Being a student of the Bucerius Master of Law and Business (MLB) means more than attending classes, studying hard and passing exams: the program also requires participants to be socially engaged. Therefore, as part of the program, students have to complete a certain number of “social hours”. In doing so, they are free to choose among many different options for volunteer work while working towards their degree.
Extenuating circumstances during COVID-19
When the pandemic occurred, and the lock down restrictions were put in place, the MLB students had to come up with an idea to help others but at the same time respect the social distancing rules required. That is how the social project “Let’s clean the Planet” started. Here is what Claudia Podesta from Peru, initiator of the project, liked about the idea:
“For me, the Alster is the most beautiful place in Hamburg. However, it is incredibly sad to see garbage floating in the lake and scattered in the parks around it. Whilst enjoying the first days of beautiful spring weather at the Alster, the idea sprang to mind to simply pick up the garbage ourselves! Even though an NGO usually takes care of the garbage problem at the Alster, the ongoing restrictions meant that we could not join this project but had to start our own initiative instead. Once the idea had been approved, it was proposed to the entire class. The class were all very willing and happy to join the project. The idea of the project was to do something good for the environment and the city whilst allowing us to have some fun at the Alster. So adorned with gloves and garbage bags, smalls groups of students met in the parks and beaches around Hamburg helping in their small way to clean the planet. Gradually, ‘Let’s Clean the Planet’ grew to include other places, cities, and even countries like Tanzania and Turkey.
It was a great experience for the MLB class as a group and allowed us to enjoy one another's company during a time where our lessons were taking place online and we were spending much time alone. We took many photographs and drew interest from the general public who started asking questions and showing their gratitude. We would be really happy to see future students of Bucerius Law School continue with this social project and contribute to making Hamburg and other cities clean and green. Perhaps future MLB classes can make the project even bigger and more ambitious by involving more participants. The collected garbage such as plastic can also be recycled. Hence, we have only just started with this very important project.
Let’s hope that what started due to a pandemic continues as a tradition for future MLB students!”
