Festive Lowdown

DECEMBER 2021

THE

F E S T I V E

LOWDOWN

Welcome to the festive edition of

THE LOWDOWN Hello everyone,

Since being elected into our posts at the start of term, the Students’ Association has been working hard on a wide range of projects and activities.

We are very pleased that we have managed to engage successfully with many of you, both online and in person under safe physical distancing measures, and we hope to continue this next term.

We have also been working on a number of different projects and in this issue, we will update you on topics such as sustainability, clubs and societies, sports and wellbeing and student discounts.

We have also created a supplement to the magazine which details all of the support and guidance services the College has to offer – so be sure to check it out!

Remember we are always here to help! Follow us on our social channels, @NCLStudentVoice, or email studentvoice@nclan.ac.uk.

NCLSA

HOW CAN YOU BE MORE SUSTAINABLE THIS FESTIVE PERIOD?

SUSTAINABLE THIS FESTIVE PERIOD?

The festive period is the time of the year when we usually consume the most. So this year, to help raise awareness about sustainability, we want to share with you some tips about how to eat more sustainably during the festive season: SAY NO TO FOOD WASTE Food production (growing crops and raising livestock) is currently the biggest cause of tropical deforestation. We all need food to live but if more of us took time to plan meals ahead of time, we would help decrease the amount of food waste. Buying produce you can use to create more than one meal is always a great way to be more sustainable as well as making use of leftovers. You can save food being wasted by covering it with ecofriendly coverings such as Tupperware, foil or wax cloth covers to enjoy the next day.

KNOW YOUR LOGOS When shopping for food, look for UK produce to reduce food miles (avoiding food that’s been flown around the world to get here), and sustainability certifications such as RSPO-certified palm oil. To help you, the GIKI app provides ethical and sustainability information about more than 280,000 supermarket products.

EAT SEASONAL PRODUCE Buying local produce when it’s in season can ensure your shopping basket is more sustainable as it reduces the energy that might have been spent growing foods out of season or food that has been shipped to the UK. You can use this handy guide to see what fruits and vegetables are in season every week of the year: www.eattheseasons.co.uk HAVE A VEGAN DINNER Eating plant-based meals is good for you and the planet. The livestock industry alone generates nearly 15% of all man-made greenhouse gas emissions and requires vast amount of space, water and feed, so this is one of the biggest things that you can do to reduce your carbon emissions.

(From www.bosh.tv) INGREDIENTS

(feeds 1 -2 people) FOR THE ROAST VEGGIES 50ml olive oil

400g roasting potatoes 2 carrots

2 parsnips

100g Brussel sprouts 1 bulb garlic

Some sprigs of rosemary and thyme Salt and pepper to season

FOR THE TURKEY JACKFRUIT

400g young or unripe canned jackfruit 2 tbsp. olive oil

Salt and pepper to season ½ tsp sugar

1 tsp dried sage

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp garlic powder ½ tsp dried thyme

RECIPE

Preheat oven to 200*C. Line a large roasting tin with parchment paper.

Peel the veggies and cut the potatoes and onions into quarters and the carrots and parsnips into 3cm chunks. Remove the skins from the sprouts and cut them all in half.

Place the potatoes and carrots in a large saucepan, cover with cold water, add a generous pinch of salt, bring to the boil and cook for 5 minutes. Add the parsnips and sprouts and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Take the pan off the stove and drain the vegetables into a colander.

Remove the carrots, parsnips and sprouts from the colander and set them to one side. Toss the potatoes in the colander to rough up the sides and set them to one side to dry and cool.

Whilst the potatoes are cooling, prepare your jackfruit. Wash the jackfruit under cold water and pat dry with a clean cloth. Pour the jackfruit and all the seasoning into a mixing bowl and fold everything together, making sure all pieces are covered in the seasoning. Set the jackfruit to one side.

Put the potatoes in the roasting tin, drizzle with a good glug of olive oil, a generous pinch of salt and a good grind of pepper. Mix the potatoes around in the tin making sure they’re well covered. Sprinkle half the garlic cloves over the potatoes. Place the red onions in the roasting tin, put the tin in the oven and bake for 25 minutes (check after 20 to make sure the red onion isn’t charring).

Take the tin out of the oven, set it down on a heat proof surface, remove the red onion and garlic cloves, place them on a plate and leave them to cool. Turn the potatoes in the tin with tongs to ensure an even cook. Push the potatoes to one side of the tin. Put the carrots and parsnips in the tray, drizzle with olive oil and push them up against the potatoes. Pour the jackfruit into the tin and push the pieces up against the carrots and parsnips. Sprinkle the remaining garlic cloves, rosemary and thyme over the potatoes, carrot and parsnips and put the tin back in the oven for 30 minutes.

Take the roasting tin out of the oven and turn all the vegetables and jackfruit around to ensure an even cook. Pour the sprouts into the pan, drizzle with a little olive oil, some salt and pepper and put the pan back in the oven for 15 minutes.

Take the pan out of the oven and plate up the dinner. You can then add some veggie gravy, cranberry sauce and/or other sauces that you enjoy.

2nd Time Around A new student initiative, called the 2nd Time Around Swap Shop, has recently been set up as part of our sustainability agenda.

This live campaign, which is a pop-up swap shop, was set up to help reduce carbon emissions and to stop garments going to landfill, while promoting a change in the way that we consume.

The swap shop is available on our three main campuses once a month for students and staff. You can donate some of your preloved clothes and accessories and swap them for something that you will use.

After showcasing the project at NCL’s Sustainability Hub during COP26, the swap shop was able to be brought onto campus for its first opening on 30th November. Nine student volunteers from the Ready for Retail course in Motherwell Campus were on hand to help display all donations beautifully on the mannequins, rails and shelves and helped to prevent 6 kilos of clothing going to landfill.

Volunteering with us is a great way to gain valuable skills that can be added to your CV. We have already recruited more than 60 volunteers to run our pop-up swap shops as part of class projects and we would love for anyone else who may be interested to join in.

If you are interested, just email us at studentvoice@nclan.ac.uk or drop us a message on our social channels - @NCLStudentVoice.

Would you like to meet new people

with similar interests to you?

The Students’ Association wants to give every student the opportunity to have fun while they create projects, participate in competitions, run campaigns and organise events related to their hobbies and interests.

In the New Year, we will be launching a survey to get to know what societies and clubs you’d like to see created, so keep an eye on your student email.

Every society needs a minimum of 4 members to get started - a president, a vice-president, a secretary and a treasurer. Once that is set up there is no limit to how many members can join. Societies also have the freedom of creating new roles like a social media manager or a wellbeing officer if they find it appropriate.

If you already have an idea or a group of people that are interested in forming a society or a club, you can contact the student voice email and we will help you get started!

Esports/gaming is currently one of the fastest growing activities across the world, particularly in industry, which is creating some new and exciting employment opportunities.

Because of this, we decided to create our very own team and we now have a growing Esports community within the college with over 60 students!

The club gives our students the opportunity to interact with fellow gamers, play games, compete in club competitions and enter Esport team events against other colleges and universities.The NCL Esports team recently participated in the Scottish College Cup, arranged by gaming governing body the British Esports Association, and made it to the finals playing Rocket League against defending champions Edinburgh College.

Team NCL battled valiantly but ultimately gave way to the skills and experience of the Edinburgh team and lost narrowly in a well contested match to finish as runners-up.

Team Captain, Engineering student, Blair Dunn said: “The experience was incredibly fun and enjoyable. Win or lose - it’s always a good time to play and compete for your college.

“We are extremely happy with our performance throughout the group stages and when it came to the final, we knew we could win if we brought our ‘A game’ but unfortunately, we ran out of steam.

“Edinburgh College put up an excellent resistance and played exceptional throughout all of it. Would have loved to take home the trophy but unfortunately it just was not meant to be.”

Esports is one of our most popular and successful college communities and we would love for any interested students to join in by dropping us an email so we can connect you with the group.

As part of their campaign for mental and physical health and wellbeing, the Students’ Association has been holding weekly Walk and Talk sessions across the three main campuses.

During lunch time, students meet with the Presidents at reception and head outside for a 15-20 minute walk where you can get the chance to increase your steps and to socialise with fellow students.

During this time you can ask the team any questions about the work that we do and also raise any concerns you may have about college life.

Keep an eye on our social media to see the dates for the New Year!

NCL

n i t r a ke p

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Two students from New College Lanarkshire recently took part in a cross country race on Saturday 13th November in Edinburgh.

The Braid Hills Cross Country Races are held annually by Edinburgh University Hare & Hounds running club in mid-November and are supported by Scottish Student Sport (SSS). The races take place on a challenging 5km loop course situated between King’s Buildings and the Pentland Hills, and are surrounded by great views of the beautiful city of Edinburgh. Two races take place, a 5km and a 10km, and both are popular with local club runners and universities/colleges across the UK. Social Science student Mohamad Osama Alzehrawi and Hairdressing student Slawomir Redlica took part this year as a way to represent the college and also to challenge themselves.

Student Mohamad said: “The course at Braid Hills was very narrow, muddy and rocky so the race itself was a bit of a challenge. I found it difficult to try and overtake any runners in front of me due to the narrowness of the course so I kept to a steady pace along the way to complete the 10k. The views around the course were stunning – so that really helped me to stay focused.

“There were students from universities and colleges from all over the country including places like Newcastle, St. Andrews and Strathclyde so it was great to see so many students taking part. Although it was tough on me, I am very grateful to New College Lanarkshire for giving me the opportunity to participate in the race.”

Student Slawomir said: “We had a fantastic day. The weather was lovely and it was great to be a part of a race with more than 200 other students from all over Scotland and England.

“The atmosphere at the race was electric and I feel like I really done well in the 10k.”

Ross Brand, who set up the partnership with Scottish Student Sport said: “It’s great to see our students taking part in new sporting events that are popular amongst other universities and colleges across the UK. This is the first time our students have taken part in this particular event and I’m

glad they enjoyed the experience – and both completed a 10k!

“Our aim is to continue to promote events like this to our students and to encourage our students to get more active to improve their overall health and wellbeing.”

If any students would like to keep up to date with any sporting activities within the college, they can email student.voice@nclan.ac.uk for more information or visit the dedicated sports page on MyNCL.

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t ou u o b a rd

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As part of Rainbow Laces Day, which took place on 8th December, the Students’ Association teamed up with LGBTQ+ equality charity Stonewall to encourage our students to “Lace up and Speak up” about LGBTQ+ inclusion in sport.

To make sure that sport is everyone’s game, we wanted to ensure that our students’ voices are heard when it comes to creating equality which is

why we created a survey to find out your thoughts about sports activity on campus.

If you would like to help us out, all you have to do is complete our short survey and in return we will give you a free pair of rainbow laces for you to wear on and off the field and around campus to show your support.

You can find the link in your student email, or click www.surveymonkeyco. ukrKHBL96T

Student Discounts

Everyone loves a discount!

There are many places that you can use your student status to get a discount. There are three main platforms that compile most offers available for students: • • •

www.totum.com www.myunidays.com www.studentbeans.com

All you have to do is register with your student email address.

Entertainment platforms like Spotify or YouTube offer student discounts as well.

Possibly one of the most relevant discounts you can get is on transport like First Bus and Stagecoach. Students are able to buy passes directly from their apps and then you might be asked to show your student card when you jump on the bus.

In case you didn’t know, if you’re a full-time student you’re also eligible for an exemption/discount on your council tax so check on the website of your council to see what steps you need to follow.

In restaurants and cafes, you can ask as well if they have a student discount, Greggs for example offers a meal deal at a cheaper price for students.