The calibre of students taking it upon themselves to inspire and instigate their own innovative and original ideas has rocketed and almost become a staple of the all encompassing Brit student. From student journalists, part time designers and society workers, students around Britain are finding new and exciting ways of enhancing their CV, gaining experience on the go as well as building a bigger and more productive network.
Take my fellow University of Manchester students Anoud Al-Fawwaz and Alyazia Sabra: one a Town and Country planning student, the other an Environmental Management student who, along with their love of landscape and design, fused these two entities to create not one, but two different yet innovative blogs and online store.
The first is Green Eve (http://www.thegreeneve.blogspot.co.uk/), a blog page dedicated to motivating all students to think with an environmentally friendly mindset in all aspects of life: shopping, food, charity, whatever. They write that "everyone in the society must understand their obligation towards our planet. It has so much beauty to offer us so why can't we do the simplest of things, such as recycling, to give back to it and preserve what is left of it? ".
Not many students would put greenery and helping the environment on their to do list along with 'hand in essay' and coffee dates. But these girls want to celebrate the earth we live on by taking easy and simple steps to promote a greener outlook on life while still enjoying student life on the side. They collect and archive all the top stories about ethical clothing, charity opportunities as well as combining them with their own original photography of the various awe inspiring cities, towns and landscapes they have travelled to and from.
Anoud said "I enjoy photography and writing, so I get to do both on Green Eve. I created a platform for myself to practice what I enjoy while also promoting ideas that I believe in."
It's all good and well that these two success induced ladies to have placed their green fingers in the pie of opportunity (I know, I know), but they seized another on campus opportunity after being constantly approached by fellow style aware students who loved Anoud and Alyazia's uniquely styled earrings. This, lead to the birth of à la Audrey (http://alaaudrey.tictail.com/).
"It's all about creating an opportunity for yourself out of ideas and activities you are passionate about. And as a woman, it's important to embrace the idea that there aren't any limits to what you can achieve."
à la Audrey, their second venture caters for green aware (of course) and style ready students who want to enjoy fashion but without the negative impacts it can have on the environment. They bring you a collection of vintage earrings for the modern yet chic fun-loving girl. And the clincher? All packaging is eco-friendly!
Students are constantly getting a reputation for expecting everything to be posted to their front door with a heavy salary attached; though I know as well as many others that this is strongly untrue. Whether it is in the city of Manchester, or any other city in Britain, students like Anoud and Alyazia are connecting with people from all over the world to greater their potential, meet new people, advertise a good cause while working on something they truly believe in.
If an individual or many can balance their degree alongside other ventures, what's your excuse?