A HBKU student leadership programme, comprising 24 students from Education
City, is making a difference in the small Indonesian town rebuilt by Rota
A select group of university students from Education City have reached Indonesia to spend their spring break working with local school and communities in the town of Bayyat. The 24 students, possessing demonstrated leadership potential, was sent on this once-in-a-lifetime mission under the leadership programme titled, Ebda (meaning ‘start’ in Arabic).
The students will work to absorb the local culture and interact closely with schools and local communities. The 10-day trip is known as ‘Not Your Average Spring Break’.
Supported by Reach Out to Asia (Rota), the participants will spend 10 days from February 27 to March 7 in the small town of Bayyat, which was re-built by Rota following the earthquake that hit this town in 2006. “Not Your Average Spring Break is an annual service learning trip sponsored by HBKU Student Life. It is designed to build confidence and creativity as well as leadership skills in the participating students,” said Ameena Hussain, the Director of Student Life, Hamad bin Khalifa University (HBKU).
“Each year, we carefully select a group of students from across Education City to travel to a location where they engage with and support the local community. Previous trips included Thailand, South Africa and Nepal,” she added. The Ebda programme was launched in September 2014, in partnership between Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar University, Maersk Oil Qatar and Redrock International.
Students from both universities can join Ebda that focuses on experience-based learning. It is designed to support the development of high quality leaders in both private and public sector by equipping them with genuine leadership skills and behaviours.
In preparation for the trip, the students were divided into groups of four. During their stay, each group will be responsible for providing the students at the Bayyat school with an overview of areas such as media and technology, linguistics and culture, social entrepreneurship and environmental awareness.
“Rota’s Volunteer Programme has been conducting International Volunteer Trips since 2006. Through trips to Pakistan, Cambodia, Nepal, Bangladesh, Tunisia and Indonesia, the Volunteer Programme has sought to create a movement of volunteers and responsible global citizens within Qatar that actively carry out initiatives to make a positive impact on the lives of communities across Asia,” said Essa al-Mannai, Executive Director, Reach Out to Asia.
“Rota is happy to see HBKU adopt this model for its Not Your Average Spring Break service learning trips,” he added.
Hundreds of students have previously participated in activities with Ebda programme such as the LeaderShape programme, and the Desert Challenge. Not Your Average Spring Break will be offered by the HBKU Student Affairs Department with logistical support from Reach Out to Asia and sponsored by Maersk Oil Qatar.
“We are delighted to support this Spring Break learning trip for the first time. At Maersk Oil Qatar, we are committed to assisting young people become leaders, who will in return contribute to the ongoing growth and development of the State of Qatar in the years to come,” said Sheikh Jassim bin Saud al-Thani, Head of Qatarisation at Maersk Oil Qatar.
In another activity, the Ebda programme is organising WALK, which will take 10 students who demonstrate an interest in leadership development to undergo rigorous training in preparation for one of the world’s biggest challenges: climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.
This experience will allow participating students to unlock their potential while supporting the team. This activity will take place for the first time in March this year.



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