DAY 7
Sunday, July 7th
Location: Chairman’s club, KIPCO tower
The new generation spent a session full of tips and tricks on how to build up their charisma. They started their day with Mentor Yarub Burhama, where they discussed a variety of famous personals and how influential they were because of their unique traits. He pointed out that it’s okay not to follow the idea of perfection and to not trust the superficial information. His session was followed by a surprise visit from Dr.Bassam Al-Jazzaf. He spent such an interesting couple of hours with the students, talked about his experience in life and what are the 30 traits that make a person charismatic. His session was packed with useful information for everyone attending. Students were excited to find how many of these traits they currently have. 

Day 8
Monday, July 8th
Location: Kuwait Fund
Welcomed by Kuwait fund, all students were seated in a beautiful hall with amazing set up and sound system! They welcomed Ms.Rana Al-Rushaid  which was the guest speaker of the day with the topic of Design thinking. Throughout the session they got exposed to what design thinking was, it’s main concept, implements and how it could affect our lives. Examples of successful companies using “design thinking” inspired many students and made it easier to understand. The session included many fun activities that were eye opening. During the break, students got to enjoy delicious food and mingled around.

Day 9
Tuesday, July 9th
Location: Coded
Today marks our first day in our bootcamp in CODED! The day went in a very interesting way, considering that most of the students were not familiar with coding and technical work. The place’s environment was very helpful, it can be easily described with cozy and friendly. G9 spent half of their session learning how to develop their own websites and the other half doing it. Each student incorporated their ideas and passion to the website they created, it wasn’t easy, but most students were up to the challenge and succeeded with a big smile on their faces. Also, with the amazing snacks provided by our host, our new generation was constantly energized and ready to give more!

Day 10
Wednesday, July 10th
Location: Coded
The second day of our coding bootcamp and another day full of opportunities and experiences at CODED! Our students spent another day learning how to code more of themselves in the websites they created the previous day. There is no denying that it was hectic, but most candidates did incredibly great! And of course we can’t deny the huge help they got from the CODED team, they were more than delighted to explain and help with every bit of info. And as our students carved their way through a new topic like “coding”, snacks and good vibes came to their way. The day ended with ten short presentations, each one was about a random student talking about what they did and why they did it regarding their websites. 

Day 11
Thursday, July 11th
Location: Diyar United company – Coded
The day started with a session at Diyar United Company. A beautiful two hour session was conducted by Mr.Ahmad Al-Marouf about Technology, our values, and the world to come. The session was full of valuable information and interesting stories. It sure captivated the students attention and kept them thinking.
The day then continued at coded for our final session of boot camp! It was Tech day presented by Mr.Hashim Behbahani. Tech day included all the basic tools and essentials to help start up a tech company. The session kept building up and they were then surprised with a business pitch competition. Students then split up to 6 groups, worked on coming up with an idea, developing it and finally pitching it. They were all super creative and passionately fought for their ideas. Judges  invested their “fake” money in the ideas presented. It was an exciting challenge for both the students and the judging panel!

Day 12
Saturday, July 14th
Location: Elevation Burger – AUK
The last day of our second week ended strong! G9 was welcomed by the elevation team where they started off their day with a session by Ms.Danah Hamadah. She was curious to know about their highlights so far in the program, and the students were amazingly interactive with her. Then, the candidates were divided into 5 groups, each had their turn to go for a kitchen tour. It was an enlightening, fun experience, and the elevation team was kind enough to answer all questions afterwards. They were impressed by how clean the Kitchen was and the workflow of the employees.  After that, G9 were surprised by a visit from the ambassador of Australia. He expressed how hopeful he is in the new generation and wished them good luck in the direction they choose for themselves and their country. And after a delicious meal at elevation, the students headed to AUK to complete the rest of the sessions planned. They started with a session about the Business model canvas by Ms.Noura Al-Askar.  They worked in groups to fill it and build their business.
The day ended with their presentations of the (1 KD challenge!). It was judged by both Mentor Rana Al-Khaled and Mentor Eman Al-Reshaid. Each student had their unique idea presented and they were all impressed by the ideas of their peers. 

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The day started off with something Kuwait is very famous for: oil. The Candidates met at Ahmed Al Jaber oil and Gas exhibition for an exclusive tour in collaboration with Kuwait Petroleum Company. Generation 8 learned about Kuwait’s oil history, KPC history and the process of oil extraction to its different usage. The tour ended at the gift shop and a group picture with KPC and KOC representatives.

Later on the day Generation 8 met with one of The Proteges program continuous supporter over the past years; Tap payments. The Candidates had the chance to sit with Mr. Ali Abulhassan who is the CEO at Tap Payments. Mr. Ali welcomed the Candidates at his office and spoke about how Tap started as a startup and evolved over the past years. Mr. Ali explained to Generation 8 how to setup an online business and he focused on Tap payment services and the kind of different payment solutions offered by them. He also touched on the benefits of online payments for all type of businesses not only in Kuwait but in the region. And in the end Tap payments team surprised Generation 8 with a cake wishing the Candidates the best of luck on their upcoming journey for the next 96 days which is their project phase.

Generation 8 met at American University of Kuwait to present their findings after Mentor Rana Al Khaled’s “If the walls can speak” activity. According to the presentations, the Candidates were very inspired by the walls that they would usually not look at. For example, they noticed how people used these walls to express their feelings through graffiti, as well as mark their presence as tribes using numbers. Each group presented a unique presentation of its areas and each presentation ended with a great discussion with Mentor Rana.

There comes a point in every generation where the previous generations passes down their most valuable project advices. Today, was the day when five previous generations gave Generation 8 their top advices for their upcoming project based on their past experiences. The day included presentations from “RAH” Generation 3, “Concrete conversation” Generation 4,”Raqsh” Generation 5, “key of Life” Generation 6 and “Kamalah”. All alumni spoke about their project’s idea development, implementation, communication and much more. Generation 8 wrote down all critical information presented to them for future use during their project phase.

Today was the first session back in Kuwait for The Proteges after their delightful journey in Swansea. They were divided into groups for Mentor Rana’s “If walls can speak” activity. Each group was assigned about 10 different cities, totaling up to more than 50 cities in Kuwait with variable areas. It seemed like a very simple task at the beginning; however, after hours of taking pictures of the walls, and a huge effort to observe patterns in paintings and graffiti Generation 8 were amazed about how much was hidden in those walls.

Some groups found out that those walls were an ancient form of communication and identification between Kuwaiti tribes. As well as, the paintings portrayed images from ancient Kuwait such as old cutlery, tool and oil extraction methods. The next part of the task is for the students to present their findings in a few days in their own creative ways to Mentor Rana.

Last day in Swansea at Rhossili Bay where Generation 8 had some time off to enjoy the beautiful beach and pure weather before starting their session with Carreg Adventure about the “Art of Storytelling”. They were divided into groups and had to collect elements from Mother Nature to create a story on the sand and let the Mentors guess the story from the beginning till the end. The task was successful and all of them used their brilliant creative minds to blow their teammates and Mentors minds.

Then it was time to head back to the mansion for lunch and the last session in Swansea with Mentors Yarub Burhamah and Rana Al Khaled, called “Hope for the Flowers”. Emotional moments were shared with the group, learning that nothing comes easy and patience always gets rewarded.

Finally, after packing the Mentors, Chancellors and Generation 8 shared their last dinner in Swansea and right after that, gathered around a bonfire to reflect and express their feelings on their journey. Mentors have decided to write a letter for each one of them putting their thoughts together in one paper. A letter that will last with them forever.

At 1am the mansion was empty, everyone was on their way to London Heathrow to catch their flight back to Kuwait. There were mix emotions within the group who spent the last 10 days together. However a new phase for Generation 8 will start upon their arrival to Kuwait to apply what they have learnt throughout this unforgettable experience.

Today was in collaboration with Ooredoo, The Proteges Generation 8 Telecom Partner. On the road to Cardiff to visit the Senedd – National Assembly of Wales and the Millennium Centre. A cultural day away from the countryside to discover the capital. Next stop was the Cultural Centre of Wales; where the Candidates were taken in to a tour around the theatre. Starting with the backstage, the tour guide explained how backstage operates and the reason for having ultra high ceilings. They then took the Candidates to the grand theatre, and they allowed them to explore the acoustic walls, and understand how performers perform without a microphone and how sound travels in the room. It was such a great experience for Generation 8.

Next stop was at the Castle of Cardiff where the staff presented to the group the Bad Wolf studio where couple of movies have been filmed such as Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Who. Generation 8 visited the studios and the impressive parts of the castle. The Candidates walked into the dungeon that is only accessed by VIP guests. It was 4 stories low, and it was the location of where most of Doctor Who’sset was present. The Candidates were in awe because of the mystic atmosphere and the medieval feeling.

The day ended with a talk with Ms. Sara Al Qabandi from Ooredoo, who honored us at the mansion to spend some days with the Generation 8. She explained what Corporate Social Responsibility is, and what is Ooredoo’s role in this sector. Ms. Sara then allowed the Candidates to ask questions about how it is working in a corporate private company. She enjoyed answering them questions, and wrapped up the by giving advices about allowing oneself to explore their talents, and never stop. The sun has set, everyone is ready to rest to wake up in the early morning of the last day in Swansea.

Orange juice, cereal, and warm pain au chocolate is served! Generation 8 are ready to kick start the day. Today was in collaboration with United Real Estate Company, the Candidates started the day by developing and strategizing their project. Creativity, and leadership were all over the place, scrapping on paper and interviewing their fellow mates to place each candidate in the appropriate group. Then the Candidates met with Ms. Ola Al Fares, everyone sat in a native American tent. Cozy, warm, and perfect for a deep conversation. Ms. Ola started talking about her journey of success, how she convinced her family into letting her kick start her career in journalism, and be a journalist on TV. She shared a part where she said that she had to sleep in the car because of the delayed salary, and didn’t want to ask her family to send her an allowance in order to show them that she can depend on herself. All Candidates were in awe about what one would do for the things they love, and how much the price of success cost, and it’s not necessarily monetary. Ms. Ola was a great success example, as she had developed herself into becoming a very influential person.

Furthermore, Generation 8 enjoyed playing a game with the Mentors, it was Q&A, and every answer is accompanied with an action. For example, some students had to sing their answer. The dynamic and atmosphere were exquisite, and a great bonding time.

Then the Candidates moved to a sentimental session with Mentor Shamlan called Small and Big Moments. It explained to the Candidates how to enjoy small moments, how to remember scents in order to remember beautiful memories. Small moments such as watching sunsets in a garden, sitting around bonfire, friends laughs, celebrations, and so on. Generation 8 were engaged in a surprising, beautiful way, sharing their feelings and experiences, which made the session much more influential. The session wrapped up with a surprise, which was considered as a “Big Moment” it was a British choir singing songs for the Candidates. Everyone was in awe including the Mentors to the point tears were coming down from happiness. The beauty and the sentimental atmosphere added a big value to memory keeping for Generation 8 to never forget this moment. After the choir, dinner was served, the sun has set, and everyone was taking off for the next day.

Early birds stayed in the mansion this morning to attend a session given by Mentor Rana Al Khaled about  Talent Discovery; where they had to explore themselves, reflect on their passion and find who they truly are. After having lunch, the whole group jumped in the bus to drive straight to YMCA theater of Swansea where they performed their playback in front of  live audience. The Candidates have been training for this performance for the past 4 weeks and they impressed the public including the Mentors. Success is driven by hard work, and that is certainly the motto of Generation 8 who truly gave everything on stage.

We were glad to have Ms. Abeer Al Omar, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility at KIPCO, who honored us by her presence. After the play, the University rewarded The Proteges Mentors to whom we would like to extend our appreciation and gratefulness.

Once back at the mansion, a surprise guest was waiting for the Candidates to continue celebrating the success of their performance. Our guest came all the way from Los Angeles to spend time with Generation 8, who were extremely happy to welcome Ms. Ola Al Fares. She will be spending the upcoming two days at the mansion to share her inspiring life experience. The Candidates shared with Ms. Ola Al Fares some delightful moments of their journey in The Proteges and the experiences they have been through until today.

The day ended up quietly in the mansion, dark light, candles and bonfire to meditate and reflect on the Candidates’ inner evolvement during the program.