future water leaders Tag

A wholesome online WetSkills SA experience

Posted on March 11, 2021
in Blogs, Events, W@tskills- South Africa 2021, W@tskills-South Africa 2021
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

W@tskills South Africa 2021 by Sbusiso Khuboni, Kimara Moodley (South Africa), Mpho Ramothole (South Africa) & Paul Notenboom (Netherlands)   The first day was of course not like the usual offline event, we met ‘online’… not in the DMs but everyone’s video was all ready for on fleek first impressions. A diverse group of participants.   [caption id="attachment_58156" align="alignleft" width="300"] Plenary session[/caption] Mixing business with pleasure… All participants were excited and eager to experience this different kind of WetSkills SA Challenge. As soon as cases were introduced, the enthusiasm was not as 100% as the morning of the first day hahahaha – some landed on cases they prayed hard not to get.     For most of the days, it was serious business packed with literature review, brainstorming and sharing of ideas all in the aim to find solutions to the cases… Work and deliverables piled up; but the afternoon to evening social chills did help to unwind and be...

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And the winner is…

Posted on March 11, 2021
in Blogs, Events, W@tskills- South Africa 2021, W@tskills-South Africa 2021
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

W@tskills South Africa 2021 by Karabo Mokoena,  Thandilizwe Bengeza (South Africa). Zintle Mbeka (South Africa) and Wessel de Beer (Netherlands),   8th of March: D-day!   The tension was there from the moment everyone woke up: it was D-day. In terms of tension, it was nothing like D-day in 1944, but it was very close to the D-days that mark the end of international soccer transfer periods. The day began with a little speech from one of our supervisors, Phomolo.   [caption id="attachment_58171" align="alignleft" width="300"] Phomolo is a supporter of Manchester United and he is not afraid to show it.[/caption]   As a Manchester United supporter, he is used to dealing with the stress that D-days bring.           The assignment was clear: finish the pitch, the poster, and the paper. After a very enjoyable week, it was suddenly clear again that we were competing. And when the excitement is at its highest… everything goes wrong. Imagine completely changing the poster you were working...

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Getting close to the end, the temperature and pressure rise.

Posted on March 9, 2021
in Blogs, Events, W@tskills- South Africa 2021, W@tskills-South Africa 2021
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

W@tskills South Africa 2021 by Mashila Phihlela, Lutendo Nemayhola (South Africa), Tshepang Kgositau (South Africa) and Gerben van Muiswinkel (The Netherlands)   Day 8: Hard work and loosening up in the social We worked on the feedback we received from the meetings on Thursday. Getting the focus right in the reports and posters proved difficult for some of the groups, but with the help of the supervisors and good discussions all teams got there. The Social meeting lasted 4 hours and we had some good fun over some drinks and our WhatsApp chat exploded with GIF images and stickers. Our friendly, not so friendly, South African supervisor defied the current hot weather conditions of the country during our morning plenary session.   Day 9: From hangovers to being grilled by supervisors We were guided through our learning process by His Lordship Lindelwa. He was full of energy and showed us how to build a poster in no time. We continued...

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“Not entirely virtual, Field trip involved”

Posted on March 6, 2021
in Blogs, W@tskills- South Africa 2021, W@tskills-South Africa 2021
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

W@tskills South Africa 2021 by Sharon Setshedi, Masha Makgwale, Wendy Dube (South Africa) and Sebastiaan Haverkate ( Netherlands)   Day 5: Communication style - Pitch & Poster                                 On the fifth day of the Wetskills competition, we were launched into the program with a cheerful reflection session. In the session, our supervisors (facilitated by Phomolo Khonthu) asked us to reflect on whether assigned groups were working well and if we had a good understanding of the cases we were working on. The session was then followed by a presentation done by Ms Nobulali Mtikitiki from the Department of Water and Sanitation on bursaries in the water sector. The presentation was very informative and gave insight on the available opportunities. We were then trained by our supervisors (Ioana Dobrescu and Peter de Jong) on how to present an effective 2-minute pitch as well as creating a winning poster. A creative presentation accompanied this training session, and this made...

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Virtual Challenge: Is it as fun as an offline event….?

Posted on March 5, 2021
in Blogs, Events, W@tskills- South Africa 2021, W@tskills-South Africa 2021
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

W@tskills South Africa 2021 by Nkhensani Tshidzumba, Awodwa Magingi, Lindelwa Ndhlovu (South Africa) Janne Brouwers and Renate Heemskerk (Netherlands)   25th of February: Name Pronunciation! Unfortunately we didn't start our journey in the car or plane to meet each other; we met online and started to know each other a little bit better. “HI EVERYONE” Everybody introduces themselves with a picture and in the meanwhile the energy of Odwa Ntsika Mtembu (one of the supervisors) is blowing through our screens. The participants were allocated the case studies and were able to meet their members for the first time. [caption id="attachment_58106" align="alignright" width="321"] Plenary- Trying to pronounce different names[/caption] How do these look like?! You will see some awesome pics below. Sometimes you will see the joy but also the serious approach and listening style is visible on our faces! We also talked with our case owners. So many ideas were shared, that at the end, your head was spinning...

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Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 Finals

Posted on November 7, 2019
in Blogs, Wetskills Netherlands 2019
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 by Shifa (Oman), Margo (South Africa) and Niurka (Mozambique)   05 November 2019- As the second day of the Amsterdam International Water Week started bright and early, wetskills members were hard at work practising for the very last time.   [caption id="attachment_56904" align="alignleft" width="261"] Lunch and briefing sessions with South Africa water sector delegation[/caption] [caption id="attachment_56902" align="alignright" width="188"] Odwa moderating the lunch and briefing session with South African water sector delegation[/caption] Organized by The Netherlands embassy in South Africa, the Southern African participants (South Africa, Lesotho, Mozambique, eSwatini and Zimbabwe) of 13 members attended a lunch with the Director- General of the Department of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation (South Africa), Mr Tshangana where each representative from the six groups had 2 minutes to present their case and their solution. In addition to the DWS delegation, other delegates were executives from Umngeni Water, Mhlathuze and more.   In addition to this, discussions with the entire...

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“Let IWW Amsterdam International Water week Conference begin”

Posted on November 6, 2019
in Blogs, Wetskills Netherlands 2019
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 By Luyanda (eSwatini) & Asmahan (Oman)   4 November 2019: Waking up today was a struggle; from writing a report, pitching a poster, and making the final touchups on the poster, we realised that time was not on our side. As the day started, some delegates were busy with registration for the conference, while others were having coffee and mingling with other people.                                                                       We first attended the plenary opening where basically we were told the importance of the Amsterdam International water week from various leaders such as the Dutch Special Envoy for International water Affairs, Henk Ovink.    We then had to participate in the round table discussion, where we were expected to come up with solutions regarding whatever...

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Deadlines! Deadlines! Deadlines!

Posted on November 6, 2019
in Blogs, Wetskills Netherlands 2019
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 by Veerle (The Netherlands), Allyn (South Africa) & Almutamed (Oman)   03 November 2019: Today was all about finishing our paper and poster. After a busy week of working, today was the final day. All the work is done and now it is time to enjoy the Amsterdam International Water Week (AIWW).    In the afternoon half of the group practiced their pitches, the other half went to cafe De Balie to watch the movie ‘Thank you for the rain’.    After the movie, we went to a meet and greet to participant of the AIWW. We got to meet water professionals from all over the world creating a great environment for networking.                      During the the meet and greet we saw a performance by a South African theatrical group creating more awareness about water usage and a few future water leaders were invited for a dinner with the delegates to discuss water challenges.     ...

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From A to B Travel experiences

Posted on November 3, 2019
in Blogs, Wetskills Netherlands 2019
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 by Kalpana Maraj (South Africa) & Ismail Laghmiri (Netherlands)   It was an early start for us this morning as we prepared to travel from Rotterdam to Amsterdam. Chaos ensued as those of us staying at A&H attempted to haul our suitcases down the stairs but we eventually managed to get make it to Rotterdam Central Station on time.   Some of the delegation had arrived in Amsterdam earlier to find a place to watch the Rugby World Cup final which was South Africa vs England. The South Africans who arrived later (and other sports enthusiasts among us) streamed the match on the big screen at the hostel. Everyone was in high spirits when South Africa won the game and it was time to celebrate! But first we had to finish our draft paper and work on our pitch.   [caption id="attachment_56861" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Streaming of the Rugby World Cup Final at the hostel [/caption] Today...

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Challenge Skills

Posted on November 3, 2019
in Blogs, Wetskills Netherlands 2019
by Odwa Ntsika Mtembu

Wetskills The Netherlands 2019 by Aslıhan (Turkey)   We started the day very sharp at the Jazz Cafe Dizzy working on our pitches and posters which will be presented at the Amsterdam International Water Week (AIWW) on the 5th of November 2019, Tuesday. It was such a great but busy morning that some of us even missed the lunch break by working.     At 14:00, we started to present our draft pitches case by case given by the main and backup pitcher of each group. Afterwards, there was a poster feedback session to check each others' poster and comment on it, which was really helpful and smart. All in all, we gained ideas and opinions from each others' pitches and posters regarding creativity, innovation, intelligence, development, etc. In addition, it became a very tough challenge for some of us on time management and preparation for our formal pitches and poster representations ahead of AIWW!   Even...

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Wetskills

Wetskills is an independent Foundation based in The Netherlands. Wetskills is part of the Human Capital Agenda of the Dutch water sector. KNW Waternetwerk, the Royal Netherlands Water Network, is the (financial) administrator for Wetskills Foundation.

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