Quentin Guirad, an International Marketing Student in Strathclyde Business School, attended the Enactus Worldcup that took place in Washington DC from September 30 to October 3 attended by around 3,000 people.
Enactus is a social entrepreneurship programme that involves around 62,000 students and business leaders all around the world and which aims to make positive impacts on others’ lives. The objective is to develop projects that improve the standard of living for people in need and empower them in a sustainable manner.
Existing since 1972, and originally known as the SIFE Programme, Enactus is more than a simple community of students, as it also involves professionals and academics. Therefore, Enactus is a real opportunity to meet professionals and is a worthwhile example of social engagement for a student’s CV.
Quentin explains, “As an Enactus member, our aim is to turn ideas into actions, and actions into progress in order to empower local communities and improve lives.
“In our projects, we are guided by educators from our schools, and supported by business leaders from many international companies.
“Once a year, a team from each country gathers and presents their projects during the national competition. The best national team from the 39 participating countries are then allowed to represent their countries during the international competition, which took place in Washington DC this year.
“Besides the competitions, some challenges are also proposed by some sponsor companies in order to finance some projects and get professional recognition of our projects. It was through one of these challenges that I had the opportunity to attend the World Cup. Indeed, I have been involved in the Enactus program for one year now with my French Business School in Lyon.
“The project we developed is called “les roues de l’espoir” (“the Hope Wheels”) and aims to sensitize children from 6 to 9 years old about road dangers and help disadvantaged and disoriented youth to get their driving licenses in order to find a job. We developed a 20 page educative booklet, and built a partnership with the Vinci foundation to sell and distribute them. The money raised will finance workshop sessions to help people in need of mobility.
“I really enjoyed the world cup as it was the opportunity for me to meet other cultures, to discover other projects and to gain inspiration to further my engagement. Where others may see problems or insolvable issues, I prefer to see challenges and a reason of engagement!”
To find out more about the Enactus program, watch this video or visit the official website.
If you want to feel the inspiration of the worldcup, click here.