^{Many students wonder "what can you do with a bachelor in Global Responsibility & Leadership?". As a fundamentally interdisciplinary programme, GRL leaves many doors open, and today, we are hearing from Sara Torres, an exemplary student who just graduated from the programme. She will tell us all about her journey through GRL, her experiences, including a minor abroad and an internship, and about her future: a master's degree in International Humanitarian Action.}

A Small Introduction :)

Hey everyone, I'm Sara:) The CF blog team reached out to me to share my experience and GRL and what my future plans are. I’ll tell you about myself, about my plans, about my relationship with this programme and this campus, and add some comments on a conversation I know many alumni wish to have with current students about confidence in the programme. I’ll keep it short and sweet, because if there's one thing I understand is little time jaja. 

So, let's begin! I'm now an alumni of our beloved Global Responsibility & Leadership (GRL) programme. I did the Energy, Ecology, and Climate (EEC) major, and took most of my electives in the Culture and Economics tracks. My minor was in International Development Studies in Halifax, Canada. These courses were pivotal in my personal development, but more on that later. I also graduated from the Honours College, where I had the opportunity to take drastically different courses from other faculties and develop new skills. For my Living Lab in the second year, I did a research internship with an audit and consultancy company called Flynth, and learned a lot about corporate sustainability, and especially how much I did not want to end up in that field. My Bachelor’s thesis was on the ethical responsibility of International Non-Governmental Organisations to decarbonise their operations (I won't say more because if I start, I won't stop!). 

My post-graduation plans

I'm a student that came all the way from Spain and I've since fallen in love with, (and in), the Netherlands. Despite the dark winters, and sad boterham lunches, the Netherlands is a wonderful place to be, and student life here genuinely rocks. Like most of us, I came to Leeuwarden to study, so since I was already here, and knew I wanted to study some more, I looked for programmes nearby or in the country at least. I found, and instantly fell for a programme called ‘International Humanitarian Action’. It's a two year Master’s offered by NOHA, a network of universities around Europe, which means that even though Groningen will be my home university, I will be able to pursue this degree in different campuses around Europe, and possibly (hopefully) around the world in a partner university from the Global South. I have always felt drawn to the third sector, and with this degree I’m confident that I will end up there. I imagine myself making philanthropy, developmental aid, and humanitarian work more sustainable (the non-profit sector, despite its good deeds, is still a big actor in global systems which contribute to climate change and environmental harm!). 

Personal and professional development , pre, during, and post GRL

Like most people you’ll find at Campus Fryslân, I have a wide range of passions. My true devotion however is to the environment, and everything I do ultimately ends up relating to improving our relationship with the environment and alleviating the harm we have caused it, and indirectly, the harm we cause vulnerable populations too. I arrived at GRL with my eyes set on environmental activism and conservation, corporate social responsibility, and compliance to environmental regulations, these are still topics I care about, but through my journey, I have discovered new interests and subjects I believe I can contribute more to. My favourite class in GRL was ‘Ethics and Global Responsibility’ and the international development courses I took during my minor contributed strongly to the choice of thesis topic and additionally, my master’s programme. I have learned how inescapable politics and economics are in the discussion of environmental protection, and that in our noble pursuits of tackling climate change, we must place vulnerable and local populations at the heart of decision making. Our ethical duties are not to either the planet or society, humans are part of nature! This particular transdisciplinary, decolonial approach to seeing big problems like climate change, world hunger, or other inequalities and injustices is a key characteristic of Campus Fryslân and something I have come to appreciate how rare and necessary it is. 

A small note on faith, trust and pixie dust. 

I understand the frustration felt at different stages of this journey, the uncertainty of what this vague degree is about, the dissatisfaction you might feel, the impostor syndrome, comparing yourself to other students around the world. As someone who came from a more traditional, academically rigorous schooling, jumping into such a new way of learning and thinking, working and grading, was a challenge. I often felt concerned about my future prospects at… anything… I compared myself to my friends back at home, the engineers, the neuroscientists, the lawyers, and lost a lot of confidence in my value as an academic… what exactly are we, us, the so called ‘globally responsible leaders’? This is an unfortunately common sentiment, I know. I don't want to sound patronising, but nevertheless, as a graduate, I beg of you, have faith. For some, faith can be interpreted as believing in something without evidence. And the reality is that it takes time for one to realise how much you grow, learn, and develop as individuals. It is only when you take a step back, reflect, compare how you approach the world before and after, how you relate to people, how you understand the complexities of life, that youll appreciate the unique, incredibly impactful education GRL has given us. This programme was built on ambitious groundbreaking ideals, of teaching and learning in new experimental ways, of fostering critical thinking to degrees other universities couldn't even imagine! Have faith in values of this programme, have trust in your teachers and their passions and methods, have confidence in the Campus Fryslân community, you will learn just as much outside the classroom than in it, and above all, believe in yourself and your ability to make the most of this remarkable environment, believe that you will work hard and that you will grow into a person you would admire, believe that it will all work out, and that it will all be wonderful. And if you have any doubts whatsoever, ask any other alumni, or hit me up because I’d love to talk :)

I’ll leave you with that my friends :) Hopefully I'll see you around, enjoy the summer!

Love, Sara