UKEhjelpa: Fun with a purpose

Journalist: Nora Helgeland

Each UKEyear, UKEhjelpa collects money for a charitable project. This year, corona or no corona, UKEhjelpa will make sure UKA i Ås is more than just a party, through different events and measures. Your effort gives us students an opportunity to “give back”, and this year the funds will go to Strømmestiftelsen’s project “Green jobs in Mali”.

The capital of Mali, Bamako, is at the moment faced with an enormous problem regarding trash, and the unemployment rate for youths is high. This is a problem in a country where half the population is below 15 years old, as it leads to higher rates of migration and crime. Africa’s third longest river, the Niger river, was once a beautiful piece of land and a source of life in Mali’s capital, Bamako, but has become a floating mass of trash. What can we do while being on the other side of the world? UKEhjelpa has taken matters into its own hands.

When the committee leader of UKEhjelpa, Mari Gjeitnes, chose this year’s project, she almost felt a bit mean. She had a pile of great projects to choose from, and she could only pick one. Luckily one project stood out from the crowd, Strømmestiftelsen’s “Green jobs in Mali”. What makes this project unique is that it covers an incredible amount of areas, including environment, education and innovation.

The goal of “Green jobs in Mali” is to create new workplaces and an increase in income for the local population. Plastic is going to be gathered, sorted and recycled through a cooperation between existing organizations and governments. Teenagers will get training in recycling plastic and how to start a cooperative, and they will be given the equipment they need as well as starting capital. Women will be put in groups that will get equipment and training in gathering plastic. These groups will sell plastic to the cooperatives that will use the plastic to make desks for schools.

In other words, this project will make sure the plastic that is now floating in an increasingly polluted ocean will be used for desks children and youths studying at Strømmestiftelsen’s Speed Schools can use. So, by being a bit more cautious about your choices at UKA, (saying this might be a bit cliché), you can make contribute in making the world a better place!

Get rid of the fear of the future from the pandemic era starter pack:

• Become a voluenteer!
• Save “pant”, UKEhjelpa will go around collecting it every Sunday!
• Keep your eyes and ears open to information regarding UKEhjelpa events and closed to covid-19!
• Go to UKEhjelpa’s events!

Being a KS for UKEhjelpa is a lot of work, but Mari Gjeitnes is motivated by the opportunity of contributing to a bigger cause. She points out that it is also extremely social, and she recommends that everyone gets involved in UKA. She was “hooked” when she worked with the stage during the UKErevy in 2018, and she decided she wanted to become even more involved. For UKEhjelpa she has been creative and daring in trying to capture possibilities of earning more money. “You think about money all the time!”, she laughs with a witty smile. Quirks like this are not unique to UKEhjelpa, which is mostly just fun and challenging. If you are interested in contributing and having new experiences, apply as a volunteer for UKA i Ås this autumn!