Riding out the Recession

September 7, 2009 Environment, Projects, Road, Transport

I’ve learnt from university that people will go a long way to make their CV stand out, and I’ve decided to be no different.  I’m going about 12,000 miles.

I graduated in June this year and like many of my friends and contemporaries have struggled to find work. I applied for somewhere in the region of 100 – 150 jobs this year and was overlooked in every single application, but it’s not just me. Research by the National Union of Students in April this year found that 80 % of undergraduates were either concerned or very concerned about their employment prospects and that a record number of graduates were out of work.

Not one to sit around and mope in the UK I decided to aim higher and take a CV boosting cycle trip through Africa. I’ve already learnt so many skills that I am almost glad I couldn’t find work. I’ve organized the trip, found sponsors, improved my telephone manner and written about my adventure for numerous websites and magazines. I aim to raise £10,000 pounds for charity over the lifespan of the trip, which should be about 6 months.

So why Africa? A continent with a fearsome reputation that’s so vast it’s like a microcosm of the world.  From desert to scrub to tropical rainforest and back again, with the equator as a line of symmetry. The people are colourful and varied, the communities are vibrant.  Africa is the land of our ancestors, the continent that gave birth to humanity. I want to see this place for myself.  I want to prove that although some of us have had to cut back during the recession we still have an easy ride compared to those living on the world’s poorest continent.