Hi, it’s Evie Reilly, VP Democracy and Creative Industries for 2017/18. Earlier this month we held our first Making Change Summit (+AGM) and it was fantastic to see so many of you getting involved and voicing your opinions. Along with getting your quick comments on the Concourse, we also hosted more in-depth debates and discussions throughout the day in Bar 2, and here is a brief overview of some of the issues explored. We were also pleased to launch our first Representation Report a project headed by VP Education, Samuel Dedman, which will explore how we are working … Read the rest

Shift Your Stuff is back for a third year, helping you to give your unwanted items a new home when you move out of your house this summer. We want to help you donate these items to a good cause, reducing the waste that goes to landfill in the process. It’s really simple.

Step One: Collect your stickers and a bag

Available from 31 May until 29 June from the Union’s Highfield reception, Avenue Campus reception and the WSA Café.

Step Two: Pack your stuff

Sort your items into the categories on the stickers and put into … Read the rest

Do you feel as though you can change the world?

Next week, we’re giving you the opportunity to see how you can affect our Union, the local community and the wider world with a series of free events to promote sustainability and environmental issues.

Over the course of the week, you can find out more about how to eat green, use ethical cosmetics and recycle as we collaborate with students and student groups to discuss environmental issues that will affect you both now and in the future.

Read the full timetable below…

TIMETABLE

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Tuesday 25 April – How … Read the rest

The student group, Southampton Hub, launches Bio-Cycle, Southampton’s first ever student-led food waste recycling scheme in a bid to benefit the local community by recycling and repurposing otherwise wasted food.

The scheme works by providing you with a five litre food waste caddy, filters and a roll of compostable bin liners at the cost of £10, which includes automatic registration for the regular weekly food waste pickup service.

Up to 160 students are already benefitting from the project, with waste collections organised at 33 households across Southampton, equating to approximately 200kg of recycled food waste every month.

All collected … Read the rest

In January, we partnered with Farm4Life, an international charity that aims to create a better life for people in Ghana. The charity runs a host of different community projects in Ghananian towns and communities, including Sportz4all, an initiative to enable disabled children and others, in deprived areas, to participate in sports activities.

We donated hundreds of our campaign branded t-shirts to Farm4Life for them to use as sports team bibs as part of Sportz4all, which runs a project teaching blind cricket to the visually impaired.

During the past month, the t-shirts have travelled an incredible … Read the rest

Over your time at uni, it is likely that you have accumulated a lot of stuff. Whether it is clothes, furniture, books or boxsets, when it comes to packing up your room for the summer, you may find that you have a little more than you anticipated. That’s why we are running our annual Shift Your Stuff campaign, where you can donate your unwanted items and we will organise for them to go to one of fifteen participating charities.

How does it work?

1. Collect your stickers and red bag

Available from between 31 May-29 June from the Union’s Highfield Reception … Read the rest

You may have already heard about the FREE events and activities we are holding as part of You Are More Than, but what, we hear you cry, are we doing for postgraduate students?!

We know that many of you are in the midst of relentless work on your thesis and as many of you also juggle jobs as well as study, sometimes things can get a little stressful. That’s why we have been holding our Postgrad Power Teas, where you can grab a free tea, coffee and snack to keep you powering on through the afternoon – perfect for … Read the rest

You may remember a couple of weeks ago, we asked you to complete the University’s 2016 Student Travel Survey. This is a survey which asks you about your travel habits to find out how they have changed compared to 2013.

The results are used to inform the University’s Travel Plan, which will look at ways in which the University can be more sustainable. For example, last year there were over 5 million journeys on Uni-link buses and our Bike Doctor Service repaired more than 1,000 staff and student bikes.

The survey is open until midnight on 18th March, … Read the rest

University is meant to be a time where you explore who you are and become inspired to do the things you have always wanted to, whether that is academically, or socially. So this year, we would like to introduce Change Your World Week. The week, held between Saturday 5th March-Sunday 13th March, will be packed with events and activities surrounding sustainability, to empower you to change your world. You may think of recycling and the environment when you hear the word ‘sustainability’, but it can also include business, employability, equality and diversity and much more!

ALL WEEK, YOU WILL BE … Read the rest

Are you interested in student enterprise and want to deliver sustainability projects and solutions? Want some tips on how to build a relationship with your university or students’ union when it comes to sustainability? Well BEEs (Business Ethics and Environment students) have an exciting conference coming up.

On the 15^th September, BEEs (Business Ethics and Environment students) will be holding a free daylong conference to equip businesses to deliver sustainability projects and solutions.

The day will start at 10:30 with a keynote from Jamie Agombar , winner of the 2014 Inspiring Leader of the Year in the Guardian University … Read the rest