Youthinkgreen – Egypt
Abdelrahman Elgammal, University of Evansville, Egypt, 2014 – 2015 NESA UGRAD
As a UGRAD participant, Abdelrahman embraced the spirit of service and spent his spare time serving the Evansville Community as a volunteer high school biology tutor. Upon finishing the program, he carried this experience home with him to The Cairo University to wrap up his final year of study in biology. As he completes his senior year, Abdelrahman has combined his passions for both service and the natural world in his role as Project Manager for Youthinkgreen-Egypt, a student-run organization incubated in The Cairo University since 2013.
From its inception, Youthinkgreen has grown tremendously, serving many people and communities, bringing the conversation of a sustainable living environment to the forefront of the discussion among students and members of neighboring communities. One of the most recent and meaningful accomplishments that Youthinkgreen-Egypt has achieved thus far is the launch of an annual Summer Camp. Supported by organizations from the governmental and private sectors, Youthinkgreen-Egypt organized their second three-week Sustainability Summer Camp this year by partnering with the Technical University of Berlin (TUB) Campus in El Gouna, Egypt. After a tough selection process, they chose the top 41 delegates out of more than 1000 candidates with engineering or scientific backgrounds ranging from 18 to 25 years old. The participants attended theoretical sessions and practical workshops about solar energy, sustainable cities, energy management, and the Water Energy Food (WEF) Nexus. More importantly, they had the chance to visit a solar energy plant, a recycling factory, and a water treatment plant where they observed the practical processes related to the theoretical sessions they learned during the camp.