That included the XSProject which supported Indonesia trash pickers and also a peer support programme.
Getting involved and giving back to his community was important to him and so becoming involved with Ignite Consultants Otago when he started university was a natural step.
Ignite Consultants Otago is a student-led voluntary not-for-profit organisation which offers free consulting services by students, to not-for-profit organisations.
It was started more than 15 years ago after Polish exchange student Agnieszka Nazaruk recognised a disconnect between students in the city and what was a very large not-for-profit charitable sector.
Mr Dingemans, from Hawke’s Bay, was born in London and grew up in Russia and Singapore with his New Zealand lawyer parents. At school in Singapore, it was instilled in pupils that they should be life-long learners.
He joined Ignite in the first semester of his first year at Otago, seeing it as an opportunity to also get some life and professional experience.
“It’s really important to surround yourself with people you want to be like,” he said.
Following a presentation evening at the end of last semester, Mr Dingemans has taken over as Ignite’s chief executive from Caleb Oakley.
Mr Oakley, who is heading to the Netherlands early next year for six months’ study, said the organisation was something he was very passionate about.
He was pleased to be leaving it in a healthy state; it was conservatively estimated students provided more than 5000 hours of community service in Dunedin this year.
It was great to see representatives from the six charities students worked with last semester talk at the presentation evening and show genuine gratitude, and also the pride of the students in the work they had done.
He had also enjoyed seeing their confidence grow through the year and he hoped they took that confidence with them into the workplace.
Each group of students was assigned a mentor and Ignite was always keen to hear from anyone interested in being one.
There was no set experience required, just people who could provide some perspective and stability — “a sounding board, really” — and it was also an opportunity for them to connect with students.
sally.rae@odt.co.nz
