in the local training in Agiasos, the materials were tested with members of the project’s target groups before the end of the project.
Erasmus+ priorities
The workbook turns social economy concepts into a structured learning path with notes for trainers, which educators in rural areas can run themselves, supporting innovation in vocational education and training. Its worked example is set in a mountain community, and its worksheets can be completed on paper as well as on screen, which makes the material usable by groups with limited digital access. Worksheets on democratic governance, team agreements and stakeholder mapping build the cooperative and participatory skills at the heart of the priority on common values and civic engagement.
</w:pBdr><w:spacing w:after=”120″ w:before=”280″ w:line=”264″/></w:pPr><w:r><w:rPr><w:rFonts w:ascii=”Calibri” w:cs=”Calibri” w:eastAsia=”Calibri” w:hAnsi=”Calibri”/><w:sz w:val=”18″/><w:szCs w:val=”18″/></w:rPr><w:t xml:space=”preserve”>ELCSEE – Empowering Local Communities through Social Economy Education (2025-1-EL01-KA210-VET-000356255) is implemented under the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union, with the support of the State Scholarships Foundation (IKY), the Greek National Agency.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the State Scholarships Foundation (IKY). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
