Central Student Council is spreading Christmas spirit around campus

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Christmas ought to be the most wonderful time of the year. But that’s not the case for everyone.

Maybe you feel stressed because of your studies or lonely because you can’t travel home to celebrate the holidays with your loved ones. The TU Delft Central Student Council encourages everyone to send Christmas cards to brighten someone’s day. 

Chain effect

To do this they designed a set of four cards, each with a different design. The unique thing, however, is that all these cards are combined into one. “The idea is that one person takes the template of four cards and writes a note on the first one,” explains Central Student Council member Maarten de Jong. “They then give all the cards to the person addressed on the first card. That person then rips off the one that is addressed to them and writes a note on the next card. They then give the remaining cards to someone else and so on. It’s like a chain effect where one card reaches four people instead of just one.”

The card is also an invitation to connect with fellow students. “On the card is a small checkbox to invite friends or whoever you are giving the card to for a walk, coffee, lunch or dinner,” explains fellow Student Council member Yashasvi Aggarwal. “This part of the idea was actually initiated by Vice Rector Magnificus Rob Mudde. He saw this as an opportunity to get to know your fellow students and to form true connections.”

Christmas cards are a great way to brighten someone’s day and to make them feel loved

The cards will be available at every service desk on campus from Wednesday 7 December onwards. “We printed 10,000 cards on sustainable paper which have the potential to reach 40,000 people,” says De Jong. “There will be a display holding the cards at the service desks. You can just take a set, no need to ask.”

Doodling

The idea for the Holiday cards originated from a doodling session. “I like doodling when I’m bored, and it also helps me concentrate. So at some point I tried to make a snow globe. It ended up looking real nice, so I figured I should try to make a better one to maybe use as a poster during the holiday season. And from that it quickly developed into this campaign,” says Aggarwal.

Aggarwal believes the cards are a great way to brighten someone’s day and to make them feel loved. “This is the season where people can feel lonely. Especially if you are an international student and see all the local Dutch people go home to their families.”

De Jong agrees. “If you don’t have a lot of connections in the city or in the Netherlands it’s important to feel that you are not alone.” He hopes that the campaign does well this year so that it will have a follow-up next year.

And to stay in Christmas spirits, De Jong points out that it doesn’t happen too often that both Student Council parties actively collaborate on initiatives like these. “Normally it is being claimed by one party, either Lijst Bèta or Oras, but for this initiative we really worked together.”

• The Holiday cards are available from Wednesday 7 December at every service desk on campus.