Our Stories at IES
Improv Theater Meets Entrepreneurship Education: Impropreneurship
The first day of the seminar for the module “Startups in the Agri-Food Industry” gets off to an unusual start here: We play improv theater together. What may seem surprising at first glance follows a clear logic: Anyone who starts a business operates in an environment of constant uncertainty. Markets change, customer expectations shift, resources are scarce, and plans fail. This is exactly what improvisational theater trains you to do—in a playful, physical, and often very funny way.
“Entrepreneurs face uncertainty that requires them to adapt to unexpected obstacles.” — Balachandra, 2018
Excursion to UrbanGreen: Urban Farming in a Bonn Bunker
On Dies Academicus, May 20, we visited a very unique indoor farm with about 15 students.
Tofuel Takes Second Place at the Growth Alliance Idea Camp
Students from the “Startups in the Agri-Food Industry” module took second place at the Growth Alliance Idea Camp in Frankfurt with their vegan protein bar, Tofuel—marking the second consecutive year that teams from Bonn have returned from Frankfurt with an award.
From an informal settlement in Nairobi to a coding competition in China
Moritz is a doctoral student at the Chair of Entrepreneurial Behaviour and studies the conditions for sustainable entrepreneurship in East Africa. He looks at how entrepreneurs build ventures that can sustain themselves, how they fund them, what role their communities play, and how empowerment works. For the study he has spoken with 67 entrepreneurs and support organisations across Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, travelling to several to meet entrepreneurs in person. In March 2026, he visited the informal settlement of Kibera:
People love to say, “Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” What they don’t say is, “And it would be nice if you gave him a fishing rod.”
— Trevor Noah, Born a Crime
ACERE 2026 in Sydney: Share Insights, Experience the Community
In February 2026, our doctoral students Dorothee and Kristin traveled to Sydney for the ACERE conference, hosted by the University of Sydney. They returned to Bonn with a wealth of impressions, new contacts, and fresh ideas.
Research Stay in Melbourne: Exploring a Startup Ecosystem on the Other Side of the World
In early 2025, our Ph.D. student Kristin spent two months at the Melbourne Connect innovation hub (University of Melbourne) and further strengthened our ties with our strategic partner Down Under.
SparkUp Meeting: Networking, Inspiration, and Collaborative Paths to Entrepreneurship
The 4th SparkUp Meeting hosted by the Chair of Entrepreneurial Behavior brought together aspiring entrepreneurs on October 28 to refine startup ideas and define next steps—the next meeting is scheduled for November 25.
Success at the Rentenbank Idea Camp: Three Teams from the University of Bonn Win Prize Money
Students enrolled in the “Start-ups in the Agri-Food Industry” course at the University of Bonn swept the board at this year's Rentenbank Idea Camp in Frankfurt: Four teams from Bonn were nominated, and three of them took first through third place.
Guest Lecture Series: Insights from Startups, Innovation and Diversity
This winter semester, the Institute for Entrepreneurship once again invited experts from startups, companies, and academia to provide students with practical insights into entrepreneurship, innovation, and management—ranging from investment processes and diversity strategies to building a food and beverage brand.
Bachelor's course completion - Business Startups in the Agri-Food Industry Winter semester 24/25
In the module “Startups in the Agri-Food Industry,” six teams of students developed innovative ideas—ranging from orange peel bars to a nutritionist platform—and presented them to a distinguished panel of judges from the business, urban development, and academic sectors.