Roua is 20 years old. Tunisian by birth, she left her country at the age of 17 to finish her schooling in France. Curious about everything and eager to learn, in 2022 she enrolled in the “SDG Summer School” (summer school Sustainable Development Objectives) at the Learning Planet Institute. The result was a crazy idea, a real life project for Roua: the «Old 2 Gold» start-up. Meet Roua.
It's a sunny winter's day, and I join Roua in the busy lobby of the Learning Planet Institute, time for lunch. We go to a small restaurant at the end of a courtyard, a few meters from the Institute - a place Roua knows well - and sit down by the window. That's when the young woman tells me her story.
Roua spent her childhood and teenage years between Djerba and Tunis. At the age of 17, she decided to come to France to attend high school and continue her studies. Roua, who had never studied in the French system, passed her baccalauréat with flying colors in 2021. In Roua's story, you can already sense her gentleness and determination. «When I was little, I dreamed of being a journalist in the field. I love meeting people. Understanding other people's lives makes me happy, which is why I was attracted to this profession. But I was very reserved, which is not at all the case today.»
Roua isn't the type to get bogged down in convention. She just goes for it. «At our age, we don't have too many barriers in our minds, so we have to take advantage of them. I have the impression that the older you get, the less easy it becomes.» Roua has many projects on the go, but she doesn't spread herself too thin. She's methodical and organized. «People can tell me that I'm a girl who doesn't settle down, or that I should concentrate on one thing, but that's not what makes me fulfilled. I'm very happy the way I am! I don't want to be in a cage.»
After obtaining her baccalaureate, Roua enrolled in an English and Arabic degree course at Sorbonne University. «I didn't really like the experience, I didn't know what I was doing there. I quickly reoriented myself towards a law-health degree at Université Paris Cité, which suits me much better.»
Thanks to Université Paris Cité, Roua discovered the SDG Summer School of the Learning Planet Institute. «I wasn't going on vacation that summer, and I hadn't found a student job either, in addition to the odd jobs I was already doing, so I was looking at the Summer School ». Interested in the one at the Institute - one of the only free ones - Roua signs up. «I was mainly interested in the environment. I was taken on at the interview and actually, I realized during the month of Summer School that we weren't just talking about ecology.» Roua was surprised by the technological and IT aspects, which she hadn't really anticipated. «In fact, I had to familiarize myself with the computer, she laughs. «I already had to understand how to turn on the computer before I could set up programs etc.»
Another major challenge: the entire Summer School is in English. «English wasn't my strong point, but for a month I practiced. By the end, I was looking for my words in French!» The class is made up of around thirty girls of very different nationalities and profiles (Roua is in the same class as Yuxuan, EDITOR'S NOTE) «Happiness!, Roua sums up.
At Learning Planet Institute, there's an openness that I haven't found anywhere else. You're accepted as you are, and you can live life to the full.
From day one, Vladimir Hermand, coordinator of the Makerlab and mentor to the promotion, lays the foundations : « Give us everything that's on your mind, without censorship ». For Roua, it's incredible: «We're allowed to say it, so why not do it?» she says boldly.
As planned, Roua joins the “Environment” team. «We wanted to make a fictional village that was totally green. But I thought it wouldn't appeal to everyone.»Roua then had another idea of her own, linked to the environment. «My mother is a seamstress. When I was a teenager, she used fabrics to make clothes for us. It was for economic reasons, but I was at the height of fashion! Even if, like all teenagers, I was more interested in wearing something new.»
Roua decided that she needed to create an app that would put designers and individuals in touch with each other, to collect fabrics and materials, and enable designers to transform the pieces or make new ones.
«I pitched the idea and no one in the class wanted to join me. They all had their own projects. (...) So I almost begged Vladimir (cordially) to stick to my idea. I really believed in it, even though I was alone (...). He asked me to write him a report, and he agreed. »
Roua understands that working alone is not always easy, and over the course of a month, a lack of motivation is sometimes felt. There are ups and downs, and the young woman doesn't progress as quickly as she'd like, even if the Summer School team provides her with all the tools she needs to succeed and see her ideas through.
«I learned a lot during this month, and not just by developing skills. I also learned a lot about myself and others.
The last three days, before the final renderings, Roua is very late. «I worked like crazy. I had no name, no prototype, and I hadn't finished my research either. We had to pitch the project to a large audience.
At D-3, Roua begins prototyping.
At D-2, she pursues him. «I wasn't very comfortable with the prototype tool, and so it always took me longer than expected.».
On D-day, nothing is ready. «I mobilized everyone I knew. Even the Learning Planet Institute receptionist helped me!». Roua is very approachable and in a short space of time has made friends with many people at the Institute. . «I know at least one person on every floor, she smiles. On the last day, she enlists the help of many of them, including Nour Ismaïl, a student and friend who is working on another project with the Summer School. «I asked everyone, especially about the name. I still had nothing...»
At one o'clock in the morning, on the eve of the pitch, Roua has an idea: « Old is gold » (« The old is precious »In French, this is the poetic expression of his idea of making something new out of something old, while conserving materials for the sake of the environment.).
On the day of the presentation, Roua had a name, but still no prototype, edited video or slideshow to show for it. «As I pitch in a few hours in front of the entire Learning Planet Institute, the’University of Geneva and the Tsinghua, in China, on video!» At 8 o'clock in the morning, the young woman is stressed. «I was crying from stress and at the same time, I was working, I knew I had no choice.»
And it's working out rather well for Roua: at 3pm, the student, formerly a reserved child, presents her prototype with naturalness and humor. «I always say to myself, I might as well go and give it my all, so I don't regret anything. Since I've got the chops, I think it worked out well.»
And with good reason: she won't tell me until later on in the conversation, out of humility, but Roua's project was voted winner of the Summer School. «I met people who were interested in my project that day. In fact, I gained self-confidence during the Summer School and I've even found my life project!.
This life project is «Old 2 Gold», his start-up from’upcycling. It's a project for her mother, for herself and for the future.
«This idea came from my mother. I hadn't seen her for three years when I came up with the idea. This project was born out of real, human love relationships. It's not just business!». And it's a promising start-up. Last weekend, Roua and her partner Anaïs, who will develop the application, were among the six winning projects at the Startup Weekend organized by Startup Banlieue. They have earned their place in the incubator THIGA, We also provide support and premises in the Opéra district of Paris. «I'm very happy, it's another external validation of my project.» explains Roua with a big smile.
The young woman makes no secret of the fact that she has had her moments of doubt in recent months. «But you always have to overcome them and keep moving forward!», she says.
Since the Summer School, Roua goes to the Learning Planet Institute whenever she can, to make progress on her project. When Vladimir, her mentor, comes across her at MakerLab, he calls her «the start-up girl». «It makes it real, it puts a bit of pressure on, but above all it's rewarding!»
She adds: «No matter who you are, you're somebody at Learning Planet Institute. You're not nothing at Learning Planet Institute. It's the only place I've ever felt that way.»
Despite her busy schedule, Roua doesn't hesitate to lend a hand: she helps the incubator HOP! to develop. HOP! helps young people find jobs or start their own businesses. «What they're doing is really cool, I try to contribute to it.»
Yet Roua is far from bored. In the mornings, she's still a law and health student at Université Paris Cité, and in the afternoons, she looks after twin 6-year-old girls and their 8-year-old big sister, gives private Arabic lessons and does housework. «I spend all my free time developing my start-up».», she explains.. «I put on one hat, take it off, put on another, and change again. That's how I function and how I flourish. It all feeds off each other enormously.»
Roua recently took part in the Eloquentia Saint-Denis. «As with the Summer School, I learned about other people and I also learned how to be myself. Thanks to the various contributors, and in particular to Mr. Bertrand Périer [avocat aux Conseils and French teacher of public speaking, specialist in the art of oratory, Editor's note], whom I admire, I've learned to express myself better, which helps me when pitching the project, for example!». Roua goes for it, without asking herself too many questions. She remembers, when she first arrived in France in Beauvais, that people didn't really participate in class. «I said to myself, «I've got to help the teacher, I'm raising my hand, and too bad if I'm wrong»». Roua says she's as proud of her failures as she is of her successes. «That's how you learn. You probably learn more from your failures than your successes.»
Today, I'm really happy doing what I do, and proud of my career. The Learning Planet Institute has a lot to do with it. A lot of things are born here. Projects like «Old 2 Gold», but also personalities like mine. The Learning Planet Institute has enabled me to unleash my creativity.
LEARN MORE
- Discover the SDG Summer School
- Discover the portrait of Yuxuan Li, SDG Summer School alumna and her mental health project
- Discover the MakerLab
ABOUT SDG SUMMER SCHOOL
Every summer, students from all over the world and from all walks of life come together for a month at the
MakerLab at the Learning Planet Institute to prototype frugal, reproducible tools that meet the needs of our customers.
at Sustainable Development Objectives (SDGS).
The summer school has a marked orientation towards projects tackling health issues and their link with the environment.
This immersion program, based entirely on project-based learning, is run in partnership with
with the’University of Geneva, Switzerland, and’Tsinghua University, China.
Registration from April
ABOUT HOP!
HOP! is one of Learning Planet Institute's Inclusion projects, This new program offers innovative teaching methods to help young people who are far from the job market (with a particular focus on young people from the "Quartiers Prioritaires de la Politique de la Ville" (Priority Urban Neighborhoods)) into employment or entrepreneurship. The aim is to build a career path that makes sense for them, while integrating the challenges of sustainable development.
A portrait by Marie Ollivier
Thanks to Roua Mazouz
This publication is part of the UNESCO Chair in the Science of Learning, established between UNESCO and Université Paris Cité, in partnership with the Learning Planet Institute.
The ideas and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization.
