This project was to give an opportunity for the club members to do to enhance their public speaking skills by doing speeches or presentations on specific topics during monthly meetings. This was also conducted during joint meetings and in all the proceedings, this was followed a a first item on the agenda. The audience on Zoom ranged from 30 to 50.participants online.
As many as 12 speakers had the opportunity to be a speaker during the session as this was held in the monthly meetings. Speakers spoke for a range of 5 to 15 minutes on topics that are personal to them in their Rotaract journey or other educational topics such as leadership, climate action, covid prevention, etc. As this was happening on a cycle, members had an idea to speak up on diverse topics and therefore, were able to make it an educational session for the other participants while also giving the chance to the speaker to express their ideas in a way of improving their public speaking. Additionally, a summarised post on tips to improve public speaking was shared on Facebook, in the month of May. Overall, the project was successful in building confidence in speakers to continue this project which a new speaker every week and creating a friendly environment to speak up on what they are passionate about.
DIYer is a novel initiative by Rotaract CLub of Alumni of University of Moratuwa in the avenue of professional development which was aimed to address skills development which is essential on an individual level going by the concept Do It Yourself (DIY). Going beyond a skill development program the project focussed to improve awareness on basic handyman skills and develop skills and share knowhow on areas which benefit even the entrepreneurial venture development. The areas covered under this project ranged from skills that will help you at home in fixing, and tweaking household activities to tips and tricks to plan your dream wedding to skills that will lead to entrepreneurial ventures by your own self. The project was carried out under three sub-projects over a period of three months via online platforms. The audience covered youth seeking entrepreneurial opportunities, the general public especially youth who showed interest in developing much-needed basic skills for day to day fixes and youth interested in getting the know-how on event planning and event management.
DIYPlumber – Say no to water leaks
DIYPlumber was a session which focussed on sharing knowledge on basic plumbing skills with practical demonstrations. The event was held on the 14th of March 2022 from 6.00p.m onwards via the Zoom platform and Facebook live. The session was conducted by Mr. Sarath Vithanage, a trainer from National Apprentice and Industrial Training Authority (NAITA) based on a course Basic Plumbing offered by the organisation. The session comprised a practical demonstration conducted live on the session which enabled the audience to get a clear understanding of the steps followed. The session covered areas such as how to manage a water leak, and the selection of necessary tools and materials which fixes for different types of applications. Since the session covered one of the basic skills required by any individual the audience comprised many youths who showed interest in the subject
En Vogue – Be your own Fashionista
This project is about awareness sessions on fabric making techniques. The project included four sessions which were conducted over Zoom platform as below.
11 th of May – Session on skills related to Crochet conducted by Mrs.Ganga Rathnayaka from National Crafts Council, 12 th of May – Session on skills related to Beeralu Lace conducted by Mrs. Stella Edirisinghe from National Crafts Council
19 th of May – Session on skills related to Patch Work conducted by Mrs. Fathima Zhaeema, an instructor at School of Hobby Craft
20 th of May – Session on skills related to Paper Piecing conducted by Mrs. Fathima Zhaeema, an instructor at School of Hobby Craft
Attendees comprised undergraduates from the Department of Textile and Clothing Engineering, University of Moratuwa and audience also comprised non-Rotaracters who were interested in fashion. Sessions were started by 7.00 pm via zoom and Facebook live was broadcasted. Sessions were around 45-60 min time duration. The sessions were conducted by three resource persons from the National Crafts Council (NCC) and School of Hobby Craft established by a proficient in the field Ms. Daisy Wittachchi. The sessions comprised two sections where the resource persons demonstrate the technique featured in each session and the Q&A session which allowed any participant to clarify any doubt that existed with the subject matter. After each session, who these techniques can be used as a method of income and what are the institutions that give further training were mentioned. This enabled the participants who were in the field of fashion designing to get an understanding of how these techniques could be brought on to a commercial level and what organisations’ assistance could be obtained in the process.
Wedding Bells
Wedding Bells, the final showdown of the series of projects under DIYer was a session on wedding planning and event management aspects organised by Rotaract Club of Alumni of University of Moratuwa with the partnership with The Bottom Line Events & Wedding Planners as the knowledge partner fo the session. The session was held on 27th May 2022 via Zoom from 6.30 p.m onwards with the participation of many Rotaractors and non ROtaractors. The session covered many areas which are of value when organising a wedding for the youth such as;
Event planning
Financial management
Emergency situation handling
Florists & designers selection
Venue selection
The session was conducted by Ms. Yolande Gunawijeya, Managing Director of The Bottom Line Events & Wedding Planners.
‘Get Hired’ is a novel initiative of Rotaract Club of Alumni of University of Moratuwa with the intention of providing insights on different industries for the third-year undergraduates of the Faculty of Engineering of University of Moratuwa, prior to the commencement of their internship programme.
On 2nd of May 2018, the first ever session of ‘Get Hired’ was conducted for University of Moratuwa – Engineering Batch ’15. The session was enlightened with the enthusiastic participation and support from the past Rotaractors, who shared their experiences in various industry sectors at different positions. The underlying purpose of this was to give a clear understanding to undergraduates on how to select an appropriate corporate for their internship placements.
The discussion was carried out by grouping the participants according to their field of specialization. Each group was mentored by a Rotaractor who has experience in that specific specialization. Available career paths in a particular specialization, factors to consider when selecting a training place, recommended training places, notes on preparing a CV, experiences on facing interviews, areas to focus during internship period, work ethic during internship, relationship with training supervisor, research opportunities available in different specializations were some of the key topics that were taken into discussion.
Alumni Rotaractors passed down advises to the participants, while guiding them on how to build their career paths. Though it was an evening of professional guidance, the session catered to build fellowship among the university Rotaractors and alumni Rotaractors as well.
