Ibdaa Day is all about creativity and once again students at Madinat Zayed and Ruwais Colleges showed staff and visitors just how creative they were.
In a world where knowledge is easily available, it is important to know how to use that knowledge to create, to innovate and to improve the social and cultural environment and students proved that they were more than ready to take up the challenge.
One of the featured presentations was an ‘Aquaponics’ cultivation system. Water is precious in the UAE and this new system uses a lot less water to produce both vegetables and fish who are grown together in a soilless system, where the plants clean the water and the fish provide nutrients for the plants. Students wanted to see how it worked and if they could adapt it for the harsh desert climate they live in.
Business students were ready to try out the entrepreneurial concepts they were learning, and several of them set up their own ventures for the day, selling their produce to students and visitors alike.
There was a café with cakes and cappuccino, sandwiches and fresh juice. There was an ice-cream parlour, with very popular milkshakes and a stand selling local foods and bread.
“I understand now how to set up my own business, I have learnt how much hard work it is and I still need to do my accounts, but I have also leant how satisfying it is to have done this for myself,” said Haifa at the end of an exhausting day running her own café.
Foundation students, still working on the basic skills they need to join a Bachelor’s course, had their first taste of organising an event for themselves. Some set up craft stalls to show off their work and others set up stands to show off their culture. Others organised art activities that kept everyone busy and the future business women sold flower arrangements and crafts.
Photography is a popular activity amongst the students and there was an exhibition to show off some of their favourite photographs. Most of the photographers are self-taught, learning their skills from the internet, You Tube and sharing with each other, followed by lots of practice to build up their knowledge and skills.
If this exhibition is a small sample of what they can now do, there is a lot of creative talent in the Western Region. Visitors to the colleges were very impressed with the ability and imagination of the students.
The day ended with an awards ceremony, where students were rewarded for their contribution to college life over the whole year; for their dedication to their studies and for their contribution to the local community. The whole day was an example of the enormous entrepreneurial energy amongst the young people of Al Gharbia and a window onto the exciting future of the Western Region.
