Kazakhstan Student Society in the United Kingdom

Kazakhstan Student Society in the United Kingdom (KazSociety) is a non-profit body which was created in 2002. KazSociety's sole aims are:
- to serve fellow students from Kazakhstan by providing information and support as well as cultural, informational and entertainment events.
- to promote Kazakhstan and Kazakh culture in the United Kingdom.
History
It all started at LSE in October 2002. LSE students Adil Shakirov (Bsc Economics 2004), together with Aliya Maulesheva (Bsc Geography and Economics 2004), Elvira Mami (Bsc Economics 2003) and Zhanara Rahmet(Bsc Government and Economics 2004), have started a first ever Kazakhsociety, registering it at LSE as a student society “Kazakh Society”.However, the four founders and many students have affectionately referred to the society as “KazSociety”, and soon the name has caught on and was on the lips of many excited Kazakhstani students across the UK. The mission was promotion of Kazakh culture in the UK, and providing support and events to Kazakhstani students in UK. This small group were the only Kazakhstani students in LSE, and we have them to thank for giving birth to the society we are proud to serve.
Year One
Adil Shakirov describes the initial phase as frantic: «We designed the logos in 2 days, and spent some time in the printing office in order to print business cards for our members. We also scrambled to find enough signatures from members in order to register our society at LSE, and to find sponsorship. We approached Mittal, a large mining company active in Kazakhstan, but without success. However, in the end we secured the LSE registration and received funds from LSE. We overcame the difficulties, and started things rolling»
The first events came soon after the creation, with help of UCL student Aldiyar Balzhanov. At LSE, the Adil, Aliya, Elvira and Zhanara have promoted Kazakh national cuisine at an LSE student society event.Each of the four officers of KazSociety has cooked whatever they could,and were proud to display Kazakh food delicasies to enthusiastic students and staff at LSE.
The Embassy of Kazakhstan in United Kingdom, headed by Mr Erlan Idrissov, was a powerful and supportive force in the creation and growth of KazSociety. Mr Idrissov has for years provided advice and support to KazSociety. He hosted regular meetings at the Embassy with students. KazSociety, in turn has strived to assist the Embassy in anyway possible, and has helped organise the World Travel Market at the Excel centres in 2002 and 2003, promoting Kazakh culture with national costumes and music. With the help of the embassy, KazSociety has hosted famous musician Asylbek Ensepov at LSE’s old theatre, resulting in a successful event promoting Kazakh culture and attracting students. Over the years, Batyrhan Shukenov, Ulitau and Orda have all also performed for KazSociety, and KazSociety hosted free film evenings with distinguished director Serik Aprimov displaying his film «Three Brothers» at LSE’s St Clemens theatre, and KazSociety has also hosted film «Abai».
The organization grew quickly, attracting hundreds of students to entertainment events at the now defunct ‘Tokyo Joe’s’ nightclub, and the ‘Millenium’ Nightclub. Adil describes the planning and organization of these events as «difficult» and «exciting», but he was overjoyed bythe positive energy and support the students have provided each other,and the enthusiasm with which these events were met by the students.
A New Level
The relentless passing of time has meant that the roster of KazSociety was updated each year. By September 2004, the original super-4 founding team has graduated, and new people have put themselves forward, keen to keep KazSociety going. And in the following 5 years,the wheel of time kept turning, and the team kept growing and changing:
2004/05 and 2005/06, team: Yermek Zhanassov (LSE BSc EconomicHistory 2006), Karima Akayeva (LSE BSc Economics 2006), AskarBiskultanov (UCL BSc Economics 2006), Aldiyar Balzhanov (UCL SSEES2006), Vadim Lyu, Arthur Abdulin, Zhanbolat Kakishev (Beng King's College London 2008), External Affairs Officer (2005 - 2008)
2006/07 team: Adina Almas (LSE 2009 International Relations), AdilAlshimbaev (LSE 2009 Mathematics), Temujin Nukenov (Cass Business School BSc Business 2009), Elnar Adaibekov (KCL)
2007/08 team: as in 2006/07, + Saltanat Kusherbay (LSE BScManagement 2009), Azhar Safinova (LCF BSc Fashion Management 2009),Eywon Kang (AA Architecture 2011), Meruert Kalieva (UCL BSc History of Art 2009), Alua Stamkulova (Cass BSc 2008), Nurzhan Marabayev (ICL BSc2009), Zhanar Smailova (UCL BSc Psychology 2009)
2008/09 team: Nurzhan Marabayev (ICL BSc 2009), Bekzhan Safinov (LSE BSc Politics and Economics 2009), Erik Karabayev (UCL BSc Economics and Business with East European Studies 2010), Aiganym Murzina (KCL BSc Engineering 2010), Arsen Akhatov (LSE LLB Law 2011), Aiym Almas (LSEBSc Management 2011), Katya Hegai (LSE BSc Management 2011) ZhanTemerkhanov (LSS 2009), Aida Tashenova (UCL Bsc Engineering with Finance 2010)
In 2004, under the leadership of new members Yermek Zhanassov and Karima Akayeva, the society was registered across the whole of UK as“Kazakhstan Society in UK”, a non-profit student organization which was a logical next step for KazSociety. Therefore, KazSociety has entered a whole new level, where it could more effectively serve the needs ofstudents. Thanks to a grant from KazMunaiGas Trade House and technical support by PS Solutions, a new website was launched at www.kazsociety.org.uk. The launch of the website was a crucial milestone, allowing to a more efficient organization of events and interaction with students. Ambassador Erlan Idrissov’s support has also helped KazSociety’s reputation to grow, and to invite Grigori Marchenko(Chairman of Kazakhstan’s Central Bank, and also of Halyk Bank) to give a highly-attended and very successful public speech at LSE in 2005,analyzing Kazakhstan’s development in the period of growth of financial markets.
Even though the four founders have registed KazSociety as an LSE student society, they were conscious of the need to expand the activities beyond LSE and think big. The society needed to promote Kazakhstan not only in London but across the whole of UK, and host events for Kazakhstani students all across the country. In 2003,KazSociety has affiliated itself with ‘KazAKT’, an informal group of Kazakh students from other universities who could not become members of the KazSociety because they were not students of LSE, due to LSE union regulations. KazAKT was headed by Aldiyar Balzhanov (UCL BSc SSEES2004), Baurzhan Sauranbekov and Bakhtiyar Balzhanov. Aldiyar Balzhanovhas played a very important role in KazSociety’s activities in 2003,and has supported KazSociety in many ways.
Looking back
So it is clear that what Adil, Aliya, Elvira and Zhanara have started back in 2002 just grew and grew and attracted many more members into the team since. KazSociety today is different than KazSociety before, and it will keep changing each year as members graduate and leave for home and new members arrive, fresh with new ideas. However,we aim to always remember how it all started and keep the spirit of friendship and mutual support which has been at KazSociety since its inception.
We asked the founder Adil for his recollections on the society:
A good memory:
«I remember the first party not going as smoothly as planned. Our students have waited outside the nightclub in very cold weather. Inside the club, we didn’t get our hands on the microphone. But once the music started, everyone just started jumping and chanting «Kazakhstan».Despite some problems with organization and planning of the event, the good energy and excitement of the first ever «Kazakh party» was there. Another funny memory is the ‘sumatoha’ in our first week. We had 2days to design a logo and print membership cards for our students, and create a stand for the freshers week at LSE. We were scrambling around the printing agency. It was frenetic and fun».
Best event:
«Asylbek Ensepov performing at LSE Old Theatre after the WorldTravel Market. This was a good musical and cultural Kazakh showcase. He introduced the Dombyra to London. We hired people to wear traditional national Kazakh clothes, inlcuding the traditional wedding clothes. It was a very good feeling to be in the middle of your own culture whilst thousands of miles away abroad».
What do I miss the most:
«I miss my friends from that time. I miss the excitement of discussing the society matters, and working towards uniting students».
Biggest challenges:
«Searching for venues for our events. It was not easy to juggle KazSociety and my studies, but in the end the time spent on KazSociety was very well worth it».
Why did I go back to Kazakhstan upon graduation:
«I lived abroad for a long time. Before UK, I also spent a longtime in India. I wanted to come home, to my roots. However, I would advise current students to try and get some work experience in the UK;it is very beneficial. However, to our students in UK who are interested in starting a business I would advise that it may be best to come back to Kazakhstan straight after uni».
Where Are They Now?
So what did previous KazSociety members do after finishing?
Adil Shakirov: Adil has worked for Ernst and Young in Almaty, and is now engaged in business and investing in Kazakhstan, Almaty.
Elvira Mami: gone back to LSE to complete an MSc in Development Economics in 2006, and worked for the World Bank and other agencies as an economist in Kazakhstan.
Zhanara Rahmet: is in Kazakhstan. Znahara is working for a Big Four consulting and audit firm.
Aliya Maulesheva: has lived in New York and Almaty, and completed an MSc in International Finance at Columbia University in the United States. Aliya has worked for Deutsche Bank in New York for two years,and is currently in the Middle East.
Yermek Zhanassov: has been active in the banking and energy sectors, and is currently working for the Metallurgic Company ‘Ertai’.Yermek is in Kazakhstan.
Karima Akaeva: Karima has worked for Kazkommertsbank in Project Finance, and is currently a volunteer for UNDP in Kazakhstan.
Aldiyar Balzhanov: is in Kazakhstan. Aldiyar has worked for Visor Capital and KazMunaiGas Exploration&Production.
A New Chapter
And now it’s the turn of the new team. Soon we too will graduate,and fresh enthusiastic faces will replace us. We aim to keep doing the good work which Adil, Elvira, Aliya and Zhanara have started all thoseyears ago, and to leave behind a legacy of satisfied students who visited our events, and only bright memories of friendship and support.It is important for us, the current team, to recognise the contribution and sacrifices of each and every member of KazSociety before us, and tobe grateful for it. KazSociety exists only on the enthusiasm of students who attend our events, and the unshakeable belief of team-members that they can make lives of Kazakhstani students in UK a little brighter, and that they can promote Kazakhstan in a lasting and positive way.
We want to leave behind something that lasts, and ensure that KazSociety lives forever, and that future teams of KazSociety never forget where it all started.

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