Volunteering at the UAE national day event | King’s College London
The UAE Society at Kings College London and other UAE societies from different universities across the UK held the 48th national day ceremony in Kings College London. The event was attended by notable personalities and dignitaries such as Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, Abdulla Al Kaabi (cultural attache), Rawdha Al Otaiba, deputy head of mission at the UAE Embassy and other diplomats and Families. The purpose of the event is to educate students, visitors from different backgrounds about UAE culture. It included a number of cultural activities such as musical paragraphs and discussions on the history of the UAE and the achievements of the state. During the event, I played the role of host and I ensured that guests and visitors feel welcome, as hospitality is one of the defining characteristics of Emirati culture. I also helped set up the event and the stalls for the societies to showcase their achievements in spreading the word about the UAE, its cultures, and values. During the event, I learned the importance of cultural education because many visitors had little information on the UAE but were very open to learning. In the end, we were able to positively portray the UAE and its culture, where we fostered understanding and friendship with people from different backgrounds. ”
— 2nd December 2019 | 12 hours
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YEAR 3”
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Special Olympics Hike | Peak District
To raise awareness of the Special Olympics, held in the UAE in 2019, 70 UAE scholars studying in the UK organised a hike in Northern England. To support our efforts, embassy diplomats also joined, including the Vice Ambassador of the UAE. I learnt the power of teamwork and group motivation in surmounting tough obstacles, and how collaborative projects like our group hike can really unite anyone and everyone, however different their station in life. ”
— 11th of March 2019 | 10 hours
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Youth council volunteer | Battersea Evolution, London
The widely attended Youth Council event saw attendance from ministers and industry leaders. It was an honour to volunteer for the event. I was responsible for meeting with senior officials and ministers, greeting them, making them feel at ease, and ensuring all their needs were met. I learnt how to organise a highly complex event, and ensure the smooth running of internal logistics for an effortless outward presentation. I also developed my interpersonal skills, communicating with so many high status individuals, and built my personal network. These organisational and communication skills will no doubt come in useful in future years. ”
— 15th & 16th of February 2019 | 23 hours
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Manchester UAE society | Manchester University campus
Manchester University’s UAE Society held an event to educate Manchester students about UAE culture. I helped the society prepare food and drinks, organise the photography and engage with Manchester’s community. I learned just how important cultural education can be as many of the visitors had little information on the UAE, but were very open to learning. Together we were able to positively portray the UAE and improve the understanding of Manchester residents. ”
— 27th of November 2018 | 5 hours
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YEAR 2”
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Al Hili Park Volunteer Work
I have played an active role on humanitarian grounds with volunteer work at the Takatef Organization during my spring vacation, as well as Al Hili Park where workshops and activities were organised to enrich and enhance the understanding of children, the future of tomorrow. This was carried out by Takatef team, comprised of inspirational leaders and speakers. I had to work effectively within a team of 51 other volunteers. We organised the daily activities of all children from morning through till afternoon, designing an exciting but educational agenda to keep them interested and provide value. These activities includes more recreational pursuits like football, but also talks on healthy eating and how to cook. Other skills we taught were ice-skating and acting which challenged the students but ultimately helped them grow to learn new skills. Many children were very attached to their parents and guardians which meant great importance was placed on helping them feel at home and more comfortable. I had to adapt my approach for students to perceive me as warm and amicable, which allowed me to interact with the students more easily and teach them more effectively.
What did I learn?
My first learning experience during my time volunteering came from the Takatef team directly. They were extremely talented and knowledgeable about how to get the most out of students. I learnt how to motivate, inspire and encourage others to take on new challenges (like ice-skating) and learn new skills students would perhaps otherwise not be interested in (like healthy eating). My improved motivational abilities will help me immensely when convincing employees to work harder to meet deadlines, when inspiring voters should I decide to continue more directly into politics, or when getting approval for a new business decision in the private sector. The volunteer work is more generally beneficial as great significance is attached to it in the political sphere. Volunteering shows that one truly cares about others and is here to serve them - this is the real job of the politician, so being able to evidence these attributes will help should I continue into a political field. Additionally, my voluntary participation has taught me the importance and nuance of interpersonal skills. Firstly I learnt how important communicating empathetically was with the students for them to follow my instruction; but, secondly, I learnt that one cannot use the same communicative approach with all students, some need a more disciplinary angle and some a more sympathetic angle. This will help when deciding how best to communicate with future employees and what angle of communication is required to derive the most value from their work hours. Working here has also improved my confidence. Talking freely with so many other volunteers and so many children, I am now able to address larger crowds and inspire audiences, a skill I previously did not possess. These will undoubtedly help me in the political sphere when convincing potential voters of fellow politicians of my ideas; or in the private sector, where I will need to give presentations on new ideas to large, sceptical audience. Inspiring confidence in listeners is key to securing deals. ”
