Michaelmas Elections | Manifestos Booklet

CANDIDATES MANIFESTOS VOTING 31st October 0:00 3rd November 17:00

elections@cusu.cam.ac.uk

vote.cusu.cam.ac.uk

MICHAELMAS ELECTIONS 2017 Welcome to the manifestos booklet for the 2017 annual CUSU Michaelmas Elections.

This academic year, the winners of these elections will be running some of the key campaigns withing CUSU, impacting the Union, the University, the city and on a national level. Their manifestos are your way of deciding who you want speaking for you – so please do spend a little time reading through them before casting your vote.

Remember: in every election, if you are not happy with any of the candidates, you also have the option to vote to re-open nominations (“RON”). If RON wins an election, nominations for that position will be re-opened and a by-election held in due course.

Voting is online-only via www.vote.cusu. cam.ac.uk. The ballot will open at 9am on Tuesday 31 October, and close at 5pm on Friday 3 November. You are able to check that you are on the electoral role at the same address until noon on Monday 30 October.

We hope you enjoy the elections!

-CUSU Elections Committee

WHAT IS RON? (RE-OPEN NOMINATIONS) If you are not happy with any of the current candidates standing for election, you can vote to Re-Open Nominations (RON). RON appears on the ballot and votes for RON are counted in the same way as those for candidates. If RON is declared the winner after all votes have been counted, the election will be held again. The original candidates are allowed to run again in the new ballot, but it gives the opportunity for new candidates to run.

If nominations are re-opened for one of the NUS-Delegate positions, then representatives from the colleges and faculties will vote for those positions at CUSU Council. NUS delegates elected through CUSU Council will have to vote along the lines of CUSU policy when they attend NUS Conference.

WHY VOTE RON? Voters may choose to vote RON for one of the following reasons: •They do not think any of the available candidates should be elected.

•They would rather have more choice and be able to select from a greater number of candidates (not a guaranteed outcome).

•They have already ranked some candidates, but feel that none of the remaining candidates should be elected.

VOTING RON IN STV/AV ELECTIONS The CUSU-GU Cross Campus Elections are counted using the Single Transferable Vote system (STV) which becomes Alternative Vote (AV) for positions with only one place. Put simply, this means you will be able to rank candidates in order of preference, instead of only voting for one candidate.

When counting votes, if there is no outright winner, the losing votes will be re-distributed according to voters’ second preferences (and then third, fourth and so on) until there is an outright winner. You can rank RON first and still rank other candidates afterwards, so your vote is not wasted if ReOpen Nominations is not successful.

You do not need to vote for RON in an election, so if you think all of the candidates are better than no candidate, don’t put a number next to RON on your ballot!

More information about STV can be found on the CUSU website. www.cusu.co.uk/elections

ETHICAL AFFAIRS

Dylan Amin Ethical Affairs Manifesto I am a second year Land Economist at St Catharine’s college. I am running to be head of CUSU’s Ethical Affairs Campaign. I feel passionate about the ethical affairs issues facing the world, particularly relating to the environment and have faith that I could spread my enthusiasm for protection and conservation across Cambridge.

I have spent almost a year as Ethical and Environmental Officer of St Catharine’s college JCR and have loved every second of it. Doing my best to get everyone in the college working together, a strategy I feel is crucial for success with these issues, has allowed the college to achieve gold awards in the Green Impact and Student Switch-Off Cambridge campaigns.

I now feel determined to make a difference on a larger scale, campaigning to make a difference with ethical and environmental issues throughout Cambridge. The things I would like to achieve for the CUSU Ethical Affairs Campaign: 

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Continue the work of the campaign last year by facilitating easier communication between environment officers at JCR/MCR level – we can all learn from each other and work to create new innovative ideas – I want to make sure these ideas spread between colleges With house prices in Cambridge 47% above the national average and recent information suggesting 24 colleges pay workers a sum below the “living wage,” I will campaign passionately to ensure more is done to highlight such a huge issue and to encourage colleges to make changes Refuse to give up on calls for fossil fuel divestment of the university’s £6.3 billion endowment fund – despite a lack of progress on this issue, we cannot give up on it and need to keep pushing to reduce these carbon intense investments

As CUSU Ethical Affairs Campaign Officer, I would love the opportunity to be the person to help achieve positive change. I strongly believe that any progress over ethical affairs can only be achieved if we all work together and fight for what is right for our society. So here is to making a difference… together.

Ellen Pearce-Davies FOR ETHICAL AFFAIRS OFFICER My Name is Ellen and I am a second year geographer. I have always been Interested in the environment and social issues, and this passion has spread to all areas of my life, including turning vegetarian at the age of 14, taking part in various volunteering projects and even my choice of degree. I am the current Girton college JCR Environmental and Ethical affairs officer, and in my term I have made many changes at college including implementing Green Impact, running the student switch off campaign, and setting up an environmental society. I am well connected to other Sustainability and Ethical Affairs officers, many of which I know personally, and would be very keen to keep the wonderful network and atmosphere of collaboration that we have at the moment.

In the role of CUSU EA officer I will support the individual campaigns of Sustainability and Ethical Affairs officers, as well as other campaigns run by students such as Zero Carbon, the Living wage campaign, campaigns within the Cambridge hub and any new campaigns that come under my remit. However I will primarily be running on a platform of Promoting and working for the benefit of the Living Wage Campaign.

As EA Officer I would: • Work toward a Living wage at Cambridge University and Cambridge colleges • Further collaboration between student led campaigns and EA officers • Continue to build and maintain the Sustainability and Ethical affairs network, through regular meetings, online communication and the Cambridge Hub • Publicise our activities and remit better among the student body • To this end organise a Sustainability and Ethical Affairs event during may week – possibly a vegan, carbon neutral garden party?

• Provide a policy framework and support for May ball committees to make their events more sustainable • Try to bridge the gap between university wide policies on sustainability and practice within colleges (for example the difference in sustainable food policies) I feel this is a role with a lot of potential, and I would love to use this role to work towards making The University a greener and more socially responsible place.

ETHICAL AFFAIRS

Andrea Reyes Hernรกndez FOR ETHICAL AFFAIRS OFFICER I believe that we held a responsibility towards our society and the environment. I want to do my share of contributions through the Cambridge University Students Union.

Many of my friends and classmates are working toward improving recycling and environmental friendly practices between Cambridge and the colleges.

I believe that they are doing something really important, and the same time I wish those practices could be standard for all the colleges and could become compulsory on all of them as well as the university.

I would like to work on and implement the great initiatives that already exist (as the target of recycling 95% in the university - https:// www.environment.admin.cam.ac.uk/recycling - in all colleges and departments.

I have always considered myself committed to achieve the goals that I set to myself and I eager to work with students that are motivated to make a difference through the Cambridge University Students Union.

ETHICAL AFFAIRS

PART-TIME EXECUTIVE

Shannon Bernard Healey shannon bernard healey

FOR PTE ACCESS & FUNDING CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Cut the Rent • Cambridge is one of the country’s most expensive universities for students.

Living and accommodation costs are already high and rising faster than inflation, with some colleges being dramatically worse than others.

• Many students also face unfair fees such as high Kitchen Fixed Charges or punitive fines.

• Rent negotiations are rarely fair and very opaque. They often do not include students in a meaningful way.

• High rents are a major access issue.

• Accommodation should not be for the extraction of high rent to balance college budgets; housing should be a social good not a college asset.

• Cambridge Cut the Rent is a newly-formed student campaign against unfair rents and accommodation costs in Cambridge university. We use lobbying and direct action tactics to pressure colleges to reduce their costs. Specifically, we will facilitate the establishment of a several rent groups in target colleges and support them in rent negotiations. The university group will provide co-ordination, advice and publicity for these groups.

• We will work with the growing national Rent Strike movement to learn from their successes • Cambridge Cut the Rent will initiate broader discussion about both changes to higher education and national housing policy • Cambridge Cut the Rent will also aim to collaborate with campaigns in the city of Cambridge against high rents and exploitative housing practices outside the university I am Shannon, a second-year medical student from Churchill College. I am enthusiastic about widening access, reducing education inequalities and working to change the current model of marketised higher education. I have political organising experience with the national Rentstrike group, Cambridge Defend Education and the Labour Party. I have lobbying, administration and campaigning experience through volunteer work with international and local charities.

PART-TIME EXEC

Dominic Caddick FOR PTE ACCESS & FUNDING CAMPAIGNS OFFICER After Offers Outreach I would like to run a scheme that matches (mainly state-comp) students holding offers to current students studying their course.

Its aim would be to increase the offer retention for students at low-performing schools. Achieving an offer can be very difficult at a low-performing school: A*s may be a rarity and a student may be alone in aiming to achieve so highly - making the process of working towards an offer lonely. Having someone to talk to about exam/revision technique is a valuable resource that some students do not have. On top of the academic aspect, a welfare aspect should be considered too - organising meet-ups (if plausible) or having a college-family-like system before A Level exams will hopefully provide students with a greater motivation to meet their offer and also give them the opportunity to have friends at different colleges from the very start (something that noticeably students from top-performing schools have while others don’t). Currently the % of offers given to state-comp students is greater than % of acceptances of state-comp students.

This suggests state-comp students are not achieving their offers as much as students at other schools, hopefully this campaign could close the gap between these figures.

PART-TIME EXEC

Faria Tabassum FOR PTE ACCESS & FUNDING CAMPAIGNS OFFICER CUSU Class Act CUSU Class Act is a new campaign that works to support working class, statecomp educated, low-income, first generation and care leaver students during their time at the University of Cambridge.

This group will campaign on issues affecting these students on both a university and national level. It will also act as a network for students with similar experiences to support each other and discuss issues of class, educational background and socio-economic privilege which often feel taboo at Cambridge.

This campaign is very much a continuation of widening participation work, as although there’s a lot of working going into getting students from these backgrounds to apply to Cambridge, there is little support for them specifically once they are here.

The campaign has already established forums, open to self-identifying students from any of the Class Act strands. These forums are sometimes open discussions, and other times focused discussions. The forums allow students from class act backgrounds to gain strength from shared experience. We’ve also established a ‘buddy scheme’ that pairs freshers up with students from the years above to get advice and support on both academic and personal matters. Thirdly, we’ve planned a welfare movie screening, a public lecture, and a formal – all of these will be primarily focused on tackling the alienation and pain that comes with coming from a class act background.

Furthermore, we already have links with the FLY campaign and we will be establishing a relationship with WomCam, the LGBT+ campaign and the BME campaign in order to ensure that our campaign is intersectional. We will also be supporting action based groups such as Cambridge Defend Education in order to tackle institutional issues of fee debt, rent hikes and the prevent legislation.

We hope that this campaign will allow for the voices of these students to be heard and their experiences be recognized, and we aim to provide both academic and pastoral support.

PART-TIME EXEC

Matt Kite FOR PTE EDUCATION CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Cambridge Fees and Debt Campaign Most students will graduate from university with debts exceeding £35,000.

Those debts are already accumulating interest while we study, right now at a rate of more than 6% per year. The rate at which we repay our loans and the interest rate can both be changed even after we have already borrowed the money, so we are effectively signing a blank cheque. The richest students leave university with no debt at all, and now that maintenance grants have been scrapped the poorest graduate owing more than anyone else.

Our degrees are increasingly seen as commodities, a product that we buy in exchange for employment prospects. Universities are prioritising receiving money from big businesses; and putting all their investment into more profitable subjects and activities, to the detriment of welfare services and arts.

As Education Campaigns Officer I would campaign for a funding system that makes education accessible to all and recognises its role as a public good. I will do this by: • Working on the Cambridge Fees and Debt Campaign along with CUSU sabbatical officers and Cambridge Defend Education.

• Raising awareness among students about the “blank cheque” that we are all signing.

• Lobbying the University to use its influence to oppose changes in Higher Education policy that will hurt students • Mobilising students to participate in the national movement for free education, including by attending national demonstrations.

• Organising with student activists in Cambridge to oppose unfair fees and debt.

I’m a 3rd year Philosophy undergrad at Robinson, and I’m involved in politics and campaigning in Cambridge through Cambridge Defend Education. As a member of the Education PTE last year I campaigned with Roberta Huldisch (Education Officer 2016-17) for better training for supervisors, which led to the university recently setting up a working group on the issue.

PART-TIME EXEC

Jason Okundaye FOR PTE EDUCATION CAMPAIGNS OFFICER ‘Colouring The Gap’: A review into attainment disparities between White British students and Students of Colour I’m Jason, the current President of the CUSU Black and Minority Ethnic Campaign and i’d love a position on the Part Time Executive to help develop a campaign and report related to the educational issues facing students of colour in higher education. The working title of the campaign report is ‘Colouring The Gap’.

• At present, the attainment gap between White British and Black British students demonstrates the greatest discrepancy. Whilst 27.6% of white students achieve 1st class results in tripos, just 15.7% of black students do, with 83% of white students achieving either 1st or 2.1 and just 68% of black students (figures calculated from university examination statistics 2016) • I would propose a report, similar to Oxford CRAE’s BAME 100 Voices Report, which investigates the numerous factors which may impact the experiences of ethnic minority students in education (both before and during Cambridge) and how this can contribute to underperformance.

• The campaign and report will cover issues such as decolonising and diversifying curricula to ensure that content is more broadly accessible, relatable and interesting for diverse identities.

• The report will feature qualitative student responses and recommendations about matters of race and ethnicity relevant to academic matters.

• The report will further assess student satisfaction at levels of representation within university staff and perception of their interests being respected by the institution.

• The report will aim to identify recommendations and solutions to entrenched racial problems within education which may impact on the welfare and examination performance of black and minority ethnic students.

PART-TIME EXEC

Elyem Chej FOR PTE ETHICAL AFFAIRS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Helping the University reach it’s ethical investment goals My name is Elyem Chej and I am studying an MPhil on Planning, Growth and Regeneration. I am very interested in issues of sustainability, community building and accessibility.

CUSU Ethical Affairs focuses on social and environmental issues. I am running for the Campaigns Officer position, and in this role, I would like to: • Represent the student body to make sure our voices are heard in the process of implementation of the ethical investment policies recently approved by the University.

• Engage with stakeholders at the University to ensure that members of the University have more access to expressing their views on investment practices.

• Make information on University investment practices available to the student body.

• Engage and empower student of all levels to continue pushing the University to be as sustainable as it can.

MPhil students like myself are in Cambridge, usually, only for a year. However, I believe it is our duty to get as involved as possible and to bring insights from our previous universities. I believe this position would enable be to serve the student body.

I am taking part in Positive Investment Cambridge, a campaign that has successfully worked with the university to make changes in their investment practices. I am also in contact with the JCR Green Officer in my college and I am running for the MCR Green Officer position. I believe these ties will prove useful to further the goals this campaign and to strengthen the links between the multiple communities that form this university.

PART-TIME EXEC

Jin Choi FOR PTE ETHICAL AFFAIRS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Make Cambridge a Responsible Shareholder My name is Jin and I am a second year undergraduate Maths student at Pembroke College. My interest is in ethical investment, particularly pertaining to environmental issues. I believe that Cambridge University, as an institution at the forefront of research and collective knowledge, should take the lead in developing an investment policy that takes ethical affairs into account.

At a time of unprecedented temperature rise and freak hurricanes, we must remember that we as students can force change within the university’s policies. Some of these changes that I am campaigning for include: 1. Making sure the university exercises voting rights and files resolutions as a shareholder. These abilities combined with the massive influence that is the brand of “University of Cambridge� should be effective tools in bringing about positive change within ecosystem of investors and ultimately to the corporations themselves.

2. This would also involve the creation of a channel through which students themselves can make a difference by getting involved in the process of co-filing a resolution, so that the university is held to the ethical standards held by the student body and other university members.

3. The university has an unprecedented pool of academic expertise that they could draw from to support the management of its endowment and investments. The university should take advantage of this to make careful judgements on future investments and to file the most up-to-date, evidence-based resolutions that are backed by the academic community.

4. The university should create a user-friendly portal or forum that allows university members to democratically express their views on investment practices of the university. This provides transparency, while respecting the individual practices of the fund managers.

5. The university should regularly create reports so that university members are aware that various policy changes regarding the investment of the endowment and the utilities available to the university as a shareholder have been implemented.

Many people over the years have been working to make the university accept these points as part of their investment responsibility. We must continue to pressure the university so that all the progress that has been made over the years is not lost. Voting for me will ensure that I will continue to work to bring about positive change within this area.

PART-TIME EXEC

Vote Fieke for Ethical Campaigns Officer!

Action at Cambridge, Impact Around the World

Hi, my name is Fieke van der Spek, I’m a second-year ASNaC running for ethical campaigns officer on a platform of fossil fuel divestment.

Cambridge Zero Carbon Society have been running our #DivestCambridge campaign for two years now, and we ask again for backing from the student body. Climate change is the battle of our time – the summer of climate chaos just gone was just the tip of the iceberg. We currently stand just a 5% chance of staying within the universally agreed 2C limit. Radical action is needed.

For Cambridge to still be profiting from the industry most responsible for this man-made disaster is egregious. The University must divest immediately and send a powerful moral signal that the fossil fuel age is over.

The University Working Group on divestment is due to report next summer. It is imperative that Zero Carbon puts pressure on it to make the right decision. For that we need the money and resources which come with this role.

If Cambridge divests from fossil fuels, it will be a message heard around the world.

Let’s #DivestCambridge

Vote Fieke for Ethical Campaigns Officer!

Miranda Hewkin Smith FOR PTE UNION DEVELOPMENT CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Increasing CUSU’s visibility and interaction with students Dear all, My name is Miranda Hewkin Smith, and I am the Homerton JCR President, the only sabbatical JCR president in Cambridge. With such a role, I believe I have a responsibility to ensure that my time is spent efficiently and effectively in serving the Homerton student body in whatever they feel is important to their academic and personal welfare.

I also believe that this role is an opportunity to make a difference to students on a university-wide basis. CUSU is clearly the best way to do this.

Unfortunately, despite great efforts and improvements in recent years, CUSU is still seen by students as something distant and irrelevant to individual students.

I intend on increasing visibility of CUSU’s projects, campaigns, meetings and general day-to-day work both by employing social media to the highest capacity possible and increasing the physical presence of CUSU Committee Members in JCRs and MCRs throughout the year, in both a professional and an informal setting.

Hopefully, by increasing student involvement and affiliation with CUSU, we will be able to have more of a positive impact across the university, and can cater to the needs of all Cambridge University students.

Thank you, Miranda

PART-TIME EXEC

The Students Should and Will Know — CUSU will hear our voice.

I am an Economics student from Australia, so I know Þrst hand how daunting new environments can be, and I have been so grateful for the warm welcome and ease of settling in at Cambridge. What I found interesting about the process, was how little students knew about the ‘helpers’ that made all this possible — the CUSU. This is what I hope to change.

Personally, I see members of the CUSU as Christmas elves, and I sincerely hope you all will too. At Cambridge, we are so fortunate to not only be receiving such high quality education, but to also be able to learn in such a helpful and supportive environment.

However, all these facilities, events and support networks that we take for granted, are actually all attributed to the CUSU. The CUSU are a group of very dedicated and motivated students, who seek to improve our experience as students. We used to look forward to Santa Claus’ arrival as kids, when truly it was the elves that were tirelessly working behind-the-scenes to provide us with a joyous Christmas — and now it is the CUSU operating backstage.

The CUSU is integral to improving our student lives, and as part-time exec, I will actively seek how improvements can be made of the CUSU to better cater to student needs. What do the students want? How can the CUSU provide these services? These are the types of questions I will constantly be asking myself.

As college representative of RAGS, the University-wide student charity fundraising organisation, and of Pink Week, one of the biggest charity events in Cambridge, I am assured of my abilities to quickly adapt, involve students in fun and innovative initiatives, and voice the opinions of my peers.

Furthermore, my involvement in Selwyn’s JCR have equipped me with knowledge of the university administration system, allowing me to be able to constructively recommend potential CUSU improvements.

Many might say IÕm too ÔnewÕ to the universityÑ and they may be right. As a Þrst-year, there is still much I have to learn. So allow me to take you along my journey. Allow me to be your voice as we collectively enhance our experience at Cambridge.

If elected, I guarantee to actively bridge the voice of the student body and the University. (No voice is too little to be heard!)

If elected, I guarantee that every student will know of the changes that will occur around them, and the reasons these changes have been made. (No student will be left in the dark about matters that will impact them!)

With me, Angela Xia, as your campaign ofÞcer of the Union Development Team, the CUSU will hear our voice.

Danielle Bradford FOR PTE WELFARE & RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Making the Invisible Visible It is no coincidence that often the issues that hit students the hardest are invisible, or hidden - consciously or unconsciously. Whether it is invisible disabilities or illnesses, mental health, or the discrimination of our minority students, there is an attitude of institutional complacency in regards the issues that endanger us the most. I aim to bring a spotlight onto these issues; help to create an environment in which those in power who are silent in the face of this neglect of critical student welfare are held accountable.

On an individual basis — at a personal, student-focused level — I aim to enhance and make accessible resources for all students, with a particular focus on disabled, LGBTQ+, and BME students. I wish to work with the CUSU staff who are already doing an incredible job at improving student quality of life, and bring welfare to the forefront of our actions and our minds.

Whilst I also have been lucky to have grown up with certain privileges, being queer and chronically ill left me feeling ostracised, unable to speak up for myself with the knowledge that few would listen. When much of your identity, your demons, your day-to-day life, is invisible, it is so easy to allow yourself to become invisible also.

This is about solidarity. It’s about recognising that within the student community, we can always — and always should — do more. For disabled and chronically ill students, for black and ethnic minorities, for non-binary and trans individuals. The list is extensive. We should never, as a community, be satisfied.

We should always be yearning for progress, individually and communally.

The ‘Making the Invisible Visible’ campaign is fundamentally about raising up and amplifying the voices of minorities, as well as providing support and resources for those struggling within in University. I aim to embrace these invisibilities in all of us and bring them into other peoples realities — become, once again, visible. It’s not enough for me to simply be tolerated within this society. What I want for me, for us, is to be accepted. Loved. Safe.

PART-TIME EXEC

Mental Health First Aid Training for Staff and Students

Experience:

Intersectional focused events

Raise awareness about Less-talked about mental health conditions

Felicity Kersting FOR PTE WELFARE & RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Putting Student Experience at the Centre of University Policy In Cambridge, students who do not fulfil the classic ‘Cambridge mould’, frequently those who are marginalised on a wider scale, often feel side-lined and as though their feelings and opinions carry less weight than students who better fit this idea.

I’d like to ensure that these groups have space to exist in Cambridge in general, rather than only during specific student–led events, eg discussion groups. While these events are really important, the university should do much more to ensure that all students feel listened to and safe. I would like to: • Ensure there is student input into issues regarding students, including areas such as ‘Prevent’ policy where the university is legally bound to implement some procedures.

• Improve the university’s mental health services. Mental health problems are prevalent across the institution however few actions are put in place to improve the situation. I would like to campaign the university to increase or change the hours provided by the University Counselling Service to allow those who are unavailable for a regular weekday timeslot eg lectures 9-5, erratic timetables to access support more easily. I would also like to improve the tutorial system as tutors often lack knowledge surrounding how to practically support a student if they turn to their tutor.

• Raise awareness of current university policies to ensure it is held accountable. There have been cases across the university where the institution has shut down students peacefully campaigning or flyering as the university does not agree with the focus point – this goes against the university’s own Freedom of Speech policy and must be challenged.

• Similarly, university policy should be clearer and more easily accessible, especially policies regarding welfare and confidentiality as confusion around these subjects may lead to distrust from students and reluctance to use these channels, especially groups who may be more wary about the consequences of such violations – for example LGBT+ students being outed to people without their consent.

The university talks a lot about what services and systems it provides to support marginalised students. However, these systems are often poorly implemented, disadvantaging the students they are designed to help. This is commonly due to oversight on the university’s part, rather than an active decision to not implement these ideas - I would like to hold the university more accountable to ensure it carries out its own procedures effectively, as well as improving the experience of marginalised groups by placing student voices at the centre of university policy.

PART-TIME EXEC

Stella Swain

FOR PTE WELFARE & RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Anti-PREVENT Since February 2015, the government’s PREVENT policy has imposed an obligation on public bodies such as universities to prevent the “radicalisation” of those within the institution. As a result of the very vague definition of terms, the disproportionate focus on Muslim communities in political discourse and policy on ‘terrorism’ and ‘extremism’, and rising trends of Islamophobia in the UK, the apparently general policy specifically targets Muslim and BME students for surveillance.

This results in damage to the well-being of students who are already likely to feel out of place and alienated at Cambridge. They are subjected to the anxiety and loneliness created by suspicion and monitoring, and faced with the violent experience of criminalisation on the basis of their faith or ethnicity. These students are likely to feel a pressure to regulate and limit their speech and activities, especially those related to Muslim identities or political issues associated with Islam in the popular imagination. In the long term, PREVENT policy, even if implemented with a ‘light touch’, sets up a network of institutions in the University whose dedicated purpose is this kind of damaging racialised surveillance, and creates a pervasive climate of self-censorship and fear.

As it is the responsibility of the Welfare and Rights team to fight for the well-being and rights of minority or marginalised groups within the student body, and to support the current Welfare and Rights Officer’s aim of prioritising intersectionality in Higher Education well-being, I would like to run an Anti-PREVENT Campaign with the long-term goal of a university-wide boycott of the PREVENT policy.

There will be three parts to this campaign: 1. Transparency a) Put pressure on University and college PREVENT committees to log each incidence of reporting in order to create a record of PREVENT activity b) Collect testimonies of those who have had Prevent used against them – Cambridge Defend Education has already set up an online submissions form, but this needs to be maintained and publicised to allow it to succeed c) Work with CUSU and JCRs to create a report on Cambridge University PREVENT policy the processes of implementation and the legal framework within which it is operating. This ties into the Welfare and Rights Officer’s manifesto goal of linking with other political/welfare campaigns.

2. Statements and support a) Push for CUSU to formalise a policy of boycotting PREVENT b) Bring together students and staff interested in resisting PREVENT c) Build links and establish mutual collaboration with other campaigns and groups who will support a boycott of PREVENT, both within and outside the university 3. Education a) Organising events to educate members of PREVENT committees of the damage the policy does to welfare and rights b) Spreading awareness about the policy amongst members of the University in general (through posters, leafleting, teach-ins, etc.)

PART-TIME EXEC

May Zhan FOR PTE WELFARE & RIGHTS CAMPAIGNS OFFICER Health & Life I want to craft a campaign that is geared towards integrating health benefits and awareness into our daily lives in an easy to digest way. What I mean by this is that we are all very busy and juggling many things - from academic commitments to sports and other extracurriculars. I would like to find a way to easily integrate healthy habits into our lives through a combination of ways, including: • Health newsletters with helpful tips to integrate • Healthy food outings • Incorporating health food options into vending machines & cafes • Providing stress & time management workshops • Providing productivity hacks to increase free time

PART-TIME EXEC

NUS DELEGATE

Daniel Davison-Vecchione FOR NUS DELEGATE Vote Dan for a democratic NUS that stands with the workers’ movement for our rights, for our education, and for an equal, free society.

Education, not Privatisation To win free education, the NUS needs bold strategy. This means maintaining and increasing pressure on the government to stop campus cuts and reverse the Higher Education reforms. It means taxing the rich to create an open, free, and democratic system of education.

Defend International Students I nternational students are under threat. From having to pay extortionate fees to the limits on free movement looming around the Brexit negotiations. We need to defend freedom of movement for all, stand up for international students and fight anti-migrant racism in every corner.

Living Grants for All Higher education has suffered some of the bloodiest cuts to student funding: the Education Maintenance Allowance, the Disabled Students’ Allowance, and the million poorest undergrads’ grants, to name but a few. We must fight not only to reverse these cuts, but also to bring in living grants for all. No one should be held back from education at any level.

End Casualisation Casual employment is rife in the higher education sector. Graduate students and early career academics go from hourly-paid contract to hourly-paid contract just to make ends meet, with little prospect of improving their fortunes. We need to fight against this gig economy both locally and nationally by demanding better pay, security, and transparency in university employment practices.

I’m a socialist feminist and have fought for these causes as both a student activist and a UCU Rep. Vote for me and I’ll keep fighting for them as your NUS delegate.

NUS DELEGATE

Vote Keel an Kellegh er for NUS Capitalism offers us a life worse than that of our parents; Capitalism has failed us.

We need radical, Socialist change, not the piecemeal offerings of 10% off at selected stores. The NUS can be a powerful organisation that can organise students, school students, young workers and apprentices into action. Yet it has become a vehicle for careerism that plays lip service to the problems faced by young people today. We need representatives that are prepared to fight for your rights and I will do just that.

I want to see the abolition of rent, free education and provision of full living grants and a fight for higher wages for apprentices and university staff and an end to casualisation. The NUS should oppose all forms of oppression and exploitation and must do this by going beyond its current lacklustre program and seek to change society. To do this, students must join the struggle of other young people and workers and together we can abolish Capitalism, nationalise the financial sector and take the wealth produced by the working class back into our own hands.

Cambridge is among the worst universities for rent prices and the cost of living, with my college raising rents by 6%! Rent must be abolished and universities must provide good quality, free accommodation. This must be combined with full living grants, allowing us to live and eat healthily, putting our wellbeing before profit! We can achieve this with nationwide rent strikes amongst the student body. It is not enough for the NUS to endorse rent strikes, it must also organise them. With this effort, the NUS has the capacity to push down rent, house prices and eventually be an inspiration for the ending of rent and profit altogether.

no rent.

Abolish tuition fees and end the crisis in higher education. Capitalism is privatising education, introducing a business-model in the management of education and tuition fees. We must end the extortion of students, now being asked to pay £9250 a year! The NUS should go beyond the abolition of tuition fees and launch a campaign to end academies, root out privatisation in education and call for apprentices to be paid a living wage.

We should also seek to end the casualisation of labour within universities, be it teachers, cleaners or healthcare professionals and all staff should receive at least the living wage.

No fees.

We must oppose all forms of oppression and the transformation of society is key to this. I am opposed to all forms of bigotry and believe we can only eradicate it by removing a ruling class than benefits from such division!

The NUS should campaign against the discriminatory policy of Prevent and indeed it should raise awareness on issues Pre of oppression. But it must go further and be the beginning of a radical movement that throws out the politicians, media barons and Capitalists who divide us with the dissemination of this bigotry!

no exploit atio

For an NUS that fights for us!

about me

I’m a second year at King’s College studying History and I’m a Marxist Society activist. I write for the publication of the Marxist Student Federation, the Revolution. I am standing as a Marxist in this election, having been an activist in both Newcastle and Cambridge to campaign for an end to austerity.

n.

A Better NUS I was an NUS Delegate in 2016. What I saw made me angry: A lot of factionalism, very little progress on things that actually matter to students, and some delegates questioning why the Holocaust needed to be commemorated. UK and International students deserve better. Cambridge students deserve better. That’s why I’m running to be an NUS Delegate.

Making Real Change

About Me Emmanuel JCR President - Fought for recognition of Pride Month – the flag flew for every day in February. College is now looking forward to celebrating Trans Awareness Week this year.

- Represent students to college, I know how to deliver results.

NUS Delegate in 2016

I will fight for better and more affordable housing. High rents and low savings mean too many are faced with poor accommodation and the inability to buy a home.

The UK should do better.

I will fight to improve access scholarships, bursaries and maintenance grants.

I’m lucky enough to be here on a scholarship. I know that without these kinds of opportunities, too many students miss out on University.

I will vote for a national executive whom I think can deliver results. When I was a delegate, I listened to the VP of the NUS call Theresa May a fascist at Conference, on live television. This isn’t acceptable. We need an NUS who can work with our democratically elected government.

For Everyone From what I saw at the 2016 Conference, it is clear that the NUS makes decision in large part on factional lines. The National Organisation of Labour Students (NOLS) usually faces off against the National Coalition Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) and whoever gets the most delegates wins. This leaves a tonne of students underrepresented. Elect me, and you'll get an independent minded and principled student who will work hard to make the NUS work for everyone. I'll make sure to keep YOU up to date by using social media to communicate during the conference.

Questions? Contact Me

cggm2@cam.ac.uk

VOTE ED MCNALLY FOR NUS DELEGATE I’m Ed, a second year History student at Pembroke. In my time here so far I have been heavily involved in progressive political organising on campus, and I am eager to represent you at NUS conference, as I believe continued engagement on a national level is crucial.

PRIORITIES

1) OPPOSE 'PREVENT' AND DEFEND FREE SPEECH

behind the hysteria about safe spaces and no-platforming, the government is advancing a 'counter-terror' strategy that threatens free speech and academic freedom.The ‘PREVENT’ agenda has led to state censorship and routine racial profiling of Muslim students on our campuses. I will support initiatives to oppose it.

2) SUPPORT FREE EDUCATION

students protesting the tripling of tuition fees in 2010 were politically marginal, but parts of student movement persisted in campaigning for free education, and now our demands are in the mainstream. It is crucial that NUS continues to fight for the scrapping of fees and reinstatement of maintenance grants, and I will vote at conference accordingly.

3) DEFEND INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS

the NUS is often dismissed as irrelevant to the ‘ordinary student’ due to focus on international issues, but solidarity is imperative.

As long as students on campus are facing police harassment and deportation, or fleeing from war and persecution at home, their concerns and struggles must be those of the student movement and of NUS.

EXPERIENCE:

-Helped re-launch Cambridge Defend Education -CUSU PTE Education -CU Palestine Society co-chair

ANY QUESTIONS? Don't hesitate to email me (em664) or get in touch on facebook with any questions or concerns!

VOTE LAURIE O’CONNEL FOR NUS    

Florence Oulds FOR NUS DELEGATE Hi, I’m Florence, I studied English at Homerton College, and before being elected as CUSU Disabled Students’ Officer I was a member of the Disabled Students’ Campaign Committee This year I attended NUS Disabled Students’ Conference, and have since then been working closely with the NUS Disabled Students Campaign on issues that affect students across the country I am familiar with the NUS and how it works, and am keen to make sure that the voices of disabled students and trans students are heard outside of our respective conferences and liberation groups, and will work to make us ever more part of the national HE conversation I also wish to ensure that the NUS uses its collective power to make change on issues like healthcare that affect all students, but that may not traditionally be the focus of wider student activism Before the conference I will consult students, members of the Disabled Students’ Campaign, the DSC committee, and other liberation campaigns to ensure that I’m not just representing my own voice at NUS conference, but the wider views of marginalised students at Cambridge

NUS DELEGATE

Carine ValarchĂŠ FOR NUS DELEGATE My name is Carine and i would love to be your NUS Delegate this year!

A little about me: I study HSPS at Pembroke and in my spare time am a Pembassador (student ambassador of Pembroke College, Cambridge); CAMbassador (Student ambassador of the University of Cambridge); and an avid participant of student theatre. I have helped run events for college as well as different societies and am on a number of committees that have allowed me to learn how to be articulate and make what you want a reality.

I would be an ideal candidate as a) My proactive student lifestyle means i speak to many different groups of students on a regular basis, meaning i understand the different issues that are important to Cambridge students b) Not only do i understand the issues that are important to us, i want to represent us Cambridge students - the NUS is not an insignificant body and i want to bring our issues to light c) I will defend our positions particularly on issues including access to higher education, sustainable environmental practices, and rights for LGBT and female/non-binary students on campuses.

I want to be a part of creating a sustainable society that works for all and i believe this can begin with us as students, what we want to change, and the NUS as a body that can amplify the noise we make.

A vote for me is a vote for Carine: ChAnge in the issues and institutions we caRe about, the envIroNmEnt and our future.

NUS DELEGATE

VOTE.CUSU.CAM.AC.UK

VOTING 31st October 0:00 3rd November 17:00