Trustees – October – Elle

The beginning of term has been a whirlwind of activity and I can hardly believe it is only a month since the students came back.

   I was really glad for this opportunity to meet the International students and chat to them about moving to Portsmouth . I hope it was useful for them to have information about the help and activities we can provide at the Union .

   Diana and Jodie invited me to talk at their induction days, to give the clubs and societies a brief introduction to RAG and campaigns.

   The start up session gives new students an introduction to independent living in Portsmouth . There were presentations from the halls managers, finance office, police liason officer and the Vice Chancellor. For the Students’ Union section I gave a brief introduction to what the Union offers in terms of student activities and the benefits that being part of a group or committee can bring. I also highlighted the support services that are offered by the University, from academic to counselling. I have had really good feedback from the other people involved in the session and even some of the students!

   I had a RAG and Campaigns stall and got hundreds of people signed up. All the e-mail addresses have now been transcribed and we are ready for our first RAG meeting to happen in the next couple of weeks.

   The show was a great success that was made possible by the hard work of everyone involved, especially Rena Ellis, Steve Baker and the sabbatical team who worked so hard in the week before the event to make all the special touches. The show featured Harriet lamb, executive director of the fairtrade foundation, an international model plus student and child models, as well as break dancers, the dance club and an African vocal group. We got lots of radio exposure, the BBC were filming and we got a great write up in the local news – so I’m very proud that this event put the Union forward in such a positive light.

   Chris Yorke chaired the meeting which was really well attended and a new chair was elected. Some interesting questions were raised and I look forward to working with the new chair to make sure Union Council becomes the strong, democratic space that it should be.

   We sold Amnesty International Badges in the Union on the Friday night and at a DJ Yoda gig on the Saturday Night that my friend was organising. The main aim of the Saturday night was to get a picture of DJ Yoda with the “Protect the Human” sign next to him on the DJ booth. The sign was there but as I forgot my camera so I am still searching for other people who got pictures, so I can send one to Amnesty!

   A very successful evening selling the Breast cancer badges, all thanks to our helpers – especially the cheerleaders. A few of the girls had relatives who were personally affected by breast cancer, but all of them worked wonders in getting a huge amount of money (over £550) for valuable research.

   I took a group of 13 students to the fees demonstration in London . The Government is proposing lifting the cap of £3,000, to anywhere as much as £15,000. This would lead to different Universities charging different amounts for the same course, and access to education being about money not ability. Education is a right, not a privilege - and Top Up Fees are a huge barrier to education for those from poorer backgrounds and under-represented groups (and just about everyone else - I've got £21,000 worth of debt - interest rising at £10 a week!)
It was a really good day out and a nice mix of students from different years and backgrounds. The Government is not reviewing lifting the cap of £3,000 on fees until 2008, so I hope that in the next couple of years we will raise to profile of the campaign. The original introduction of top up fees only scraped through parliament by 316 votes for, to 311 against and there were many MPs speaking at the demo in favour of scrapping fees. - If they had not gone to war in Iraq they could scrap fees and reimburse everone who has payed them for the last few years, and build an education system fit for a 21st century "developed" country...just an idea...

  I was on the panel of experts at the weekend for a workshop – Are Universities really going green? The panel included Gareth Simkins, consultant on University environmental management and Victoria Hands, LSE Environmental officer.

 Gareth’s research showed that if a university does not, as a minimum, adopt all 4 of these vital factors, it is unlikely to have significant success in achieving high environmental performance.

   I am really pleased that after 2 years of campaigning by the People & Planet Society, the University are getting an environmental officer as it will massively reduce our carbon emmissions, cut our huge energy bills, boost our reputation and set a good example for students.