HOLII: Entrepreneurship with a regenerative focus
2026-06-26 HOLII – the Holistic Impact Incubator at Leuphana University of Lüneburg – supports people with start-up ideas who wish to tackle societal challenges through entrepreneurship. The programme combines traditional start-up support with considerations of impact, responsibility and regenerative economics. Through workshops, mentoring sessions and collaborative project work, participants learn to consider economic viability, social impact and long-term sustainability as an integrated whole. In an interview, Dr Ele Jansen, one of the programme’s coordinators, talks about her role at HOLII, the programme’s unique features and what she herself gains from working with the teams.
How would you describe your role at HOLII?
My main responsibility is shaping the programme’s content. Together with Nicol Hartz, I ensure that our speakers understand what matters most to us. The individual sessions are designed to build on one another in a meaningful way and form a common thread. To achieve this, we work closely with our expert*s and mentors. It’s important to me that everyone understands the contribution they’re making to the participants’ overall development and that we’re genuinely helping them move forward.
Why is a focus on regenerative business practices essential for aspiring founders?
Societies can no longer operate as they have done in the past. Sustainability alone isn’t enough if it merely maintains the status quo. Regenerative economics goes one step further: it asks how we can restore and strengthen ecological, social and human resources.
This affects every level of a business. How do we produce? How do we manage resources? But also: how do we work on a personal level? Many founders experience enormous pressure to perform. At HOLII, we want to raise awareness that regeneration is not the opposite of performance. Anyone who wishes to be effective in the long term must understand that the old principle of performance and exploitation leads to illness and weakness. It is important to take more breaks, to sleep well and for long enough, and to look out for one another within the team to ensure that no one pushes themselves harder than is good for them. And this is inherent in nature: the earth must rest in order to regenerate and replenish its nutrients.
What do participants take away from this?
Participants learn to view their ideas not only from an economic perspective, but also in terms of their impact on people, society and the environment.
The metaphor of the seasons helps us here. Every phase of a start-up has its own rhythm: developing a vision, planning, implementing, reflecting and reaping the rewards. Many participants realise that development does not always simply mean acceleration. Progress often arises precisely from taking a step back and consciously observing what has already grown.
This way of thinking can be applied to businesses, products and one’s own life. Participants learn to recognise cycles and to manage energy and resources more consciously.
Which aspects of the HOLII broaden participants’ perspective compared to a traditional incubator?
We combine three perspectives: entrepreneurship, impact and regeneration. This combination makes HOLII holistic – that is, all-encompassing.
Whilst many incubators focus heavily on growth, competition and funding, we also ask: What social problem is being solved, and what kind of future does this create? Our aim is not to produce individual winners, but to strengthen ideas that are based on values and can have a long-term impact.
The Harvestival at the end of the programme also follows this philosophy. It is not a competitive pitch with prize money. Instead, we celebrate together what has been achieved: successes, learning experiences and developments – even where things haven’t quite worked out yet.
What have you personally gained from working with the teams?
I am constantly struck by how differently success can look. Of course, it’s a success when someone has developed an idea to the point where they’re now in a position to set up their own business.
But success can also lie in realising that your own path is, after all, a different one.
When participants leave HOLII with greater clarity, self-awareness and the ability to take action than they had at the start, that’s a huge success for me personally.
Was there anything that particularly impressed or surprised you?
I was thrilled by the diversity of the participants. We brought together people from very different cultural backgrounds, with varied experiences and ways of thinking. This gives rise to conversations and questions that you often wouldn’t come up with on your own.
I was also impressed by the teams’ drive. They want to leave the world a better place and are pushing their causes forward! Some participants have found the business partners they’d been dreaming of. Others have refocused their original ideas during the programme because they’ve gained a better understanding of their target audience. Still others have found partners and are now working together on a slightly adapted idea. And from what I’ve heard, HOLII content is also being taken into other contexts and making waves there. That’s really good.
It’s lovely to see how much energy is generated when people work together towards a better future.
Bewerbung für den nächsten HOLII-Batch bis zum 18. August
Die Bewerbungsphase für den nächsten Durchgang des HOLII – Holistic Impact Incubator läuft noch bis zum 18. August 2026. Gesucht werden Gründungsideen mit gesellschaftlichem Mehrwert, die wirtschaftliche Tragfähigkeit und positive Wirkung miteinander verbinden möchten. Die Teilnehmenden erwartet ein mehrmonatiges Programm mit individueller Begleitung, erfahrenen Mentor*innen, praxisnahen Workshops und einem interdisziplinären Netzwerk, das sie auf ihrem Weg von der Idee zum Vorhaben unterstützt.
→ holii.de
