10th March 2022 Boosting education with Lenovo

Exertis partner Lenovo boosts children’s access to education across Europe, Middle East, and Africa during Global Month of Service

At Exertis, creating opportunities is at the heart of what we do. We believe that technology holds the key to giving people access worldwide to achieve their goals – no matter what they are. Our vendor partner Lenovo shares this outlook, with several employees across their business embodying their passion for empowering underrepresented communities and fostering positive change. Lenovo’s yearly Global Month of Service is an annual grassroots effort that champions volunteering to align with Lenovo Foundation’s mission. And it’s just one of many ways they put their community-building ideology into action.

Bringing opportunities to all

This year’s Global Month of Service is led by Santiago Mendez Galvis, EMEA Head of Philanthropy. “Central to our purpose is providing smarter technology for all. And the key to this is ensuring that children have the technology and tools they need to access education services,” says Santiago. “This year’s Global Month of Service was a great opportunity for our teams to work closely with local schools and education centres to provide them with a combination of equipment, knowledge, and manpower to make a difference.”

As part of Lenovo’s Global Month of Service, the company initiated several inspiring projects, including:

  • In Tashkent, Uzbekistan, a team led by Aiherim Doskaray worked with a local school to prepare a syllabus for students aged between 16-18 years old from low-income families. The syllabus included a series of educational classes to develop skills related to future jobs, with the aim of equipping young students with the knowledge and skills needed to achieve their dream jobs. The result of the project meant that 70 students were directly granted access to the syllabus, with the hope that many more will have access in the future.

  • In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with Rima Makki leading the charge, the team worked closely with both a local orphanage and the children themselves to understand what they needed to further their education, and worked to fill these gaps with the supplies they were missing. The result was that Lenovo supplied 75 children and teenagers with school bags that included notebooks, pens and pencils, a pencil case and a water bottle, providing them with all the essentials they needed to return to the classroom.

  • Elsewhere, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, a team worked with the Dubai Autism Centre to get them ready for the 160 school children returning for the new year. Led by Mazin Nagib, the team of 15 disinfected and sanitised the whole school, including classrooms, admin, and play areas. This took the team 75 hours – a whole three days of cleaning.

  • In Paris, France, Lenovo colleagues invited 80 students from Becomtech and other schools to a conference debate on Quantum Computing, with Fanny Bouton and Olivier Ezrattyt, to find out more about the technology and how it is used in manufacturing. Following this, the students were tasked with creating a working pinball machine using a 3D printer.

  • Similarly, in Istanbul, Turkey, students were also introduced to 3D technology for a ‘Paint with Technology’ day. The day saw students receive guidance and tutorials on how to paint and draw using 3D pens and colours to create paintings of their own. The team led by Cemre Devranoglu consisted of 25 volunteers who worked with 30 students in a fun and interactive workshop.

It’s important for us at Exertis to encourage a culture of inclusivity and progress, both in our own business, and our vendor partners’. With their contributions to education throughout Global Month of Service, Lenovo are making real, visible difference, and using their industry-leading technology for the betterment of communities worldwide.

View our Exertis top picks from Lenovo today at https://store.exertis.co.uk/lenovo