The HERA Labs sessions in Sweden are gaining momentum. Implemented by WomeninTech Alliance (WITA), the program has found a receptive audience in a country with a long tradition of peer-led adult learning. The women joining these sessions bring experience, eagerness to learn, a genuine drive to upskill, and a clear sense of what they are looking for.
In Sweden, women aged 45+ already show strong educational attainment, solid workforce participation, and an active entrepreneurial spirit. HERA Labs meets them at that point and builds from there.
That said, Sweden has required its own approach. Women here tend to choose learning opportunities based on personal interest rather than committing to a fixed program sequence.
For WITA, this has meant thinking creatively, designing sessions around topics that genuinely resonate, moving away from a traditional classroom structure toward something more open and interest driven.
It is a learning, but also a reflection of something deeper: the Swedish adaption of HERA Labs is itself an expression of the methodology’s core value: Learning should be relevant, personal, and grounded in real life.
Within that spirit, sessions have been carefully shaped around the four phases of the HERA Labs methodology – Team Building & Mutual Aid, Learning to Learn, Stakeholder Engagement, Personal Action Plans – ensuring that the journey, however flexibly navigated, remains purposeful and coherent. The tools provided by the methodology have been woven into the sessions and have been well perceived, offering participants a practical and reflective framework.
In one session, participants were invited to reflect on a simple but meaningful question: What truly drives you? Through personal mission-building exercises, women began naming their values, strengths, and passions. One thought stayed with the group long after: Passion without dedicated time and energy remains just a hobby. For many, it was a truth they already knew, spoken out loud. The room was calm, focused, and quietly charged with a sense of clarity.
In another session, the focus turned to how mindset shapes the way we learn and grow. Drawing on research into fixed and growth mindsets, participants explored how self-limiting thoughts can hold them back – and how a simple word like “yet” can begin to shift that. What made the session particularly meaningful was the openness in the room. Women shared personal struggles with honesty and generosity, turning what could have been a theoretical session into something grounded and real. It became clear that participants were not only seeking new knowledge, but they were seeking connections and exchange of experiences.
Across all sessions, something consistent emerged: women who arrived thoughtful and left a little more certain of themselves – supported by a program that is learning, alongside them, how to serve them best.
