{"id":25037,"date":"2021-02-01T12:36:21","date_gmt":"2021-02-01T12:36:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/?p=25037"},"modified":"2026-05-08T15:04:44","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T14:04:44","slug":"clubs-societies-and-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hult.edu\/blog\/clubs-societies-and-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Clubs, societies, and COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hello, COVID-19<\/p>\n

COVID-19: Need I say more? Everyone’s talking about. It’s all over the news. People are doing what they can to fight the coronavirus by wearing masks, face shields, and following the not-so-sacred rite of social distancing.<\/p>\n

However, with or without the pandemic, one thing in life remains the same: clubs and societies at Hult still go on.<\/p>\n

Goodbye to saying goodbye<\/h3>\n

Life goes on\u2014yet not everything can, unfortunately. Every year, the annual award ceremony, graduation ceremony, and Winter Ball are held for current and graduating students. However, thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, it would not be possible this year. Sadly, this meant that students and teachers were not able to say goodbye to each other. Over 100 people attended one Saturday in April for the online annual award ceremony this year, but the Winter Ball this December was canceled. The graduation ceremony, held every summer, had to be canceled, and although it\u2019s possible to conduct it next year, the chances are slim given that most of the students will be busy either in their new jobs or in higher education.<\/p>\n

Not all was negative though. With the advent of Covid-19 came a chance to boost Hult\u2019s online presence. This year saw a sharp increase in the use of Instagram and LinkedIn, as well as a focus on online engagement and events via Zoom. Also, thanks to the use of online platforms, new creative ways to host events have emerged, including webinars.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Greeting the new normal<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Clubs and societies have stayed strong during these troubling times. The pandemic caused a restructuring of the clubs and societies \u201cmarket\u201d: a sharp decrease in social and sports clubs was coupled with a dominant resurgence from new and old professional clubs. Clubs and societies such as JV Men\u2019s Football UG were hard hit – but they kept fighting. JV Men\u2019s Football UG is a football junior varsity football club at Hult. Sports clubs were unable to continue in light of social distancing rules and government guidelines and had to postpone practices and matches. Despite the challenges, JV Men\u2019s Football UG was able to find a way to practice at an empty park just before the full lockdowns were imposed. Showing us all what a positive, growth mindset and can-do attitude can help us accomplish even in the most troubling of times.<\/p>\n

Others, such as TEDxHultLondon and the Africa Business and Cultural Society, adapted to the pandemic; maybe even got better because of it. And some clubs were born or resurrected from the pandemic, such as the Creativity Club and Trading and Investing UG Club.<\/p>\n

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TEDxHultLondon and augmented reality<\/h3>\n

TEDxHultLondon hosts events and is run by students from both the undergraduate and postgraduate campuses. With the onset of the pandemic, the complexities of running the event skyrocketed: social distancing, sanitation, and uncertainty of government-mandated lockdowns. It was due to these reasons that the event will now be hosted online. In one sense it was a challenge; on the other hand, it was an opportunity. Usually, there is a maximum capacity of 100 seats and tickets need to be booked in advance. With the event taking place online, there is no limit: there can be infinite people attending via Zoom. TEDxHutlLondon has been able to partner with HoloME and will be the first TEDxHultLondon event powered by Augmented Reality (AR) in the world. This AR will take the video presentation from the speakers and convert them into human holograms creating a more immersive communicative experience.<\/p>\n