Autumn of many colours

I don’t simply aim at the red and yellow leaves on the trees (which I find repulsive as representants of the autumn since being a child), I mean the colourful cultural events. The first semester is always full of many deadlines and duties, but still it is also full of new opportunities as it opens the doors to various initiatives, societies and projects.

A very interesting projects that I have joined at the end of this academic year is the Edinburgh’s SHRUB. The full name is the Swap and Reuse Hub. It is a communal space with the aim of promoting material sustainability by a system of swapping things that are no longer needed instead of disposing of them. The members can gain new things n the SWAP shop, such as household and sports equipment, textbooks, clothes or shoes. Workshops and courses of repairing broken stuff are the next way how SHRUB tries to combat the over-consumerism of students. This month there was a ‘do it yourself’ workshop about home making solar panels, then making cardboard furniture, mending clothes and there will be a session about repairing bicycles.

The next volunteering that contributes to the colourfulness of my autumn is the work for the Scottish Institute for Enterprise. After learning about the structure of this organization that makes competitions for student projects to win grants for start up businesses, now I am going to work as the student ambassador for the ECA (Edinburgh College of Arts). Moreover I was chosen as a participant of the 3DS Conference, where various successful entrepreneurs will share their knowledge about starting own business.
 
The favourite of my autumn activities is the adventurous exploration of the nearby Cramond Island, where we are making plans for writer’s retreats, as a part of a long term project. The aim is to make models and documentation for dwellings for writers who only need background for three days. Instead of inner opulence, rather the integrity of the whole objects in nature is important. Our explorations of the terrain are quite exciting, as the island is only accessible during the low tide, which changes every day. It is therefore crucial to know the tide timetables, as when the one-mile long path is flooded, one has to stay imprisoned at the hostile island until the next low tide. Apart from the windy and rainy climate, the old and obsolete military bunkers complete the mysterious and dark atmosphere.

And even if the autumn was gray and inclement, it doesn’t really matter, as I am going to spend it behind the window of my studio, from which there is the best view of the Edinburgh castle from the whole city.