A Telefónica representative leads the Design Thinking workshop at Fabretto’s San Isidro center

Fundación Telefónica’s social outreach program is working alongside Fabretto this month by funding an intensive workshop on innovation for 40 Fabretto students aged 17 to 24. This workshop, part of Telefónica’s “Employability and Entrepreneurship Project,” aims to impart life skills to young adults. The workshop shares many goals with Fabretto’s vocational and life skills education program: to give youth resources and motivation to help them become entrepreneurs and agents of change in their communities.

Last week, the project launched with the first workshop on “Design Thinking.”  A Design Thinking workshop challenges participants to work through a six-step model with the goal of putting innovative ideas into action. For our students, this was a great opportunity to meet new people, and feel empowered to make positive change in their communities by thinking outside the box.

Fabretto students during their Design Thinking workshop, San Isidro

This week, the students practiced the methodology of innovation by responding a a challenge: design the “desk of the future.”  After completing the steps, they presented their ideas to their peers. Throughout the week, students will identify problems facing their own communities and use the six-step process they learned in the workshop to develop innovative responses.  The leader, a Design Thinking expert, will provide personalized support to help them bring their ideas to life.

Fabretto students design and present their innovation to classmates

With this new skill set, our students will be prepared to become entrepreneurs in Nicaragua, where the formal job market is limited.  Through our education programs and strategic collaborations with foundations like Telefónica, Fabretto is empowering the next generation of youth with job readiness skills and equipping them with the tools to generate their own opportunities.