Entrepreneurial Women Unvarnished  [09.03.23]

Even more inspiring portraits of successful female entrepreneurs from Hohenheim, new videos, and practical tips: The book "Unternehmerinnen ungeschminkt" is available in an expanded new edition just in time for International Women's Day. The supplementary video portraits and interviews are available on the website www.entrepreneurin.eu.

Whether it's sustainable snacks made from rescued food, microcredits for women in Africa, clever recycling or social media marketing: In the book "Unternehmerinnen ungeschminkt," 20 women describe their path to their own business. Honestly and authentically, they provide personal insights and practical tips. Marie von Mallwitz Verlag has now published the book, edited by the University of Hohenheim, in a second, expanded edition. Almost all of the women portrayed, as well as the author Christine Harbig, studied at Hohenheim.

Women's power should be a matter of course nowadays. However, even 100 years after Margarete von Wrangell became Germany's first female full professor at the University of Hohenheim, there are still obstacles that many women have to contend with more than most men. They are underrepresented in science and in the executive suites of companies – and this also applies to the topic of founding a company.

"Unternehmerinnen ungeschminkt" is a book about women whose journey readers can experience first-hand, with all its difficulties. Author Christine Harbig has written down their stories in an exciting and entertaining way.

The women tell of milestones and successes as well as hurdles, prejudices and setbacks. They provide fascinating insights into their personal and professional lives: whether it is their parental homes or pregnancies, values and profitability, time and stamina - they let the readers in on it all and offer numerous tips. The portraits go far beyond the initial phase and show the paths taken in the years that followed, which were not always straightforward and included the courage to fail.

The new edition contains 20, that is, four more portraits, and three new film portraits supplement the accompanying video offering to seven women entrepreneurs’ stories. Also in the book: practical tips and useful information on mentoring and networking, including a compilation of important networks for women entrepreneurs.

The book was produced as part of the entrepreneurin project, which became part of the MentHo (Mentoring Hohenheim) program when it ended in 2021.

MentHo program: science, business / public authorities - and starting a business

With MentHo, the University of Hohenheim has been bringing female students and graduates together as mentees with a mentor with professional experience since 2002. In this way, it provides support in planning a career, in science as well as in business or with public authorities. The university has been funding the mentoring program itself since 2006 - permanently and indefinitely.

In 2017, a third pillar was added - business start-ups. University mentoring programs do not usually cover this topic. The project entrepreneurin was launched together with the Nürtingen-Geislingen University of Applied Sciences (HfWU).

The heart of entrepreneurin is the KarriereBus, which takes female students and doctoral candidates to women-owned companies. Getting to know role model female entrepreneurs often proves to be an important experience for the participants on the path of their career planning.

 

Support for start-ups at the University of Hohenheim

The joint project entrepreneurin, specifically for women on their way to starting their own business, was funded by the Ministry of Social Affairs together with the Ministry of Science with money from the European Social Fund. The project partner was the HfWU. At the end of 2021, the project, which was funded with 470,000 euros, came to an end and became part of the MentHo program.

entrepreneurin is embedded in a wide-ranging concept for start-up support in Hohenheim. A central element is the Innovation Greenhouse - a greenhouse for ideas and innovations with its own premises on the university campus. It is a showroom and co-working space for people interested in starting up, offers a FabLab to quickly turn ideas into prototypes, workshops and pitching events - in short: a lively start-up culture. The Hohenheim guiding theme of bioeconomy always plays a special role.

Margarete von Wrangell - 100 years of Germany's first full professor

In 2023, the University of Hohenheim will celebrate an anniversary: 100 years ago, Margarete von Wrangell was appointed Germany's first female full professor. The German-Baltic noblewoman was born in Moscow on January 7, 1877. She is considered one of the pioneers in the fight for equal rights in science. Her research activities also continue to have an impact today: she devoted herself intensively to researching phosphate-based fertilizers - then as now a scarce raw material.

In 1918, she came to Hohenheim, where she habilitated in 1920. Against the resistance of some Hohenheim professors, she was appointed full professor in 1923. She founded the Institute of Plant Nutrition, which she headed until her death on March 31, 1932. Today, it still forms a central pillar of agricultural research in Hohenheim.

Text: Elsner