The Youth Business Model: Learning by Owning It
What if the best way to learn about sustainability was to build a business around it? That is the premise behind Youth Entrepreneurship Norway (Ungt Entreprenørskap), a nationwide non-profit organisation that partners with schools, businesses, and community actors to develop young people’s creativity, self-confidence, and practical competences through the experience of running their own company — for real.
The flagship programme for upper secondary students is Youth Business (Ungdomsbedrift): over the course of one school year, student teams establish, operate, and ultimately wind up a company of their own. The company can earn up to NOK 140,000 (approximately €12,000) during its lifetime, with no tax or VAT liability within that threshold. The experience is anchored in the national curriculum — mathematics, Norwegian, social studies, geography, science — and students discover that the subjects they study in class have direct, practical relevance to the challenges they face in running their enterprise.
Sustainability as a Core Competence
Sustainability is not a peripheral element of Youth Business: it is embedded in the programme’s structure and expectations. Each company is expected to appoint a sustainability expert among its members, set goals for its sustainability work, communicate its sustainability practices in the media and on social channels, and report on progress in both interim and annual accounts. The UN Sustainable Development Goals serve as a shared reference framework.
Each year, companies across Norway compete in county championships, with one of the most prestigious categories being the Sustainability Award — given to the company whose business idea most consistently addresses one or more sustainability challenges. Judging criteria include the environmental and social impact of the product or service, the balance between profitability and sustainability, the assessments made around production, transport, waste, and gender equality, and the potential scale of the solution.
Bridging School and Working Life
Youth Entrepreneurship Norway positions itself explicitly as a bridge between formal education and the world of work. Local companies and mentors are involved in supporting student teams, and the programme is designed to develop competences that are in demand in the labour market: creativity, initiative, responsibility, collaboration, and problem-solving. The “trial and error” learning philosophy — reflecting on one’s own experience rather than simply receiving instruction — gives students agency over their own development.
Relevance for Sustainable Learning
Youth Business is a compelling example of how formal education can be transformed by integrating real-world entrepreneurial experience. It bridges SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), and SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), and is part of the international Junior Achievement Europe network.
Website: ue.no | ungdomsbedrift.no
