We’re living our lives in the cloud to an ever increasing extent and the work we do confines many of us to our laptop and the internet. But we haven’t relocated our work to the online world only – we do banking, shopping and read the latest news there. So many stimuli, so much information. Although this setup has its advantages, human beings are fundamentally offline social beings. We are hungry for personal encounters and community.
Running a co-working space, we are well aware of this all. In English, the word co-working suggests a somewhat matter-of-fact meaning at times, whereas the Hungarian közösségi iroda literally translates as community office. At Impact Hub Budapest, community comes first at all times. We provide a home for personal and professional relationships – a functional and aestheticly pleasing minimalist atmosphere awaits members and visitors alike. Even the space was designed to foster collaboration and conversations. Several people can sit down at one desk and the bistro usually gets really loud arouncd lunchtime, when our members eat their lunches at our big dining table.
We feel the overwhelming effect of the digital world and the flow of information, so we’re building a community in which members can rely on each other, let it be a joint project or a professional brainstorming. We believe that everybody has their strengths and only by exploiting those can one have real effect on their environment. Our programmes and trainings aim to attract attention to social problems and we provide all the knowledge, toolkit and networking capital at our hand so that they can realize their ideas. In February, we organized a study group, where the participants elaborated on the material together and learn the basics of sustainable business management together. The training was a big hit, so we’re organizing an autumn edition as well. In addition, we also provide trainings and mentoring for beginner entrepreneurs for free within our Incorpora program.
We are concerned by global problems – such as the climate crisis – and we believe that we can act efficiently only together. With that in mind, we joined the global commitment of the Impact Hub network, within which – among other things – we will organize zero waste days at Impact Hub in order to raise awareness among our members.
It’s important for us to open our community for those who do not neccesarily need the co-working space itself. That’s why we came up with the Connect membership. Despite its name, we encourage Connect members to spend as much time at the Hub as possible, attending our workshops, business clinics and conversation to develop personally and professionally, too.
When it comes to community, we always say that “you can take out as much as you put in”. We’re doing our best to spread this attitude day after day, as we believe that only by creating a participatory society can we find answers to the challenges of the present and the future.
Written by: Roni Karsai, Community Catalyst
