Blogging My Way Through Uni

It's that time of the year again, where students across the country are at war with their finals whilst resisting the temptations of the good weather outside. In two weeks, first year will have skipped by! Before that though, I've got to sit through my last few exams.

I've taken a step back this month to give myself more time to prepare, nevertheless is has been an interesting month with some healthy distractions. Here are three I'd like to share with you...

Paraiso Costume Launch

Paraiso School of Samba, of which I am a proud member, put on a showcase of all the beautifully designed costumes for this year's carnival season. The night was kicked of with traditional pagode style samba from the amazing band Quintal Do Samba.

The separate sections that will then make up the procession of about 500 odd people representing the school had representatives modelling their costume for this year.

I was lucky enough to sport the costumes that the bateria (drummers) will be wearing for Notting Hill Carnival this year. Sounds weird, but I can't tell you how happy the band is that we've finally got pockets on a parading costume now!

Working for The Challenge

I just finished up the last round of training for a role in the summer as a Music Practitioner for The Challenge. The Challenge is a programme financed by the National Citizen Service that helps put Year 11 leavers in touch with their communities through volunteering.

The programme typically lasts for 3 weeks. The first week consists of team building activities between the groups of participants. The second week, where my role comes in, involves the groups visiting community partners and interacting with them using a skill they learn from the practitioners (art, music, sport, media and drama) as the basis to kickstart their conversations.

I will be working with many groups across the summer, teaching a simplified version of samba to Year 11 leavers across North London. I'm quite excited for this role as I was on the programme myself after finishing secondary school and I look forward to hopefully serving as a positive role model and perhaps helping to spark an interest in samba among the groups I teach!

Woodward BBQs

The amazing team at Woodward (which I will be part of next year) put in two amazing BBQs this month! A large majority of those at Woodward (the university accommodation) will be finding new places to stay and it was really nice to get everyone together before the summer. Also who can say no to free food and drinks?!

There is a strong sense of community here at Woodward and I look forward to helping to nurture that next year with the team of wardens, sub-wardens and hall seniors.

I hope you have all enjoyed the bank holiday weekend!  Wish me luck with my exams.

I turned 21 this month! I have to say its been one of the best birthday months I've had so far - and thats saying something. But I am sure that after you read this month's blog you will agree with me. Ill give you three reasons why this has been a month to remember...

I met Obama!

Thanks to the AMOS Bursary and their relationship with the US Embassy, I was lucky enough to be asked to attend a 'Town Hall' with the president on his visit to the UK. Waking up at 5:30 AM on a cold Saturday and waiting for what seemed like an eternity in a line before entering a building has never been so worth it!

It took me a few days for everything to properly sink in. But I was in the same room as Obama, one of the greatest men to ever walk the planet. This was apparent when he walked in the room... silence. Ears perked up, postures straightened and notebooks at the ready. His presence commanded respect and admiration from from everyone in the room. Logic and reason underpinned all his answers to the questions posed by the lucky few in the room.

The greatest take home message that day was the importance of the day was to learn from the past and to understand the fact that change takes time and that this should dishearten those looking to bring about change.

"The arch of history of history is long but it bends towards justice", Obama said, quoting MLK Jr.

The London Mayoral Assembly

I am aware that this month has been quite politically charged, I make no apologies for that! I have never been as proud to be a Let Us Learn campaigner as I was this month.

100 people turned up to the representing Let Us Learn at the Copperbox in the Olympic village. A total of 6,000 people turned up to hold the front-running mayoral candidates, Sadiq Khan and Zac Goldsmith, to account on their promises to the capital once they become mayor. The event was hosted by CitizensUK.

Let Us Learn was represented by Ijeoma whose story received roars from the crowd! I was so proud to see all the hard work we do with the campaign being recognised by 6,000 active campaigners from across the city. You can have a look at the event in its entirety below (Ijeoma's speech starts at around 1:57:00).

Back in the Labs!

The last term of uni has started and we are back in the labs! This is exciting as we are researching how to manipulate the properties of alginate membranes for commercial applications.

The chemistry behind these alginate membranes is the same that drives the production of fake caviar. We are working with a company called Skipping Rocks Labs on their Ooho! Project which aims to encapsulate water in these membranes to reduce the usage of plastic bottles.

Ooho capsules are totally edible and biodegradable. Our work in the labs will inform the company in changing desirable characteristics in the membranes to make them better suited for commercial use. The ingredients for making the capsules are available online and are very safe to handle.

How to make an Ooho capsule

I hope you have enjoyed reading my blog! Have a good month this May and lets pray we get some good weather *fingers crossed*

And just like that the second semester is done! It feels as though time is flying by, this time last year, I wasn't even sure whether I would be at university. And now, first year is nearly over!

If you would like to know what I have been up to this semester, start reading the blog from the January entry. March has been one of the most exciting month so far. That will be because of...

*drum roll*

Maya 2016

Maya - a theatrical production put together by the Malaysian Society at Imperial - was such a brilliant experience. I decided to buy tickets on a whim after a few friends (mainly my lab partner) convinced me to go along. I am glad I made the decision! The show was so well put together and considering the amount of people involved it was an absolutely amazing achievement by the Malaysian Society. 

The production detailed the rise of a young app developer whose rise to fame was haunted by his guilt and driven by his business partners' greed for more money (with a Malaysian twist). The audience were also treated to amazing bursts of performance art, my favourite can be viewed below.

Spanish!!!

At Imperial, we get the choice of picking an extra subject for degree credit, an ancillary subject. I decided to do Spanish every Tuesday as my ancillary course and I've loved it! We had our final exam on the last day of term and it went really well!

Glad to have had the opportunity to improve my Spanish whilst at university. Stay tuned for how those exams went (I have a feeling I did quite well!). Strictly speaking there will be one more oral examination before the Spanish course is done but I am glad that it is approaching an end. Having classes till 6 on Tuesday (even for amazing Spanish classes) was quite demanding.

Vitality North London Half-Marathon!
For those who read my last few blogs, you might be well aware that I have been training for another half-marathon. I didn't quite reach my target time of under 1 hour and 30 mins but I did manage to get a new PB of 1 hr 35 mins 24 sec! As a team, we managed to raise over £3,000 for Just for Kids Law - a charity that helps to represent and support young people with their legal battles.

I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has supported us so far and to also highlight the fact that it is not too late to do so if you haven't had the opportunity:
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/just_for_kids_law

A picture of Just for Kids Half-Marathon Team with our medals!

Leadership Training w/ Citizen's UK (AGAIN :D)

Casting you back to the first semester, I attended a two-day leadership training programme hosted by CitizensUK (an organisation that provides a platform for other campaigns to bring about positive change in their communities) where we were given training to improve our skills of storytelling, negotiation and ability to organise alongside others with a common cause. 

This was built upon in another successful training session that has seen the "Let Us Learn" team grow from strength to strength. The focus of the last training session was to lead up to the upcoming mayoral elections where we plan to question the candidates (Zach Goldsmith and Sadiq Khan) on their views on migrants in London.

They will host an audience of about 6,000 people at the Copperbox in the Olympic Village and I take this opportunity to openly anyone who wants to attend as a guest of mine (feel free to get in touch).

Can't Forget Easter!!!

And just like that, another month flies by. Finally received the results from the January exams - I got a high 2:1 on average which I'm chuffed with especially bearing in mind how I felt after each exam! The lab reports have also came back as high 2:1s which left me over the moon.

The shortest month in the year has felt even shorter still, It's been very busy at university with computational labs, helping out the Chemistry Society and keeping up with samba amongst other things.

Chemsoc University Challenge

Earlier in the month, ChemSoc put on their own version of infamous BBC Two gameshow hosted by Jeremy Paxman: University Challenge. As one of the year reps for first year Chemists, the responsibility of choosing who would represent us for the challenge fell to myself and Sarah, the other year rep.

After fending off strong competition from contenders from the other years, the team went on to defeat the all star staff team to everyone's surprise. Well done lads!!! (And whoever chose the team!)

Orchids 2016 @ Kew Gardens

If you're from London, you might have spotted the ad below on your regular commute on the London Underground. I have been lucky enough to be chosen to provide entertainment and contextual atmosphere in the form of a small samba show and dance class along with other drummers and dancers from Paraiso School of Samba!

It was an amazing experience. I've never been to the Kew Gardens beforehand and I wasn't overly keen the idea of going to a flower display but this really was special. The arrangements and choice of specimen are a celebration of plant life and habitats in Brazil (which explains why my glasses fogged up as soon as I walked in).

Vitality North London Half-Marathon

Training has been underway for the run on the Sunday, 20th of March through most of North London (so many hills -_-) and finishing up inside Wembley! I'm aiming to run under 1 hr and 30 minutes which will be very difficult but isn't impossible.

I will be running to help Just For Kids Law raise the much needed funds to keep the amazing work they are doing for children and young people in London.

If you would like to support with a donation please visit this link:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/just_for_kids_law

Once again, thank you for reading my blog and I hope you are all well :)

This months started off with the first exams I have ever sat in 2 years! It was a nerve-wracking experience. The first paper was a challenge but I felt quite confident after the last one. One thing I can say is that I'm glad those are over!

Lab reports followed suit straight after the exams, with the blistering cold and very little sunlight this month you can imagine how glad I am that January is finally over. Bear in mind it is carnival season in Brazil (where most of my band members are right now!). Well at least I'm improving my average keystrokes per minute with all these lab reports!

Okay... the rant about having to sit exams and write lab reports whilst watching friends enjoy Brazilian carnival season is over. January hasn't been that bad actually.. 

*drum roll*

Let Us Learn!

I've had the pleasure of representing the "Let Us Learn" campaign alongside the founder of the campaign, Chrisann (pictured above), on one of the many school visits to raise awareness around the current laws regarding young migrants and their access to higher education.

We spoke to a crowd of 100 Year 11 boys prepping for their GCSE exams - I was very nervous. The last thing I would be interested in at the time of sitting my GCSE's would be what a total stranger had to say at my morning assembly. To my surprise, we were warmly received and I look forward to visiting more schools on behalf of the campaign this year.

My fellow campaigners over at "Let Us Learn" have had a very busy month! We also met with our steering group this month which was a very insightful experience - especially hearing from highly respected professionals in their field on how best they felt the campaign could be moved forward.

Vitality North London Half Marathon

Training for my next half-marathon also began this month; I'm dreading it. Another 13 miles through the streets of London. However,tThe fact that the route ends in Wembley has provided me with the motivation to train that extra bit harder. I hope to beat my personal best of just under an 1 hour 40 minutes  (recorded at the Royal Parks Half) which will take some doing.

Carnaval!!!

As I mentioned before, January marks a period of celebration in Brazilian. As a samba percussionist, gigs have been flying in as the samba community in London join in the celebrations. I will be playing at Guanabara, Holborn on the 5th and 13th of February so feel free to join in the celebrations however you can.

Thank you for reading my blog once again! I hope you have all had a brilliant start to the year!

P.S. Here is the link to an article in the Independent following up on the campaign for those interested in a quick read! - http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/emmanuel-opoku-the-student-who-secured-his-university-place-by-crowdfunding-a6828531.html

The tantalising three-course meal (top row) and other pictures from the ChemSoc Dinner (others).

After a long break, we’ve finally been let back into the labs! This time we were doing proper Chemistry! By that I mean mixing chemicals together and making things explode. There was definitely a lot of mixing but not much in the realms of explosions. It was still a lot of fun though, the practical aspect of the subject has always been something I had a keen interest in. 

The fact that we were under a time pressure added to the excitement of it all. As a group, we just about managed to finish three time-consuming reactions with all the preparation around them in four lab sessions. Although this was a stressful week, I enjoyed being able to learn by conducting experiments in the lab.

Curry Night!

Rememeber Mexican night with Manny? Well we went one better this month and managed to squeeze 16 people into the kitchen for naan bread, onion bhajis, poppadoms and three different types of curry!

Curry night with friends from Imperial.

Leadership Training w/ Citizen's UK

Shortly after the end of the first semester, I attended a two-day leadership training programme hosted by CitizensUK (an organisation that provides a platform for other campaigns to bring about positive change in their communities). Many members of the Let Us Learn campaign were present alongside many other young minds who were seeking change in their surroundings. We met up with other campaigners from Blood, Sweat and Tears whose main aims were to change the perceptions of migrants in everyday media.

Most of the training was based on improving our skills of storytelling, negotiation and ability to organise alongside others with a common cause. I took a lot from these two days and I look forward to possible collaboration between the two campaign groups.

Let Us Learn alongside campaigners from Blood, Sweat and Tears at QMUL.

So what is the most exciting thing that has happened this month?

I was lucky enough to be asked by the band manager of Songhoy Blues to support their sold out show at KOKO in Camden. As far as good gigs go, I'd say this was right up there with with the best; it's not everyday you get to play to 2,000 people!

*They misspelt my name but I forgive them*

If you haven't heard of the band I would strongly recommend a listen. Their music is just as captivating as the story behind the formation of the band. Imagine you were not allowed to listen to, play or share music as of today... Well that happened in the North of Mali in , forcing the band members to travel elsewhere in order to carry on making a living as musicians. They met in the country's capital and have been making wonderful music every since.  

I might have lied when I said enough of the politics, I promise I'll keep this one short. 

So, we paraded alongside all the activists campaigning for action from government to tackle climate change. By we I mean Rhythms of the City, the new band I joined as of September, and this was the first gig I played with them which was quite fun despite the appalling weather, choppy winds and bouts of rain - you'd think the climate would be on side for that day of all days.

Did I mention we were behind Thom Yorke, from Radiohead, who was playing some quality tunes on a float designed to look like a melting ice cap with a disturbingly life-like polar bear right in the middle of it. Big respect to him for starting his set with some heavy-hitting dub classics!