Global Entrepreneurship Week

Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW) is an annual week-long observance held during a week in November to celebrate entrepreneurship and encourage people to explore the process of creating, developing, and sustaining new ventures. Its origins are closely associated with the United Kingdom’s Enterprise Week and the United States’ Entrepreneurship Week, initiatives that promoted enterprise education, innovation, and entrepreneurial ambition. Building on those efforts, the Kauffman Foundation and partners helped establish Global Entrepreneurship Week in 2008 as an international campaign.

From its beginning, GEW was designed as a worldwide network rather than a single central ceremony. Schools, universities, nonprofit organizations, business groups, investors, government agencies, and entrepreneurs organize activities such as workshops, business-plan competitions, mentoring sessions, startup showcases, conferences, and public discussions. These events give aspiring entrepreneurs opportunities to learn practical skills, meet collaborators, and connect with experienced business leaders. The observance has expanded across numerous countries and regions, reflecting the growing international character of entrepreneurship and innovation.

Over time, Global Entrepreneurship Week has broadened its focus beyond launching traditional businesses. Its programs commonly address social entrepreneurship, technology, women’s and youth entrepreneurship, access to finance, sustainability, and the role of innovation in responding to community needs. The Global Entrepreneurship Network has become an important coordinating force, helping connect national and local organizers while supporting year-round initiatives linked to the observance. This development has made GEW not only a celebration but also a platform for entrepreneurship education and ecosystem-building.

Culturally, Global Entrepreneurship Week presents entrepreneurship as a means of participation, problem-solving, and economic and social development. It highlights the contributions of founders and small-business owners while also recognizing mentors, educators, investors, and communities that help new ideas grow. Its international format allows different societies to interpret entrepreneurship according to their own economic conditions and cultural priorities, from supporting informal enterprises and family businesses to promoting high-growth technology ventures. In this way, the November observance encourages a broad understanding of entrepreneurship as a continuing process of creativity, opportunity, and community engagement.