 They say every great dream begins with a dreamer Chapter one This story starts with an idea and the boy or a girl in a bedroom With nothing but a pen and a laptop Chapter two That pen has scribbled furiously across that page countless time and that laptop has meant hours illuminated in front of tired eyes Cans of energy drink and that idea has turned into a passion Chapter three That passion has found its way into the inbox of like-minded individuals signed off of words like honestly, do you think it's a good idea? Do you think it will bang? Chapter four the idea turn passion turn confirmation from trusted friends that it will indeed bang has turned into a project Skip to chapter six that project has become viable That project has become a business that project has become a reality that project has the potential to change the world Because that's logical people we become stuck in our ways reluctant to change Function the same when there's nothing to gain we say if it's not broke Why fix it? There's no need To reinvent the wheel Forgetting that all skyscrapers are once just labs of stone Google all these apps, but once just scraps of code But skip back to chapter one and that boy Could have been jobs the idea could have been Apple That girl could have been Nina Simone the idea could have been freedom All he ever takes is one idea and a whole lot of effort whether it happens in a Campus storm room or a meeting board room He only ever takes one idea To change the world To the class of 2020 Congratulations, this year has been uniquely challenging Despite all the trials of 2020 and our attempts to cancel it all together. You have still managed to make it here Your graduation Some of you will have pulled all-nighters crowned for tests trouble to get an essay together on deadline day Others may never have to face that stress However, you made it you did it When we graduated so as we sat in crowded hot rooms decked out in our gowns Eager to hear our names called so we could have our opportunity to shake our hands with Gracia Michelle of our aim Us but this year things are different Who knows when we'll be able to sit together to acknowledge all of our achievements Although life has changed so much. We hope you feel just as proud You've made it through your degree overcoming the countless hurdles that have been throwing at you. That is something huge to celebrate Having reached this point. I remember something that Consuelo one of the so-as cleaners told us on a bigger line this year You she said us now have been put a small seed inside a seed to fight for justice and dignity For ourselves and for others Please do not let that seed die and keep watering it in the years to come That is definitely the strongest lesson I take away from so-as and I hope it is also a big one for you Never forget the power we hold as students as communities Especially when those seeds blossom collectively the task of summarizing a so-as experience Dispensing some kind of inspiration or worse advice and reassurance that the world is not that bad. It's not an easy one With our brains being constantly overloaded with the news that the world is basically ending It has never been clear that the world is very different from our microcosm at so-as But surely that's the whole point That is why as a community we value so-as that is why we are constantly fighting striving for a better so-as Whether that be through decolonizing our minds in the curriculum of the justice for workers campaign Whether standing in solidarity with the BDS campaign or the struggle in Brazil The South community is varied and diverse in its pursuit for a better world. I came to so-as a bright-eyed Bushy-browed 18 year old straight from the schticks in Ireland Not knowing what I had gotten myself into I began to embark on a journey that would reframe how I see the world from my course Meeting people across the globe and of submerging myself in student union activities like many of you I find myself leaving so-as with a completely new identity Pather 2.0 has a better understanding of different experiences and they have questioned the very things that they grew up to know So-as has given me the gift of an identity and the direction that I have always wanted in life For that I am eternally grateful To quote the late professor of social anthropology, Dr. Winnie the Pooh How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard? I've been so excited all year to write this speech and it is somewhat Disappointing that we're not able to be there with you to cheer you along and to watch you cross that stage But we're so proud of you. It has been an honor to serve you as your sabbatical officer this year And I send the best luck fortune and prayers whichever one works for you So that the future is as bright as you can dream it to be so whether you learned about Social constructs and colonial imaginaries in the Lucas lecture theater global hip-hop in G-52 The resource cast in Wolfson lecture theater all transformative justice in the Brunei gallery in this video We celebrate you Whether you're heading straight into employment Interfering to education or you're taking some time out. We have no doubt that you will continue to achieve great things Congratulations class of 2020. You've made it after strikes and COVID. You're ready for anything Congratulations and big congratulations to all you history students It's been such an immense pleasure to get to know you all Teach many of you and learn from you all over the last three or four years Take care and stay in touch Hi Sarah Parsons here from the School of Finance and Management I'd like to say a huge Congratulations to all so us alumni this year. You've you've done so well to graduate under these circumstances. So well done and For all my students in particular. I've really loved working with you. I'm gonna miss you Please keep in touch and good luck as a service alumni to the Center for Gender Studies graduating class Congratulations, Hongara's son are well done I hope that even though we are not able to be physically together to celebrate this particular moment That you find some time with your family friends and those who have supported your journey to toast to this very important milestone I want to remind you that even though this particular moment of your life and Journey with the Center for Gender Studies has ended you will always remain a part of the CGS family and will look forward to hearing your news And celebrating you wherever life may take you once again Congratulations and Hongara's son Hello So as and the graduates and the post the graduates you know how Congratulations Today is a special day as a Chinese teacher teaching Chinese for 26 years at a source I have attended many graduation ceremonies Both as a teacher and as a PhD graduate This year's ceremony is of course very special Because the ceremony is online. I Am pleased to say to this year's graduates whom I have taught from different departments specially from the department of East Asian language and cultures Four years ago when you joined the source, it was also a special year because 2016 was a source a hundredth anniversary I Remember your first the Chinese lesson with me and I told you then but four years later you would have no problem listening to and speaking Chinese and It has all happened as I promised You learn the Chinese from beginner level And four years later you can speak fluent Chinese Understand Chinese culture and communicate with native speakers by using the target language well This has been clearly shown in your performance in one of my 12 teaching modules Chinese 401 the advanced modern Chinese language listening and speaking I Am very proud of you for your great achievements Every year your examination time is my half is the time and This year's graduation time is my biggest of all Because it arrives after you have coped with unusual types of difficulties successfully congratulations Although you have graduated from source today remember that so as we will always welcome you back At this moment at the beginning of your new journey I would like to share with you the following Chinese saying to complete my speech Shushan yolo Qin Wei Jing Xuehai Wu Ya Ku Zuo Zhou Diligence is the path to the mountain of knowledge Hard work is the boat to the endless sea of learning Qian Li Zhixing Shi Yu Zu Xia A thousand miles begins with a single step Bu Ji Kui Bu Wei Zhi Qian Li No step no mile Zhu Yimen Jin Hao Qi De Deng Dada Cheng Gong May you all succeed in your future Thank you and goodbye Thank you Dear student It's my honor today to congratulate you and your family While looking back at the legacy we have created here in the past years So as was your pod where you encountered the world firsthand supported by your teachers and peers Today you're out and ready to make change. So what are you going to do? You might be tempted to answer I'll hold my smartphone and ask Google or Siri. What do I do and The answer will be most likely. There is nothing on your calendar yet so Don't ask your smartphone. Ask yourself. What do I do now? And my hint is add new items to your calendar and While doing so I urge you to live in the moment and make big choices face challenges and make change Listen to the rebel within you that will lead you in your journey of finding your identity to become who you are And when you finally find your identity be the element of change in your family Community and the whole world be the catalyst go on to make create the world you want to live in Make change step by step Achieve simple accomplishments that build up to the life that is yours. But while doing so, please remember three letters Never forget them. I all you Turn to your family and partner who supported you in this journey and say I all you To your teachers who guided you and helped you understand yourself. I Oh you Turn to so us and say I Oh you and Finally turn to yourself Turn to the rebel inside you who helped you be who you are Who is constantly pushing you to be a better version of yourself and say I? You I Wish you a pleasant and memorable day Go on inspire the world in the same way you inspired us here and so us and thank you Reflecting on the world because that is university one thing remains true for all of us We couldn't have done it alone to those who made it possible for us to get here our academics Tutors cleaners and security Student facing support staff and those behind the scenes. I even made this video possible Thank you for allowing us to get to the end of this journey. We appreciate it enormously To our networks our families and the families we have chosen we celebrate you, too It is time to take this knowledge and apply it to the world outside the classroom It is time to adapt push ourselves beyond limitations and reach for higher heights If studying it so as teachers one thing it is that to not leave these learnings behind But rather carry it with you whatever you go next as we move on to our next phase Whatever that might be let us remember the wisdom of Adrienne Marie Brum Our collective anger and mobilizing is powerful. The bravery to imagine a better world is radical So is our joy Choose the life that brings you peace and fulfillment. That is radical, too Good luck in power and solidarity from your sabbatical officers of 2019 and 20 Valeria father Yes, sir Maxine Dear graduates Congratulations on your graduation Certainly you had envisioned your graduation to take place with much fun for alongside your classmates teachers family and friends in our beautiful so as auditorium I too was very much looking forward to being in London and Sharing in the joy and the excitement of this day with you and your loved ones however Circumstance has dictated otherwise and instead I am standing my heartfelt Congratulations to you as you sit in your own living rooms and from my home country of Mozambique these unprecedented online graduation reflects our new normal and is quite an appropriate metaphor for the uncharted and Exciting territory that awaits you on the other side of this virtual graduation ceremony Huge huge congratulations to all the students graduating from so as this year So as graduations have always been very special and I'm sorry that this year we don't have the opportunity to be together But it's important that you take time out to celebrate your achievement That you thank your family and your friends and the staff who have worked with you to make this graduation possible You've worked hard you deserve your success So as is a global university We're outward-looking and what we aim to do through a source education is to make you future ready Our world is at an uncertain time and Needs graduates from so as more than ever. I Encourage you to see the silver linings It is your hands that will be the ones which rebuild our societies for the better and As you swim this uncharted waters rest assured that you are well equipped to handle the complexities that we that will Inevitably come your way. You are the first to step out into a world that COVID has fundamentally altered and I challenge you to seize the opportunity of Reinvention that presents themselves to you You have been gifted the ability to re-engineer human relationships and create value-based societies to dismantle structures of Inequity and rebuild inclusive and people-centered economies To invent technologies, which are not destructive to our health to our relationships and to our planet and to challenge toxic norms of patriarchy and social economic systems Then that benefit only the few while disenfranchising the many You're all committed to making change in the world in whatever way you can. I Wish you all the best for the future. I Hope that some of you will come back for a graduation next year But remember You're not leaving so as and neither is so as leaving you We're always going to be connected. There are so as graduates all over the world Take some time reflect Think about where we are in the world right now and How you can use the skills and knowledge that you've developed at so as to help to bring about change? I look forward to seeing you Building upon the legacy of so as alumni who are change makers in every corner of our globe If I were to describe so as it would definitely be that it's a place that is very diverse full of color full of life full of Energy and there's never a boring day at so as also saw us as a very diverse So you get to learn from different backgrounds and cultures My university my university experience and saw us was very nice. I really enjoyed it The most important thing that saw us taught me or taught us as students is that we can freely express our thoughts and opinions and We should always have questions in order to know who you really are I think the greatest thing that I've learned during my time at so as has been The importance and power of using your own voice whatever. It's a small thing or a most urgent matter expressing your opinion and Expressing your feelings it really can make difference and it really shapes not just who we are but also the words the words that surround us Definitely the drag shows Every moment I spent in the JCR with friends is definitely a great memory, but watching the drag shows was the absolute best The acceptance the body positivity and glamour of it all make these nights my absolute favorite at so as probably hanging out with my friends and doing the society work or enjoying the lectures and also Visiting my professors during their office hours and having a talk with them. It's real fun Of course the time spent with my fabulous teacher was it much later by any brain Jeffy and the fire alarm Went on and you were in the library Everyone was so serious, but we couldn't handle it. We were all laughing. I mean it always happens and so it's always my favorite The pharaoh love sounded the very same day my mother visited the university during my lecture So basically she came in just shouting danger danger fire We know us safe and sound teacher included. I think one of the weirdest moments I've had it so us would definitely be this online graduation But I'm so grateful that we are able to do this here This moment was probably when I had to wrap in Chinese in front of an audience for the Chinese New Year celebration I was definitely not ready for rap solo, but I'm pretty sure I nailed it anyway What is a typical so as students? I'd say such a creature doesn't exist But every person at so as is unique and brings their own beautiful cultural backgrounds and experiences to the university But if I had to really answer this question, I'd say a Person downing pints and talking endlessly about politics in the JCR is the closest I get to describing a typical so as students someone who would go to the library every day but would go to the JCR afterwards to party and Someone who is part of so many societies Well, I feel confident of my own ideas and I'm ready to share them with other people And of course I'm also ready to listen to others opinion and Taking the best of them. I think that I became a lot more open-minded and accepting of others and of myself Being in the middle of such a diverse environment as well as going on a year abroad in Japan really opened my mind To different cultures and experiences I've grown a lot and while I have learned a lot academically I'd like to think that I've grown it as a person and Everyone that saw us Allowed me to do that. I can say that I have become confident. I have grown up I'm not here three years ago at the age of 18. I'm from Azerbaijan originally So I'm international student here and it was quite challenging to leave in London at first and to study You know in such an environment, but it was also very rewarding So it really developed my confidence in myself and both life skills and practical skills, I would say And also at the end of the three years, I think I'm starting to get the rich jokes, which I never could But yeah, we still have a long way down the road Now a message for my fellow graduates I miss you all so much and we didn't have time to say goodbye properly and No matter where Miss Corona took us throughout the world I truly hope that we'll get that fancy ceremony and great party that we deserve as soon as possible Very well done for achieving your degree and the such special circumstances So now just go and celebrate because it is a way Finally, I would like to thank my parents my grandparents and friends for their unconditional support and love. Thank you It's a message from my fellow graduates. I just want to say that We all survived but on a serious note. I really want to congratulate everyone graduating today And I want to say that I want to wish everyone good luck and success in their lives and in their careers Congratulations to the class of 2020 Welcome to the Sawas alumni community class of 2020. I'm Susanna I graduated from Sawas in 2018 and I now work for the Sawas Career Service Congrats on everything that you've achieved during your time studying here You're probably now thinking about next steps. What do you want to do now that you're done with your degree? Where do you want to work? Do you want to keep studying and what can you do to make your future career as fulfilling as possible? Well, the Sawas careers and the Sawas alumni teams are here to support you for life And we want to help you flourish after Sawas We want to stay in touch with you to share all of our support for graduates and alumni and the graduate outcome survey So be sure to share your contact details with us in the form in the description below The career service is here to offer you a wealth of support as alumni You have free access to a huge range of our career services We offer support with career decision-making Applications interviews and loads more be sure to check out our websites to find out exactly how we can help you in your career Through our events appointments and resources all accessible online We've also got Sawas connect our fantastic e-mentoring platform for you to get in touch with hundreds of alumni to be mentored by And to mentor when the time comes The Sawas alumni team will connect you with your peers and other alumni to keep you updated With what's going on at Sawas now that you're part of the alumni community and to bring you on board to events and networks within and beyond the university We have alumni groups all over the world. So no matter where you move to in the future You always have a community to be a part of Make sure you sign up to our alumni and careers mailing lists to join your alumni network and to unlock all alumni benefits The link to sign up is in the description below Sawas careers and Sawas alumni are still here for you to offer you support when you need it Please show your contact info with us in the form below And we really can't wait to hear from you again to find out about all the amazing stuff that you're obviously going to go on to do Congratulations Say Kolela basu si basu si Naton Belio bonations Nanzeraya boni Naton Belio bonations Vasiko bossa nangai Keden ayamololambo Okeden kebolochi Mamamonuma Say Kolela basu si basu si Naton Belio bonations Nanzeraya boni Naton Belio bonations