Concrete 353

22 September 2018 Issue 353

The official student newspaper of the University of East Anglia | concrete-online.co.uk

News:

More strikes ahead?

Matt Nixon Deputy Editor

Criticisms put forward by striking university staff towards the controversial settlement made between the University and College Union (UCU) and Universities UK (UUK) in March, have been grounded by a Joint Expert Panel (JEP) who were tasked with reviewing the 2017 valuation of the Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS).

Many key issues have been pointed out by the Panel, primarily with a controversial deficit valuation which was a key factor for the industrial action of the last academic year, as it justified pension reforms to the USS which would have seen a typical lecturer lose up to £10,000 of their pension every year.

UUK intended to change the Superannuation Scheme from a defined benefits scheme to what they called a “market-leading” defined contributions

scheme. This would have meant that the state of the market would impact the amount an employee receives when they retire.

This led staff at 65 universities across the UK to strike, which was the biggest display of workers undertaking industrial action in the Higher Education sector’s history. It is estimated that over one million students were affected, and that at least 575,000 hours of teaching time were lost.

In the most recent development, the Joint Expert Panel - put together by both the UCU and UUK - have published a report (released on Friday 13 September) which stated that the “framing and context” of questions asked to university employers as part of the consultation on the 2017 USS valuation produced “misleading results”.

Continued on page 3

pg 3

Features:

Dealing with the "red tape" If you look to the university world rankings, the UK dominates 40 percent of the top ten. It is therefore no surprise that we are the second biggest home of international students.

pg 11

Travel:

Thoroughly American Amelia

The queue for customs in Chicago takes two hours and my connecting flight has already left.

pg 21

22nd September 2018

2

Editorial Welcome to the new year Matt Nixon Deputy Editor

Photo: Matt Nixon

There's a place in print for you Sophie Bunce Editor-in-Chief

We look a little different this year, but this is not ‘new year, new me’.

Concrete is still, luckily for you, very much as it always has been - here to hold the university to account and elevate student voices. We just updated our look.

Think of it like getting a new haircut after a breakup, except a lot healthier.

I feel somewhat of a Concrete veteran, my year as Deputy breaking me in, and failing to wear me (fully) out. The role often landed me in Union Council, spending many a Thursday night engaging with university politics before heading to Loft. It was in Union Council that the student body decided that the behaviour of Barclays didn’t sit right, on an evening I’d hate to think I wasted. Shannon McDonagh’s article investigates the university’s involvement with the company and how it reflects our state of democracy.

Our other front page story looks at the fall out of last term’s strikes.

Deputy Editor, Matt Nixon, spent most of last term on the pickets front line. So catch up with his Editorial and News piece on page 3 to find out more.

I want to thank my new team who made it through our first issue. Venue has a whole new look thanks to Co-Venue Editors, Gus

and Saoirse, while Matt Nixon is a Deputy almost as good as the last.

This issue introduces you to our team of Editors and they’re a force to be reckoned with. Features sent their content call out from Africa do you need to know more?

Check out Co-Editors Chloe and Mia’s investigative articles: ‘Anxiety abroad’ and ‘NR2 it’s in the name’ on page 11.

"We want to hear from you, we want to work with you, and we have a place in print for you" If you want to know more about Norwich and get a new perspective on one of the UK's safest cities, head to Chloe's first.

Mia’s is a heartful exploration of her experience with anxiety.

Unfortunately, it is an article that many can relate to, but luckily something she was able and willing to share. So, thank you; I feel privileged to have published it.

Another favourite of mine is Amelia Rentell’s Travel column on page 21. She’s ditched the Media Office for the USA and I can hardly blame her. I am more than a little bias, but even a casual fan of Amelia Rentell will find her Travel column a worthwhile read: poignant yet

funny, emotional but hopeful.

I don’t envy her experience of the volatile Oklahoma weather, but I certainly do envy her conviction. If Global is anything to go by, I can’t think of a more exciting time to experience the States.

But back to Norwich news. We will be at Society Fayre all day on 25 September with new tote bags that took me a deliriously long time to organise.

Our Big Meet is in Lecture Theatre 3 on Thursday 27th. That's where you’ll sign up for content calls so don't miss out.

Make sure to become a member of Concrete Members 2018/19 on Facebook and sign up for the society online.

Have a pitch idea? Know something newsworthy?

Our Editors’ emails are always open, so get in touch. (Contact details in column to the right.)

We want to hear from you, we want to work with you, and we have a place in print for you. Here's to the new year.

Scan the QR code to join Concrete on the SU website.

It’s a wet Thursday morning as I write, and the Concrete team are busy finishing off the final pages of our freshers’ issue. There’s last minute copy-edits to make and all sorts of design problems to face, but as I look over the (particularly) grey campus which I’ve made home for the last two years, I’m only reminded of the sense of excitement that I had when first coming to UEA. It’s strange thinking that right now there are thousands of students frantically buying lastminute frying pans or pens or vodka (only the essentials), while nervously waiting for move-in day.

I remember there already being group chats for courses and accommodation, and being excited to meet new friends. And I particularly remember the feeling of first unpacking everything and watching my Mum drive away. It’s strange.

Being a fresher is a weird, unique and incredible time. To those moving in today - getting newspapers forced into their hands by us lot - make the most of these next three years. University is, without doubt, the greatest chance for new beginnings and new experiences which will stay with you forever.

Hopefully flicking through this year’s first issue of Concrete can give you a good idea of all the different things going on at UEA this year.

Take, for example, the great read into UEA Lacrosse and their promising next year by our Sports Editor, Tony Allen, on page 23.

And if sports aren’t your thing, there’s plenty more inside to read about which should take your interest.

To those returning to UEA, welcome back! Hopefully your time out from UEA has re-energised you, because September is always a great chance to make changes, make new friends, and even try different things (like, I don’t know, maybe joining a certain awardwinning student newspaper)!

The University of East Anglia’s Official Student newspaper since 1992 Saturday 22nd September 2018 Issue 353 Union House University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ 01603 593466 www.concrete-online.co.uk

Editor-in-Chief Sophie Bunce concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk Deputy Editor Matt Nixon concrete.deputy@uea.ac.uk Online Beth Bacon concrete.online@uea.ac.uk News Shannon McDonagh concrete.news@uea.ac.uk Global Global Editor: George Goldberg Senior Writer: Jake Morris concrete.global@uea.ac.uk Features Features Editors: Chloe Howcroft and Mia Shah Senior Writer: Roo Pitt concrete.features@uea.ac.uk Comment C. E. Matthews concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk Science Science Editor: Anna Jose Senior Reporter: Hannah Brown concrete.scienv@uea.ac.uk Travel Amy Newbery concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk Sport Spot Editor: Tony Allen Senior Writer: Meyzi Adoni concrete.sport@uea.ac.uk

concrete-online.co.uk Concrete_UEA concreteuea concrete_UEA Front page: Tony Allen

Chief Copy-Editors Holly Purdam Izzy Voice concrete.copy@uea.ac.uk Social Media Beth Bennett

Editorial Enquiries Complaints & Corrections concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk

No part of this newspaper may be reproduced by any means without the permission of the Editor-in-Chief, Sophie Bunce. Published by the Union of UEA Students on behalf of Concrete.

Concrete is a UUEAS society, but retains editorial independence as regards to any content. Opinions expressed herein are those of individual writers, not of Concrete or its editorial team.

News

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22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/news/ | @Concrete_UEA

Are more strikes on the horizon?

University and College Union report finds pension valuation 'misleading' and unfair Matt Nixon Deputy Editor

Continued from front page The report was part of an agreement between the UCU and UUK to end industrial action in March. UEA’s UCU branch rejected this offer at the time, as staff were disappointed with the agreement’s address of a contested deficit in the pension scheme.

Speaking then Dr. Ben Little, UEA’s UCU branch spokesperson, said: “The basic problem has been acknowledged, that the valuation of the pension scheme is inadequate and needs to be re-done.

“We would effectively be taking a cut on bad maths. It’s a reduced pension with increased contributions on the basis of bad maths, people are really unhappy about that.”

The report also claimed that factors of the USS valuation led to

“dampened perceptions” of how the national pensions scheme was viewed. Another major issue with the valuation was the attempt to quantify survey responses, when many of the responses were subjective, the Panel says.

“The UCU's strike action is now fully vindicated” Professor Richard Farndale, Pensions Officer of Cambridge University’s UCU branch, has said that he is “delighted to see that UCU’s strike action is now fully vindicated.”

The report went on to recommend four key areas where adjustments to the 2017 valuation should be considered. Firstly, the

Panel suggested that there should ensure that the valuation always be a re-evaluation of the employers’ uses the most recently available attitude to risk, “which would result data, particularly when it comes to in a re-evaluation of the reliance on market improvements, investment the sponsor covenant.” considerations and the latest data This would help to increase faith on mortality. in the “strength and diversity” of According to the Panel, these Higher Education, and reduce the four adjustments could mean a “strong risk aversion” which the total required contribution of 29.2 2017 valuation placed on USS. percent to fund current benefits.

The Panel added that the This compares with the current valuation needs to adopt a greater rate of 26 percent and the projected consistency of approach from the rate of 36.6 2014 and 2017 percent for April valuations of 2020 (proposed USS, which

by USS based affects the scale on the current and timing of valuation). deficit recovery J o a n n e contributions.

Segars, Chief Furthermore, of the JEP, said: the valuation “We believe that must ensure our constructive fairness and and practical Photo: Matt Nixon equality between generations of proposals for adjustments to the scheme members by smoothing valuation can be implemented future service contributions. quickly and act as the cornerstone Finally, the report wished to for a negotiated settlement.”

If UUK do not implement these adjustments, then further industrial action may be a consideration for the UCU. However, UUK have so far seemed receptive to the report.

In a press release, a UCU spokesperson said: “We welcome the JEP’s proposal that the valuation should be adjusted and are also encouraged that the Panel now wishes to look in detail at alternative methods for future valuations.”

However, the USS have made it clear that “unless and until an alternative has been agreed, consulted upon and implemented, cost sharing remains the default process for addressing the regulatory and legal obligations of the 2017 evaluation.”

UEA’s Chief Resource Officer, Ian Callaghan, told Concrete that the University “look forward to working with all the parties concerned to move forward towards a resolution.”

UEA’s UCU branch were contacted for comment.

Students call on UEA to divest Barclays

Photo: Matt Nixon

Shannon McDonagh News Editor

UEA’s People & Planet are calling on the university to divest Barclays of their ‘strategic relationship’, following a reported finding that UEA has £30 million worth of funds invested in the bank.

According to Union policy, Barclays Bank was identified in the original Ethical Banking Policy, passed at Union Council on 14 March 2013, as an unethical bank, particularly around its investment into fossil fuels.

At present Barclays are the only

UK based bank ‘still choosing to fund the three oil pipelines planned from Canada’s Alberta province to Canada’s Pacific coast’, a project that produces some of the world’s highest pollutant tar sands.

Pipelines like this are responsible for threatening indigenous communities, accelerating climate change, and putting water supplies and endangered species like the Southern Resident Orcas at a huge risk.

The bank’s annual shareholder meeting was stormed by protesters back in May, and following this they were “considering its investment and was working on a review of its approach to investments in oil and

pipelines, with the aim of coming up with a new set of rules.”

The investment is seen by many to be contradictory to prior commitments from the bank to follow a ‘sustainability strategy’.

UEA's relationship with the bank is believed to be in conflict with an agreement made in 2011 due to Union Council proposals that the university should not maintain investment relationships that have implications on ethical and environmental issues.

Speaking to Concrete, UEA's People & Planet representative Lewis Martin stated they “plan to take on a range of direct action throughout the year as well as

attempting to open dialogue with the university” about the issue.

He expressed that he believes the status of UEA’s current investment relationship is deceptive, considering that “sold the idea of the ‘green campus and university’.”

“The objectives of the workshop are to teach people about the campaign, the methods we can use as well as how to achieve the goal, as well as the inspire freshers and other students to take up campaigning on this issue as well as joining a host of other campaign groups across the student union and wider Norwich city.”

The University told Concrete it does not recognise the £30 millon

Photo: Matt on Nixon figure quoted as a balance their account with Barclays.

A spokesperson added: "The sums of money held on account vary on a daily basis and are managed to ensure there are sufficient funds available to meet our working capital requirements."

Nonetheless, UEASU’s Campaigns and Democracy Officer Sophie Atherton that UEA’s prioritisation of strategic relationship with Barclays is a “shame."

Sophie said she believes that the university should be able to "pioneer change on an institutional level with regards to socially responsible and environmentally conscious finance”.

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22nd September 2018

News

Norwich mourns the passing of Ibish Peri Shannon McDonagh News Editor

Norwich nightclub owner, Ibish Peri, has been found dead in an apartment above one of his commercial properties, newly launched nightclub Bished.

“He hid it so well through his smiles and partying. ” The opening of his inquest concluded that the cause of death was by hanging, with a full inquest adjourned until January. Peri, 35, was a notable figure in the expansion of Norwich’s nightlife following the opening of Mercy XS in 2003. His other ventures as Managing Director of Code Red Promotions included gay bar Flaunt, strip club Platinum Lace, and the aforementioned Bished.

Peri is believed to have been experiencing ongoing mental health issues, said to be exacerbated following a dispute with Norwich City Council over business tax debts amounting to over £400,000. Code Red Promotions filed for liquidation last February due to failures to resolve these financial issues, with the decision resulting in the closure of all of Peri’s businesses.

Photos: Matt Nixon

He is said to have fled to his native country, Cyprus, following the dispute, returning to the UK following an agreement reached by the High Court in April.

The nature of this agreement is unknown to Concrete, but it allowed for Peri to reopen Flaunt in June and Rocco’s in August, which was rebranded as new project Bished.

A candlelit vigil was held for Peri outside Bished last Sunday, attended by hundreds of friends, family and colleagues.

A portion of Prince of Wales Road was closed to ensure that the event was unaffected by external factors.

Those in attendance left flowers and balloons adorned with messages. A mural featuring Peri

has been covered with material in order to protect it.

Speaking at the vigil, Peri’s mother, Dawn Peri, offered an afronting yet crucial message to those in attendance: “I don’t want anyone to go through what my son went through.

He kept it silent and hid it so well through his smiles and partying.

That is how you guys do it.

But please come from behind that smile and show us how you are feeling. If you have a male friend, pick up that phone and ask them how they are. Make sure they are okay, make sure they talk and please

don’t let anyone else go through what we are going through tonight.”

Ibish Peri shared a BBC article via Facebook on the day of his passing, encouraging others to speak out if they were suffering with mental health issues.

If you too are experiencing similar issues, call Samaritans on 116 123 or Mind on 0300 123 3393.

Over 100 friends and family have already raised £2,700 for Norwich Mind in the short time since his passing.

To donate to Norwich Mind, go to: https://www.justgiving.com/ fundraising/ibish-peri.

First Buses to increase 25 and 26 routes Scott Arthur News Reporter

In preparation for the new academic year First Bus has announced a series of changes to their existing bus routes.

“No changes have been made to the notoriously unreliable Orange Line” Of particular concern to students will be changes to the 25 and 26 line, which will see buses run up to every 10 minutes during the day, as well as buses every 8 minutes between 7.50am and 8.40am and again from 4pm to 6.30pm.

On the 26 line, extra buses will be provided along Earlham Road between 8 and 8:40 AM to meet student demands.

Both of these announcements will be welcomed by students living in the Golden Triangle,

and if First can deliver these services as promised then they are sure to be well received throughout the year. Concrete reported last year

of recurring issues with the 25 and 26 lines that saw packed buses often passing staff and students three times over.

However, no changes have been made to the notoriously unreliable 21 and 22 lines – which will still be affecting students living in Bowthorpe and Threescore.

The 21 and 22 have often been criticised for being late, or not turning up at all – which has led to complaints that First are not doing enough to accommodate the ever-expanding number of students at UEA. While this news has been met with cautious optimism by many students – for those living outside of the Golden Triangle it raises more questions than answers.

Student Union Welfare, Community and Diversity Officer Georgina Burchell expressed Photo: Wikimedia this issue was of concern to a number of students, stating that

“811 students told us that improving transport to and from campus was important or somewhat important.”

A further 977 students believe that “reducing the costs that students face on campus is important or somewhat important.”

Georgina Burchell added that the SU “would have liked to have seen First Bus release a more regular service for the Orange Line (21/22), at the very least, which has a big impact on the large number of students who live in the Bowthorpe, West Earlham and Anglia Square area.”

“We have a meeting with the Marketing Manager from First Eastern Counties Buses this week to come up with a way of working where we can continue to make positive changes on the service and student-friendly prices moving forward.”

Concrete contacted First Buses Norfolk for comment but they did not respond by press time.

22nd September 2018

5

News

LDC appoint four new staff members Matt Nixon Deputy Editor

The school of Literature, Drama and Creative Writing has announced four award-winning novelists, screenwriters, playwrights and performers will be joining UEA’s renowned Creative Writing programme this year.

“Their works speak meaningfully to the issues of our time and I am certain that the will inspire our students” A spokesperson for the university said UEA is ‘delighted’ to welcome the staff: Professor Tessa McWatt, Tom Benn, Molly Naylor, and Ben Musgrave.

Professor McWatt (pictured top right) is a Guyanese-born Canadian and British writer who won the 2018

Photos: UEA Eccles British Library Writer’s Award.

Her fiction has been nominated for the Governor General’s Award, the City of Toronto book Award, and the OCM Bocas Prize.

Talking of her appointment Tessa said: “UEA’s reputation for

excellence comes from its alumni and also its staff, and I’m really looking forward to working with my new colleagues."

Tom Benn (pictured top left) is himself a graduate of the UEA Creative Writing MA. His first novel, The Doll Princess, was shortlisted

for the Dylan Thomas Prize.

His first film was nominated for Best Short Film at the BFI London Film Festival last year.

Ben has subsequently published two more novels, and will be lecturing in crime fiction.

Molly Naylor (pictured bottom right), is a scriptwriter, poet and director who debuted a solo show at the Edinburgh Fringe to critical acclaim, leading to a national tour and a BBC Radio 4 adaptation.

Naylor has also written a TV comedy directed by Craig Cash and broadcast on Sky One. Her first poetry collection was recently published, and she is currently working on a television series and feature film, and will lecture in scriptwriting.

Ben Musgrave (pictured bottom left) is UEA’s other new lecturer in scriptwriting. Musgrave grew up in Britain, Bangladesh and India.

His play, ‘Pretend You Have Big Buildings’, won the inaugural Bruntwood Prize.

He has since been commissioned by the National Theatre and worked with a range of theatre companies.

Awlison Donnell, LDC’s Head of School said she was “thrilled to welcome such talented and internationally-recognised writers to UEA. "Their works speak meaningfully to the issues of our time and I am certain that they will inspire our students to achieve their best work.”

News in brief 'Slow progress' on academic racial equality

Black and Ethnic Minority (BME) academics remain a minority across UK universities, particularly in senior positions, a recent study has found.

The organisation Advance HE, formerly known as the Equality Challenge Unit charity, recorded statistics for the 2016-17 academic year. Annual reports are collated with the objective of ensuring the aims of its Race Equality Charter (REC) are met. The charter seeks “to improve the representation, progression and success of minority ethnic staff and students within higher education”.

Of around 19,000 individuals recorded as professors, only 90 were black men and 25 were black women. More than 14,000 of these professors were white men; 92 percent of female professors were white. BME academics are also more likely than their white counterparts to be in junior positions and on fixed-term rather than permanent contracts, and remain less well-paid overall.

This gap is narrowing in staff presence, with consistent increases being recorded across the board as institutions seek to be more representative.

Ananya Wilson-Bhattacharya

University launch wellbeing app School of Psychology develops app to meet growing student wellbeing demands Charlotte Manning News Reporter

The start of the academic year has welcomed the launch of UEA’s new app, OpenUp UEA. The app aims to aid student wellbeing support services, as well as providing students with a platform to manage the challenges of university life.

OpenUp UEA has been developed by two UEA School of Psychology staff, Kamena Henshaw and Laura Biggart, with the development process having begun in June 2017.

Henshaw and Biggart saw the need for better wellbeing support, after a study by the IPPR think tank reported a fivefold increase in students reporting mental health issues.

There was also a record number of students with mental health issues dropping out of university.

OpenUp UEA is focusing on ‘smoothing the transition to university’ and providing tools to help improve ‘emotional resilience’ of students.

The app provides several

features designed to assist in supporting students, including an A-Z of support services at UEA and in the Norwich area, a detailed campus map, a mood tracker to help recognise a student’s fluctuating mood, a help button (linked to security, nightline, GP, police and Samaritans) and the ability to collect anonymised data to improve the services on offer.

It’s hoped that as well as supporting those students new to UEA, the app will enable those students who don’t necessarily need clinical help, reduce an accumulating anxiety load and provide ‘effective emotion regulation strategies for students.’

“We identified the need to support students in understanding their feelings and developing problem solving skills as this can help build resilience,” said Laura.

“The app also points students in the direction of appropriate help should they need it. We wanted to do this in a way that’s easily accessible, which is why we chose an app.”

James Mason, who is a 22 yearold UEA Computer Science student from Norfolk, was part of the development team.

He said: "Universities need to

consider that some students are less likely to seek face-to-face support in this digital age, and are more likely to use online tools.

Digital services should be expanded and made available alongside current systems, reaching out to as many students as possible”.

Speaking to Concrete, Director of UEA’s Student Services, Dr. Jon Sharp, praised the “very high level of student input to ensure that the final product is accessible and useful for the students who use it.”

He added that he hopes the “presence of the app will mean we have more conversations as a University community about these issues”.

Future features of the app that are currently being developed by students include support for budgeting and planning.

In addition to this, OpenUp UEA are looking to expand into providing the service for other Higher Education institutions.

The app is available for download by students and staff on iTunes and Google Play.

For more from Concrete on OpenUP UEA, head to page 10 to see Features writer Roo Pitt review of the app.

App features:

• Help button with linked resources • Campus map • A-Z of support services • Timetable planner In development:

• Budgeting support • Timetable planner

Photo: Designmodo, Wikimedia

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22nd September 2018

Calls for students to declare mental health history prior to enrollment

Comment:

Let's stop the stigma, those with mental health issues aren't different C. E. Matthews Comment Editor

Photo: N Chadwick

Troy Fielder News Reporter

In the last academic year there have been at least 95 student suicides.

In an effort to encourage students to be more open about their mental health, Professor Steve West, the head of mental health for Universities UK (UUK), has urged that “the university admissions process must be changed”.

This plea follows discussions held at a UUK conference this September, where the opinions of parents, whose children had taken their own lives, whilst at university, were voiced, and suggestions on how mental health could be better managed by universities were heard.

The major proposal to come out of these discussions was that changes should be made to the current UCAS forms, whereby students no longer have to classify mental health problems under the

‘disability’ section of the form.

Instead, a new section would be added where students could “declare eating disorders and any history of self-harm” prior to enrolment.

It is hoped that under this new initiative, universities will be better equipped to deal with new students who may be struggling with their mental health.

With the new provisions in place, it would also be hoped that the potential strain of moving into university, on students’ mental health, is lessened.

James Murray, whose son took his own life in May of this year, suggested that universities needed to do more to “destigmatise openness” about mental health in order to better the prospects of their current and incoming students.

This new proposal hopes to combat the issue of openness about mental health.

However, Professor Hugh Brady, vice-chancellor of the University of

Bristol, has warned that “students would need to be reassured, they would need to be confident, that it would not in any way compromise their application”.

In addition to this, Mr Murray has suggested that “a lot of work could be done by UCAS” to improve the way in which, and the confidence with which, students declare their mental health status on the form.

“UEA is running wellbeing workshops throughout first semester” The director of external affairs at UCAS, Helen Thorne, has said that currently any information provided is “is passed on to their chosen

course-providers as part of the application form, so universities and colleges can begin to think about what support can be provided”.

Head of UEA’s Student Support Service Dr. Jon Sharp stated that the proposals should be welcomed “in principle.”

However, he raised concerns regarding the security of this system, suggesting that “the messaging around such a scheme will need to be very carefully handled.”

Whilst these changes are being made, universities are continuing to work hard to combat mental health issues at their institutions: the University of Bristol is holding a mental health and wellbeing fayre during its Welcome Week.

UEA is running wellbeing workshops throughout the first semester.

It is hoped that a combination of approaches will be taken-up by universities to help the overall mental wellbeing of students around the UK.

Let’s get this straight - everyone has varying levels of mental wellbeing.

The stigma surrounding mental health has got to disappear.

It would be great if people didn’t discriminate against those with mental health issues.

It would also be great if England had won the World Cup. Sadly many aren’t ready for such acts of enlightenment yet.

It’s a shame people stigmatise mental health issues. Yet just because someone wants the world to be a certain way doesn’t mean they can hide from the real issues at hand.

Professor West has the right idea. Like me, and maybe you, he thinks the stigma should go. But his solution isn’t even close to perfect.

Last year there was uproar when the average time for counselling at UEA hit 41 days.

Universities probably won’t reject applicants on the basis they have a history of mental health issues.

But with growing pressure on student services, could universities claim they simply can’t cope?

The way to reduce the stigma isn’t to make students feel different - it’s to show them they’re not.

Universities UK shouldn’t try pigeonholing students.

Universities need to invest more in student support and encourage the opinion that mental health is not some kind of problem.

String of drag shows headed for Norwich Matt Nixon Deputy Editor

two further shows featuring queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

“Queer artists Following an upgrade to this freshers’ week Drag Race star event, a host of additional drag shows have been announced for Norwich.

This Tuesday’s (25 September) ‘Shangela is Shook’ event was originally scheduled to be hosted at the Waterfront, but after a massive demand for tickets, the RuPaul’s Drag Race All Star Shangela Laquifa Wadley will be strutting her way down a runway in the LCR. Halleloo!

The show would originally have only had 700 people in the crowd, but now tickets have been sold out at the LCR, a venue with over double the capacity of the Waterfront.

It seems promoters have taken notice of the demand for Shangela in Norwich, as since the upgrade there have been announcements of

being given such large platforms goes further than just providing entertainment” In December, the infamous season four contestant Willam Belli will be performing at the Waterfront as part of a joint tour date with the renowned West Hollywood drag queen Rhea Litre.

In addition to this, a highly anticipated headline show is due to take place in February at

the Waterfront featuring a huge booking of the drag queen Aquaria, who is the winner of the most recent season of RuPaul’s Drag Race.

It is likely that if these nights continue to sell as fast as this week’s ‘Shangela is Shook’ event, they will also be upgraded to the L C R , really letting U E A Photo: Wikimedia Commons have it!

V i c e President (Trans Place) of artists in Norwich has UEA Pride, Jim had an overwhelmingly Read, told Concrete positive impact on the LGBT+ “the rise of bookings for drag community in the local area.

“Seeing famous queer artists being given such large platforms goes further than just providing entertainment, it provides LGBT+ people with safe spaces to celebrate their community and the art it creates, as well as recognising the work local drag artists have done in carving a scene within the city."

Shangela was a contestant on season two of RuPaul who returned to finish as a surprise contestant in the series’ third season, where she came sixth.

She was also featured on the third season of RuPaul’s Drag Race: All Stars, where she finished in joint third/fourth Tickets for ‘Shangela is Shook’ have sold out for £20 per person.

Those with tickets will be looking forward to a sickening night of comedy and cabaret on Tuesday.

7

THIS YEAR THE SU IS ASKING YOU TO

Y A S LO L E H TO NEW FRIENDS TO OPPORTUNITIES TO NEW EXPERIENCES TO UNI LIFE TO THE SU TO NORWICH YOU’LL SEE THE LOGO ON EVENTS THROUGHOUT FRESHERS’ AND THE REST OF THE YEAR. THIS MEANS WE THINK THEY’RE A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR YOU TO MEET NEW PEOPLE OR TRY SOMETHING DIFFERENT. GET INVOLVED, CHANGE YOUR LIFE, AND SAY HELLO. UEA.SU/SAYHELLO

8

Global

22nd September 2018

Trump furious over New York Times op-ed

In brief Keeping Up With The Kremlin Vladimir Putin has featured in a new reality series, highlighting his devotion to the public. Broadcast on state television, the program documents the Russian President during his weekly activities. The first one-hour episode, aired during Sunday prime time, showed him scouring for berries, traversing lakes and rivers, and meeting with school-children. The series debuts as Putin’s popularity has fallen to its lowest level in seven years over the proposal to raise pension ages.

George Goldberg ‘Brazilian stabbed

Photo: Gage Skidmore, Flickr

Jake Morris

Senior Global Writer

US President Donald Trump has faced strong criticism from an anonymous senior member of his own administration, who published an opinion-editorial in the New York Times describing the President as ‘‘amoral,’’ with his decisions being ‘‘impulsive, ill-informed and occasionally reckless.’’

The anonymous author described how they are part of the “resistance” working to ‘‘frustrate parts of his [Trump’s] agenda,’’ and gave a damning insight into the inner workings of the Oval Office, with officials in ‘‘daily disbelief’’ at the erratic nature of Trump. The

article also criticises Trump’s softer stance on Russia, a view in stark contrast to many in the national security establishment.

Most troubling for the President is the author’s claims of ‘‘whisperings of the 25th Amendment,’’ a system whereby the President can be suspended by the Vice-President and a majority of the Cabinet.

Senior officials within the administration were quick to publicly deny authorship. These included Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defence Secretary James Mattis, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley.

Theories as to the identity of the author have been circulating

in the press, with Vice-President, Mike Pence, coming under suspicion. He has publicly denied responsibility, but analysis of the op-ed by linguistics experts gave two conclusions, putting Pence in the spotlight. The short sentence style and the use of the word ‘lodestar’ allegedly reflect Pence’s writing style.

However, other members of the administration are not above suspicion. Haley was a critic of Trump during his Republican nomination, and Trump has on multiple occasions publicly berated Sessions due to the Attorney General’s refusal to interfere with the enquiry on Russian collusion within Trump’s election campaign.

Republican Senator, Rand Paul, an

ally of Trump, has said senior officials should undergo a polygraph test.

Trump responded furiously to the op-ed, describing it as ‘‘gutless’’ and called for Sessions to investigate the identity of the author.

The Justice Department would not confirm nor deny whether an enquiry has been opened. Trump is also considering legal action against the New York Times, who responded in a statement to call any action ‘‘a blatant abuse of government power.’’

Given Trump’s record for firing his top officials, it seems unlikely that the author will reveal their identity. Until this happens, the article will continue to add hostility and suspicion into an already tense American Presidency.

World leaders back UK Novichok allegations Scott Arthur Global Writer

Several nations, including the US, France, Germany and Canada, have agreed with the assertion made by the UK government that Russia “almost certainly” approved the poisoning of former double-spy, Sergei Skripal, and his daughter, Yulia, in Salisbury in March of this year.

Skripal – who is alleged to have blown the cover of over 300 Russian agents during his life – was poisoned alongside his daughter at his home in Salisbury, before being found slumped on a public bench in the Wiltshire city.

It has also been suggested that the inappropriate disposal of the nerve agent led to the death of mother-of-three, Dawn Sturgess,

and hospitalised her friend, Charlie Rowley, at the end of June and beginning of July.

The UK government was quick to condemn the attack and then pointed the blame at Russia and the Kremlin.

In recent weeks, the government have released the details of two Russian men who are wanted in connection with the poisoning.

Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov are believed to work for the GRU – the Russian military intelligence service.

The publishing of these details led to a fiery showdown at the UN, where in a specially convened Security Council meeting, Karen Pierce, the UK ambassador, called the nerve agent attack a “direct challenge” to the “rules-based international system that has kept all of us safe.”

Pierce was, in turn, accused of

attempting to incite “disgusting anti-Russian hysteria” by Vasily Nebenzya, the Russian ambassador.

“The publishing of these details led to a fiery showdown at the UN” Nebenzya also pointed out a number of supposed “inconsistencies” in the UK’s findings – arguing that the latest pieces of evidence had been “invented out of thin air.”

Nevertheless, various nations sided with the UK – with a statement saying: “We, the leaders of France, Germany, the United States, Canada

and the United Kingdom, reiterate our outrage at the use of a chemical nerve agent, known as Novichok, in Salisbury on March 4th.”

This all comes after Theresa May’s comments in the Commons where she told Members of Parliament that the poisoning was “almost certainly” approved by senior officials at the Kremlin.

This served to heighten already existing tensions between Russia and the UK, with Russia refusing to extradite the men. Any extradition would require a change to the Russian constitution – changes which will not be forthcoming.

Regardless, Russia has refused to accept any responsibility for the attack and is presently asserting that the two men are innocent tourists who were merely on holiday at the time of the poisoning – claims the UK government have dismissed as “deeply offensive to the victims.”

Donald

Trump’

The de facto frontrunner in Brazil’s presidential elections has been stabbed whilst campaigning.

Jair Bolsonaro, of the far-right Social Liberal Party, was left in a serious but stable condition after the 6 September attack by a protester who claimed to be acting on divine orders. Bolsonaro has polarised opinion with homophobic comments and praise for Brazil’s former dictatorship, but remains popular due to his anti-corruption ticket. The attack saw his polls increase by two percentage points.

Andrew Ferris Florence fines litterbug tourists Getting peckish whilst visiting the Italian city of Florence is now a potentially expensive business.

Local authorities have introduced fines of up to 500 euros for streetsnacking, during ‘‘peak eating times’’, on four of the busiest streets. Mayor Dario Nardella hopes it will combat an escalating litter problem in the city, which attracts 10.2 million tourists per year. The move has not impressed many Florentines, who argue that more benches and bins would have a bigger impact in the long run.

Andrew Ferris Nike’s Kaepernick Effect Nike’s online sales increased by 31 percent earlier this month, according to Edison Trends, despite a backlash over endorsement of Colin Kaepernick. The American footballer was the first to ‘take a knee’ against racial inequality in the US. Many customers called for a boycott and shared videos of burning Nike products, and President Donald Trump said it sent a “terrible message”.

Analysts suggested the boycotts strengthened the resolve of Kaepernick-supporting customers.

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22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/global/ | @Concrete_UEA

India’s Supreme Court decriminalises gay sex Beverly Devakishen Global Writer

“History owes the LGBT community an apology for their sufferings,” said Judge Indhu Maholta, after India overturned a ruling that criminalised gay sex.

Section 377 was a part of the Indian Penal Code, which had been introduced by the British in 1861. It legally banned sexual activity between two men.

Section 377 still remains in many of the ex-British colonies today, making India’s overruling of it an important turning point in history.

The decriminalisation of gay sex came after nearly two decades of Indian activists pushing for change in the law.

The first breakthrough happened in 2009 when a court in Delhi ruled that the law could not be applied to

consensual sex.

However, this decision received backlash from Muslim, Hindu and Christian groups, who filed appeals in the Supreme Court which got the law restored in 2013.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

G a y rights activists re-grouped and continued to fight for the discriminatory law to be overturned.

In 2016, five gay and lesbian Indian activists filed an official challenge to repeal Section 377.

Several LGBT organisations backed them up and the whole community supported them. The

court announced its verdict on 6 September and India was able to celebrate a historic win for equality.

Following the decision, the country came under the global spotlight, with newspapers around the world reporting on the reaction of India’s LGBT community. Some claimed it was a sign that Asian countries are becoming ‘Westernised’, failing to remember that the law was imposed

by British colonial government in the first place. India’s pre-colonial traditions, culture, religion and art often included gender-fluid images, and homosexuality is not inherently against the structure of Indian society.

Many reporters pointed out that the decision to decriminalise gay sex was symptomatic of India’s continued path down decolonisation and a return to its cultural roots.

In Singapore, which had also been under British colonial rule, India’s success in overruling the colonial-era law is cited in a nationwide petition to get its own Section 377 repealed. The petition will be sent to Parliament before 30 September, when the Penal Code will officially be reviewed.

Brexit Box Harry Routley Global Writer

With the parliamentary recess over, now is the perfect time to take stock of the summer’s Brexit headlines (and a few stories that were easy to miss).

The big pre-recess headline was Theresa May defying expectations of a shift towards a hard Brexit, by releasing a brief from Chequers in July that would keep the UK close to the EU’s markets but outside most of its legal institutions. A number of pro-Brexit and even May loyalist MPs declared their opposition to the plan, creating the real possibility that it would fail in the Commons. Further complicating this, Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, made his own lack of support clear by going so far as to say that it would be the ‘‘end of the EU.’’ With the Chequers plan facing widespread scrutiny, a no-deal Brexit is becoming more likely for some. Brexit campaigners demanded that the government release its plans for such an outcome, but the documents mostly contain warnings about increased travel delays, increased food costs and even shortage of drugs for the NHS.

In the wake of this news, the campaign for a second referendum appears to have been revitalised, including donations from Superdry cofounder Julian Dunkerton for a ‘People’s Vote’, and an indication from Labour’s Shadow Chancellor, John McDonnell, that the party would be more open to a second vote in the future.

This political uncertainty appears to have made some firms more inclined to weather the storm in Europe while a deal is reached; Panasonic is moving its European headquarters out of London and into Amsterdam, while EasyJet seems to be moving its pilots onto Austrian and German licenses to avoid flight restrictions in the case of a no-deal Brexit. As negotiators clash, the government now has until the new deadline of November to finalise a Brexit deal for a polarised electorate.

188

days before Britain is scheduled to exit the European Union

Photo: Vecteezy

Sweden in political limbo after general election Johanne Elster Hanson Global Writer

After the general election on 9 September, Sweden seems to have split in half, with Sverigedemokraterna (Sweden Democrats) nestling ominously in the middle.

“Neither The Alliance nor the policial left has the majority needed to form a new government” The party of Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, Sosialdemokraterna (The Social Democrats), remained the country’s biggest party with 144 mandates, while the four centre-right parties making up the opposition, dubbed Alliansen (The Alliance), got more votes put together and achieved 143 mandates.

It is therefore impossible to announce a clear winner – or an obvious future coalition.

The Social Democrats achieved their worst election result in almost

a century with 28.4 percent.

One of the parties in The Alliance, right-leaning Moderaterna (The Moderates), remains the second biggest at 19.8 percent.

Neither The Alliance nor the political left has the majority needed to form a new government.

The party leaders in The Alliance have previously called for Löfven’s resignation but still agreed to negotiate with him about a possible coalition. This can be viewed as a tactical move in order to give Sweden Democrats as little power as possible.

Sweden Democrats, or SD, was founded in 1988 by members of various nationalist groups, but remained a marginal political presence until 2005 when Jimmie Åkesson was elected leader.

Whilst being relatively centrist on socio-economic topics, SD is critical of the EU and opposes multiculturalism.

Despite having been consistently kept out in the cold by every other established political party, SD soared on the pre-election polls.

This was mainly because of their tough stance on immigration, a topic that has haunted Sweden for decades and dominated the public debate in Europe since the beginning of the refugee crisis in 2015.

Simon Hix, a professor at the

349 Results of 2018 election

Social Democratic Party Moderate Party Sweeden Democrats London School of Economics, recently told the Guardian that he saw the rise of SD as proof of “party system fragmentation” and how established political parties are losing ground.

This pattern can be traced all over Europe, from the French

Centre Party Left Party Christian Democrats National Rally to the Danish People’s Party and the Five Star Movement in Italy. Meanwhile, the established yet declining parties try to remain in power. During Löfven’s speech on election night he called for the end of “bloc-politics”; it looks like Sweden’s political left and

Liberals Green Party

right would rather reach out across political blocs than rely on Sweden Democrats to help secure a majority.

It remains to be seen what form the new government will take in what has previously been deemed “Europe’s most stable political order.”

Features

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22nd September 2018

Dealing with the “red tape”

Photo: Dan Sallis

Sophie Bunce Editor-in-Chief

If you look to the university world rankings, the UK dominates 40 percent of the top ten.

It is therefore no surprise that we are the second biggest home of international students (beaten only by the USA) and that, for some, the news of competition brings concern.

Whether jealousy, genuine economic worry, or good old fashioned fear of the unknown (racism), the UK doesn’t make it easy for international students to stay after they graduate.

Johanne Elster Hanson, a student from Norway, told Concrete that she’d certainly like to work in the UK after her degree - but not for more opportunities.

She said: “Within my

How to OpenUp Roo Pitt

Features senior writer

A new app is available to students and staff at UEA from 17 September 2018 and its developers are encouraging people to utilise their

field (translation/journalism/ Scandinavian-English literary culture) I could just as well have done a degree or been granted a PhD in Norway, but I’ve lived there all my life and now prefer living in England.”

But Hanson is in a different position to a lot of international students: “Norway have ensured that their citizens will be able to live and work in England after Brexit.

Also, as a Norwegian, I don’t face the same stigma as some other Europeans who come and work in the UK do. It’s been nauseating to experience first-hand how some foreigners are considered to be ‘good’ (i.e. coming from a rich, predominantly white country that’s never been a part of the EU) whilst others are not. So while I don’t feel particularly ‘encouraged’ to stay and work here from a political

perspective, I’m encouraged by the quality of my academic study and the prospects this has given me.”

Where Norway have gone above and beyond to protect their students, the same cannot be said for America.

Shelby Cooke recognises that there’s a “lot of red tape” preventing her, as an American, from staying to work in the UK because of the difficulty of securing a work visa.

She said: “In defence of the government though, they do allow me to have an extra 6 months on my student visa to have time to find employment in the UK, but it’s also kind of counterproductive because you can only apply to companies that are registered to accept immigrant workers and you still have to qualify as being “more exceptional than a British worker” for them to sponsor your visa. So... it’s pretty difficult to convince companies to sponsor

you when they can employ a British worker and not have to pay extra for my visa.”

Yet where governments falter, universities, including UEA, have tried to support their students where possible. Cooke added: “I definitely wouldn’t say I’ve felt encouraged by the country to stay, but the university does offer advice on how to stay - even though they preface it by saying that it’s difficult.”

But does the opposite apply? Are all the Brits who set sail, jet off and clamber over the big wide world in search of an education treated in the same way? Speaking to Amelia Rentell, currently on a year abroad studying in Oklahoma, she said: “It’s still a very personal choice because I don’t feel encouraged to continue working in the USA after my degree, but I feel less scared or apprehensive about spending

a period of time away from home in a different culture or country.

Whether that be work or otherwise.

I’m certainly not discouraged.”

app to help manage and maintain their wellbeing.

In anticipation of the app’s arrival, Concrete went to find out what it’s all about.

To start the app can be easily downloaded from the app store (or Playstore if Android’s your thing), and as you load the app there’s no log in screen, you’re straight in.

Immediately you are greeted with one of the apps key features, that is a wall of emojis to reflect (almost) every mood.

It’s here that users can select

their current emotion and then perhaps the cause of this emotion, positive or negative and the app will then direct you to the most appropriate service for improving or maintaining that feeling.

The app includes useful tools, including a map of campus with the key service and locations highlighted; so whether you’re new to campus or well seasoned, you will be able to find your way.

There is also a budgeting tool built into the app; it is certainly no surprise that money problems

are one of the largest stressors on students, as such this tool would be very useful for many.

Although the app is very colourful and appears to provide guidance and support for those at the point of need, it may well benefit from features that would allow it to be built into daily use.

The option to track your mood and see how different factors have influenced your mood/wellbeing overtime may help users to be more reflective. Along with something that equates to a workload planner

that allows you to highlight your concerns and plans for the week, as well as highlight your successes and achievements, which together may help to balance the work/load/life juggling act.

The app provides an opportunity to Open Up about how you’re feeling, but to an inanimate object, which I am sure will make it easier.

The guidance and support services allow you to follow up with exactly what you might need.

Concrete approved.

“You can study but you can’t stay” And that is the key difference - the UK is not simply failing to encourage international students to stay, the government’s choices are actively discouraging it. You can study but you can’t stay. If you look to the world rankings, I wonder how the UK does on friendship?

Photo: Vecteezy

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22nd September 2018

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NR2

it’s in the name Chloe Howcroft Features co-Editor

On the outskirts of the Golden Triangle, where Trory Street meets Kimberley Street, there once stood the Kimberley Arms, a pub greatly frequented by locals in the late 80s and 90s.

With a notorious reputation for having a rougher social environment, one such local and UEA lecturer recalls that “you entered at your own risk.” It’s only assets were prised of a jukebox and pool table.

Now, decades later, one can walk in and w r a p their

hands around, albeit not a pint of Norfolk pale ale, but a warm cup of lovingly and expertly made coffee, with a slice of divine carrot cake.

It was the father of co-manager, Harriet Carr, who spent the best part of two years renovating the pub to what is now a family-run cafe and deli which goes by the name (and place) of NR2. A qualified PE teacher, with eight years’ worth of teaching experience, Carr always had an interest in coffee: “I always liked the idea of having my own coffee shop. So I eventually left teaching two years ago to pursue this dream.”

“You’ve just got to take a risk.”

Harriet admits to it being a testing part of your relationship, working with family day in, day out. “You end up talking to your parents in a way you normally wouldn’t.” And on top of this, the financial worry. “George Brentnall, the co-manager of NR2, warned me that we would have a £50 day. You wait for the time when

nobody walks through the doors.

And I had left a job with a good salary. But you’ve just got to take a risk, and so far we haven’t had that £50 day...”

NR2 has now been open for approximately half a year. About three months into the opening of NR2, Carr wondered why people would spend hours sitting in there: “The seats aren’t particularly comfy, compared with coffee chains like Cafe Nero” (whose nearest store is located on Unthank Road). “And then it clicked. “I just got it.”

“I finally took a break, maybe 10 or 12 weeks into the opening of the place, having been rushed off of our feet up until then. I sat outside with a cup of coffee and a plate of our

goat’s cheese focaccia, and I just got it. There was music playing, students were on their laptops, Violet from across the road came in (who will be turning 83, and brings in her own mug everyday) and I just got it.”

A hub of the community “There is a man who comes in everyday and orders a bacon roll and brown sauce. And he turned round to me one day and said: “If it wasn’t for this place, I would have nowhere else to go.”

“Often elderly people experience loneliness and isolation, and it’s great to just be in a space with other people.”

Carr and Brentall propose to giving it at least a year to see how the cafe/deli venture will pan out.

But for the meantime, the post-pub, family-run venue in this part of the city is certainly a treat. As Norwich local puts it, “This is one of those finds that I didn’t actually want to share, but it’s too selfish not to.”

Photo: Matt Davey, Unsplash

Anxiety abroad

1 in 4 adults experience a mental health problem Features co-Editor Mia Shah shares her experience

Photo: Mia Shah I’m paralysed. Stuck to the spot. I’m waiting for the right moment. The right moment to ask. To ask… where the toilet is.

Now you might be thinking what is so difficult about asking where the toilet is? And you’re right, there is nothing difficult about it. However, it took me two hours of desperation to finally ask.

This crippling anxiety is seeping into every part of my travels, reverting me back into my fiveyear-old self. Tasks such as crossing the road, going to the supermarket and walking by myself are now all deserving of a gold star and a lollipop for bravery.

Anxiety is a daily battle for me whether I am in Norwich, Malawi or Timbuktu. I feel like a person in two halves.

On one end I am the extroverted risk taker who does things like quitting their job to travel round Spain and Portugal in an Indian Tuk Tuk; but the other half is so introverted that I turn into a mute when I go to the hairdressers, only able to communicate through the fear in my eyes. Never quite a mix of the two, I tend to be one extreme or the other. And so far, I am falling on the more introverted side.

Malawi, also known as the warm heart of Africa, has been so welcoming! From the minute I got here, even with all the drama of the first day (no luggage, no transport, no electronics, no friends, no plan), I have felt right at home.

There has never been an awkward, dull or sad moment.

Despite this, I still found myself creating situations to worry about.

How would I get to work? What

would I eat for lunch, who would I sit with? How would I get home?

These are all questions that plagued my mind 99 percent of the time and yet, I always had a way to work, the food was amazing, I got so many offers for lunch that I had to turn some down and I was never stranded at the office overnight.

On one of my sleepless nights I was flipping through the scrapbook that my wonderful friends made me before I went to Malawi, and I came across a quote that really resonated. it read “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone”. I thought to myself, am I pushing myself? have I done the things I want to do? Am I seeking discomfort?

“Life begins at the end of your comfort zone” The next morning, I woke up extra early, put on my running shoes and started the arduous 20 minutes’ walk to the office.

Getting to the office (without the use of Google Maps) felt like a massive achievement and since that morning, my anxiety has improved.

I’m still plagued with anxiety everytime I need to pee, but I’ve crossed the road by myself, I’ve been to the supermarket twice now and I spoke to my boss about my anxiety.

Wait! I did what? I spoke to my

boss about my anxiety? Talking about my anxiety is not something I take pleasure in. I would rather stew in my self worry than speak about how I feel.

Unsurprisingly, speaking about my anxiety, even just a little, has helped me and them to understand what I’m going through.

I have also started saying yes to more things. This weekend I attended two Malawian weddings.

At a Malawian wedding there is no such thing as an invitation, if you want to be there you turn up! The condition is that you must throw money at the bride and groom several times throughout the service.

After the weddings, I was whisked to an exclusive black-tie event with a Malawian celebrity. I only had half an hour to get ready and no chance to go home first. My anxiety had hit the jackpot!

However, instead of worrying about things I could not control, I decided to enjoy my Cinderella moment. Just like in the fairy tale, I had my very own fairy godmother who lent me a dress and shoes that fit like a glove. Anxiety does not disappear when the clock strikes 12, but I am learning to work with it rather than against it.

I have come to realise that a lot of my anxiety is self-created, which has helped me to start to overcome it, or at least not be paralysed every time I feel anxious.

I know everybody experiences anxiety differently but I hope that by sharing my struggle with anxiety, particularly while travelling, it will help others and continue to open up conversations about mental health.

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22nd September 2018

Features

Class of 2018

Baroness Gillian Shephard Jake Morris Features Writer

A lifetime of political service by Baroness Gillian Shephard Rt Hon was paid tribute to by UEA with the awarding of an Honorary Doctorate of Civil Law. Baroness Shephard was granted a life peerage in June 2005 after an extensive period serving as Conservative Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk.

Having spent time in the Shadow Cabinet, and the Government, she has held many ministerial roles in departments including Education, Employment, Transport and Agriculture. Upon learning of her Honorary Doctorate her response, published by UEA, was “I am delighted and honoured to be awarded an honorary degree from the UEA. My advice to graduates is to aim high and enjoy your life.”

Given her ministerial experience with Higher Education, I thought it prudent to ask her opinion on tuition fees and the repayment system, introduced under the Labour government in 1998 during her time in the shadow cabinet. Despite my expectation for her to score political points by pointing out it was Labour who introduced them, her answer was considered and personal. She was pro the policy citing reasons of improved participation, with an increase of 200,000 applications between 1997 and 2016, and the

institutions being held to greater accountability. This is not to say she was unsympathetic to the financial plight of today’s students, acknowledging that the expectation not to repay the loans will eventually catch up on HM Treasury.

As a Conservative peer (and ex Chair of the Association of Conservative Peers), I moved on to ask her about the challenges facing today’s Conservative Party, ravaged by differences in opinion about the best strategy to manage Britain’s exit from the European Union. “Regaining unity,” she said.

This comes from someone with a true appreciation of the effects of political infighting. When asked if Brexit is the reason for this split, she described how the problem is far more ingrained. In her time in the Cabinet, she saw first-hand the destructive effects of the Masstricht Rebels, a group of Conservative MPs who consistently defied the Government over the Masstricht Treaty. Some would say that this infighting is what enabled Tony Blair to lead the Labour Party to its landslide victory in 1997. As Baroness Shephard pointed out, Labour too has been plagued with bitter divisions. During her earlier political career in the 1980s, the Party was almost split by the formation of Momentum (a left-wing political organisation within the Labour Party), a time she described as “very gory.”

Photos: UEA Communications team

Her interest in Higher Education intrigued me, with an impressive CV including ex-Chair of the Council of the Institute of Education, Honorary Fellow at St Hilda’s College, Oxford and visiting Professor of Public Policy at King’s College London.

“There is nothing that can happen without it first being thought of by an academic,” she said. It’s refreshing to find a politician who supports causes for a personal passion, with no hidden agenda.

Her time as Deputy Chair of the Social Mobility Committee made her consider that although universities are working towards social change by increasing diversity and affecting the local economy, their potential is still unplumbed. Interestingly, she believes that scholarships are of the most importance and will have a greater effect on this change than any political influences. “Scholarships totally transcend political concerns and it is a constant reminder that across human endeavour there is something higher than venal interest.” To round off what had been an insightful interview with a politician whose passion for education was enough to inspire people across the political spectrum, I asked what word she would replace ‘wonderful’ with in our well-known anthem “oh UEA is wonderful.” Her answer was “inspiring.” I think that sums up both UEA, and her.

Lord Deben Tony Allen

Features co-Editor

There are a number of concessions around Carrow Road which sell various items of fast food to Norwich’s hungry football fans on matchdays.

Today, the stadium has been taken over by UEA for graduation, so none of them are open.

It’s just as well really, because I’ve never had a burger from any of them that looks nearly as appetising as the one John Selwyn Gummer fed his four-year-old daughter in 1990, in full glare of the world’s media, in an attempt to convince the public of the safety of beef following the outbreak of mad cow disease.

Of course, he made the cover of Private Eye the next week and the image will forever be associated with the then-Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Now titled Lord Deben, and rapidly approaching his fiftieth year as an active politician, he’s a charming man who still has the ministerial spark when engaged in the right conversation topic – namely climate change and political paths to sustainability.

His conviction on those issues has not waned in all those years, and he’s a willing interview subject on everything from electric cars to the building work on UEA’s campus, which he has visited many times and likes.

Though he believes it will be even better after the current rebuilding project which has meant graduation temporarily moving to Carrow Road.

He’s delighted to receive the honorary doctorate for several reasons. “Obviously UEA is, if not the leading, one of the leading universities as far as climate research is concerned, those links are very important.

“Secondly, it has a remarkable academic standing and it has always been important in its fostering and encouraging what’s gone on in Suffolk.

“It’s very much the mentor of the new University of Suffolk, which we

are so pleased to have.

“But UEA made it possible, so I’m particularly fond of that.”

Born in Stockport, Gummer was a 1962 History graduate of Selwyn College, Cambridge, after leading both the University Conservative Association and its famous Debating Society, and a part of the ‘Cambridge Mafia’ of prominent Tories who all graduated from the university in the first half of the 1960s.

A lifelong Conservative Party member, Mr Gummer first contested several London seats, being elected to the Commons in 1970 in Lewisham.

“Macron’s visit to the US has been a remarkable

success ” By the end of the decade he was in the House representing the Eye constituency, which became the Suffolk Coastal seat, where he stayed until his 2010 retirement and still lives to this day.

In this time, he was Agriculture Minister, Environment Secretary and Party Chairman in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major.

Of Thatcher’s legacy, he’s as effusive as expected: “She was the first major Prime Minister to believe in climate change and to do something about it and to be committed to that, a remarkable woman in that sense.

“She was a scientist, so she was much more interested in applying science to government than any previous Prime Minister I think had been for a very long time.

“She made changes in our society which were hugely necessary, and which for example Mr Macron is only just beginning to have to do in France.”

For the full interview visit concrete-online.co.uk

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22nd September 2018

Features

Christie Watson Roo Pitt

Senior features writer

Receiving an Honorary Doctorate of Letters in the ceremony alongside the graduates of the school of health sciences, Christie Watson is a nurse turned writer who attended UEA in 2007, studying the MA in Creative Writing.

Originally training at Great Ormand Street Hospital, Watson was a Nurse for some 20 years prior to joining the creative writing programme.

It was this career that influenced her latest book The Language of Kindness: A Nurse’s Story, which serves as one of many tools in Watsons repertoire as a strong advocate for the nursing profession.

In an exclusive interview with Concrete Watson revealed how writing The Language of Kindness was very therapeutic and has

helped her talk about nursing even more than before. Written as a memoir, the book encompasses Watson’s harrowing experiences as a nurse, although Watson is now an accomplished writer with this, her third book, she has never stopped nursing.

Watson continued to work as nurse during her time as a master’s student and even whilst writing the first two books, when she undertook the writing of this memoir Watson moved away from working on the wards in order to be able to write the book but still continues to nurse to this day.

Winning the Malcolm Bradley Bursary meant a lot to Watson, not only was it a prestigious award that she feels honored to have been bestowed, in practical terms it meant, as a mature student with a young child at home, that Watson could fully dedicate herself to the MA program and helped to ease

the financial burden of returning to higher education. Without the bursary Watson would have had to have worked more and which would have directly impacted her studies.

As a writer Watson feels that she talks about nursing more now than she ever has, as mentioned this has led to her memoir being published which was both cathartic to write and provides a real insight into the life, trials and tribulations of being a nurse.

Watson feels nursing spills into her writing and heavily influences her work. When asked what advice she has for current nursing students and graduates alike, Watson, said: “just remember to treat absolutely everyone how you would want your family to be treated.”

For the full interview visit concrete-online.co.uk

Charles Clarke Tony Allen

Features Writer

The year is 2005. Before Brexit, before Trump, before football came home and before the recession brought New Labour’s glory years to an end.

I’m sat in my classroom, having just received a participation certificate and a letter on stamped Commons notepaper, acknowledging my entry in thenHome Secretary and my local MP Charles Clarke’s annual Christmas card design competition circulated among local schools.

13 years later, I’m sat with Mr Clarke in the inner sanctum of Carrow Road, the stadium at which the avid Norwich City fan has held a season ticket, he tells me, for two decades now.

He’s just been conferred with an honorary doctorate (the same style of certificate given to regular graduates, in case anyone is wondering) from UEA in one of their first graduation ceremonies in the stadium.

Clarke dropped out of the cabinet the year after my spectacular failure in his competition and dropped out of Parliament at the 2010 General Election. I dropped art in Year 9.

We might both be forgiven for wondering where it all went wrong.

Clarke’s career followed the path of New Labour. Elected as Norwich South MP in Tony Blair’s 1997 landslide, things only got better for Clarke who soon ascended the political ranks into the cabinet and Tony Blair’s top table, or at least onto 10 Downing Street’s comfiest sofa.

As New Labour crumbled, Clarke became a backbencher before losing

his seat in the 2010 General Election to Liberal democrat Simon Wright, as the third party formed a coalition with the Conservatives to force Labour into opposition, where they stayed ever since. It’s history, and on the early promise surrounding New Labour, Clarke reflects: “It was exuberant. There was a massive optimism about the possibilities of change.” He continues: “And many of those possibilities happened, things like the minimum wage, things like devolution to Scotland, things like human rights being given to people, things like new schools, new hospitals and so on. There was an immense sense of achievement.

And that was the atmosphere in ‘97 as we were elected, could we actually do it?”

For the full interview visit concrete-online.co.uk

Stuart Ramsay Roo Pitt

Senior features writer

Receiving an Honorary Doctorate in Civil Law, Stuart Ramsay, originally graduated from UEA in 1985 where he studied History and met his now wife, Toni. Ramsay is the longest serving foreign correspondent for Sky News and is now their Chief Correspondent.

Ramsay’s 30-year career has seen him report on no less than 18 wars from the front-line, his reporting is highly commended including: two Emmy wins and three nominations, four BAFTA nominations, a Monte Carlo Film Award Golden Nymph, London Press Club’s Journalist of the Year and three Royal Television Society wins. In an exclusive interview with Concrete we discussed his fondest

memories of UEA, including being in the Men’s rugby team and going on tour to Florida, USA, (which was a rare opportunity in the 80s).

Alongside those memories of a campus that had some of the best gigs and seeing bands in the bar that was on your doorstep, something he feels only UEA could offer as one of the only great venues in the east.

Ramsay’s fondest memory however was the summer of his first year, where he met a fellow Norfolk Terrace resident, Toni, he recalls that it was a particularly nice summer weather-wise and one that he wouldn’t change.

Ramsay’s most memorable moment from his career thus far however is a stark contrast to this, when in Mosul, he was subject to a truck bomb exploding, around 60 fatalities were reported and only himself and his colleague (a photographer) survived.

When recalling the incident Ramsay said he still doesn’t understand why him and his colleague survived, nor does he quite believe it, he said “we shouldn’t be here, we shouldn’t have survived.”

The transition from graduate to journalist was much easier than Ramsay was expecting, the key transferable skill from history was the research techniques, particularly with going to the source and finding source material and not trusting anything published elsewhere at face value.

Ramsay feels these transferable skills are often overlooked and many people seem to think that you need to have studied media to work in journalism.

For the full interview visit concrete-online.co.uk

Hey UEA

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#UEA

@ueabsl

22nd September 2018

@dulcieandnorfolk

@photography_by_sharn

Media Collective News Graduation at Carrow Road?

48% 52%

UEATV and The Filmmaking Society are working together to do a 48-hour filmmaking challenge happening between 12 and 14 of October. If you want to get involved, check out UEATVs Facebook page.

Meanwhile, Livewire is as excited as you to kick off freshers’ week, so why not join them early at their Square party on 23 September (10-5pm) with a chance to win freebies, play on inflatables and get on live radio.

Who said moving in day was about unpacking?!

Want to feature in our roundup?

Find us at @Concrete_UEA or use the hashtag #HeyUEA

Scan the code to become a Concrete member

22nd September 2018

15

The archive:

We’ve dug up this issue from 2003 when Concrete reported on Village students holding a protest against a lack of a common room - which those in Nelson Court and Constable Terrace had.

Speaking then, protest organiser Edward Longmate said: “The University Village does not have a common room, and with it being so far from campus it is fair to say that out of all the residences the Village is one of the most obvious in need of one!”

15 years on, what do you think? Should the village have a communal area? Let us know @Concrete_UEA.

Concrete Crossword

n o i t i d e ’ s r e h s e Fr ACROSS 1 - With an intention for learning 7 - Open 24/7 9 - Recently refurbished to give access to the library 11 - Europe’s longest river 12 - UEA society that makes videos 14 - The largest at any UK university 15 - Sunny day + Pimm’s = 16 - Queen of Iceni 17 - Norwich home to skateboarders and crazy golf 19 - A first-year student 21 - The sound of UEA 23 - Controversial statue maker 24 - Quote as a source 25 - A river separating North and South Norwich

DOWN 2 - In print and online 3 - Home to Damn Good and A-List 4 - A massive stone structure built in Mesopotamia. Commonly used today for pre-drinks.

5 - Designer of UEA’s campus 6 - Made hard 8 - A group of university departments 9 - Maybe the hardest of the 5 L’s 10 - Artificially built in 1973.

13 - A seeking for knowledge 18 - A former student 20 - Payment from Tenants 22 - Cheap dinner

Comment

16

Jessica Cappi Comment Writer

You would have only had to have been at UEA a week, and I guarantee you would have heard the infamous ‘‘OH UEAAAA IS WONNDEERRFULLL’’ chant; either by a group of drunken students, a sports team, or a particularly patriotic individual. UEA has cottoned onto this turn of phrase, and you’ll find the ‘‘What makes

UEA wonderful to you?’’ displays dotted around campus.

In the interest of introducing UEA student life and its wonderfulness to new students, I have created an acrostic piece that displays a few of my favourite things.

W – (Prince of) Wales Road – This notorious Norwich street is where you will find all the best bars, clubs, and drunk 3am takeaway spots. If boogying to ABBA is your thing, you will find Loft very interesting.

For a night to be dressy head to

22nd September 2018

Mantra, it’ll get messy!

O – Oasis, ‘Wonderwall’ – An LCR end of the night classic, if you don’t know all the words now, you will do by year two.

N – Norfolk Terrace – As this was my first-year accommodation I may be slightly bias, but the awardwinning ziggurats boast beautiful views of the UEA campus.

D – Damn Good – The only place to be on a Tuesday night. It’s time to whip out your cat ears and channel your inner Greek God as

the Freshers Zoo and Toga parties promise to be big.

E – Enterprise Centre – Another stunning piece of architecture, the UEA Enterprise centre was branded the UK’s greenest building. Not often busy, the small coffee shop inside is a quiet place to chill with your friends or catch up on some work.

R – Rabbits – What other university can say that baby bunnies roam the grounds, like a young adult version of Teletubbies? Exactly.

F – Fluffy Doggos – The UEA grounds are a social hub for doggos, doggo walkers, and doggo lovers alike. Although Cloud Dog has left us (RIP), there is a plethora of pooches wandering the campus to satisfy any dog-lover’s needs.

U – Ugly architecture – We love a concrete jungle (where dreams are made of).

L – LCR – Be it a gig, a night out, or UEA’s version of Take Me Out, the LCR is the ultimate venue around campus.

Labour’s anti-Semitism troubles continue Matt Denton Comment Writer

Britain’s current political battlefield is almost unrecognisable compared to what we have grown used to over the past few decades.

Brexit has become the most decisive political conversation of our times, and it’s creating an interesting scenario for Britain’s two major parties.

Internal faction wars in the Conservative Party over its handling of Brexit have hurt them in the polls, and the party remains without a clear and agreed plan for Britain’s future.

This is the prime time for the Labour Party to ride in, a knight in shining armour for the British voting public.

But an ugly streak of antiSemitism, that has run through the party for some time, is holding it back from coming to the rescue of

those who are dissatisfied.

Recent actions of some Labour MPs including Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader, have worried Jewish communities in Britain, as well as some of Labour’s student supporters.

“It’s not just Corbyn who has made these mistakes”

Only recently has the Labour party fully accepted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of anti-Semitism.

A photo of Corbyn posted by the

Daily Mail showed him attending a memorial service that reportedly sympathised with the perpetrators of the 1974 Munich terrorist attack, which killed 11 Israeli Olympians.

Video footage of Corybn also shows him at a pro-Palestine meeting in 2013, where he said British Zionists don’t understand ‘English irony’, which has resulted in the alienation of a vast number of Jewish people in Britain.

Corbyn also defended a photo on Facebook that depicted a highly anti-Semitic mural, causing a major backlash in 2012.

It’s not just Corbyn who has made these mistakes. Ken Livingstone, former Labour Mayor of London, quit the party following remarks he made suggesting Hitler was a Zionist.

What’s worse is that it took two years for him to leave Labour following these comments. Many suggest the party should have forced him out earlier.

These are the actions that have raised questions amongst the British electorate over Labour’s integrity, as well as its ability to control its own members.

The strength of student support is rather flaky.

While students do overwhelmingly lean left, there has been some confusion over the party’s official position on Brexit.

A poll on undergraduate students has revealed that 55 percent of the respondents thought that Labour wanted the UK to remain in the European Union, and 42 percent of Labour voting students said they would be less likely to vote Labour in future if the party showed clear support for Brexit.

Labour needs to avoid alienatating its student

Photo: Wikimedia Commons backers.

With confusion around the party’s stance on Brexit, and an increasingly bright light shining on the recent issues of anti-Semitism, students have every reason to question their voting intentions.

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22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/comment/ | @Concrete_UEA

Vegans, veggies and the rest C. E. Matthews Comment Editor

Another year and another batch of budding vegans and vegetarians.

A recent survey showed the number of UK vegans has grown to 3.5 million, and the vegetarians population to 7 million. It seems like everyone’s becoming vegan.

They are the kind of people you wouldn’t be too alarmed to find foraging for kale in the bushes at the edge of a railway track. They’re ultra-veggies.

No animal products. They walk barefoot around campus, don’t use shampoo, and replace toothbrushes with asparagus stalks. (That may be a slight exaggeration).

Last week a vegan called me speciesist. Obviously I was horrified, denied it, and Googled ‘speciesist’. It turns out I am.

Speciesism is the belief your own species (humankind, hopefully) should have more rights than other species because you yourself are human.

You don’t have to be antispeciesism if you’re a vegan, I assume there could be other reasons to inflict a no-meat diet on yourself.

To be fair The Tipsy Vegan on St Benedict’s Street serves some delicious food. As in really, REALLY yummy.

However some people, many of them animal rights activists, are anti-speciesism. They believe they wouldn’t want to be treated the way animals are, so animals should have the same rights as humans.

How this would affect the daily lives of the global population is not the concern. Their opinion is rooted in ethics, and the idea is gaining traction.

You may wonder whether speciesism is an issue you should really consider. Imagine you’re at a cliff edge, there’s a puppy and a baby both clinging on, but you can only save one.

Which would you choose?

It’s speciesist to pick the baby for the sole reason that it’s a human and the puppy isn’t. What would you then say to a person who would discriminate people by r a c e , gender, or

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

sexuality? Joan Dunayer, an animal rights activist, says you should flip a coin to decide.

It’s not only an ethical debate.

There are real-life consequences to this movement. Designer Stella McCartney is an instrumental figure in bringing animal rights into the world of fashion. She uses ‘FurFree-Fur’ and looks for ways to make the wool and silk her company uses sustainable.

Her leather, like all her products, is vegetarian, and she is even looking into growing it in a laboratory. As the fashion industry styles itself as progressive, McCartney’s position is fuelling a drop in demand within the leather industry.

Maybe future generations will look back at us in horror. Many people wear leather, use gelatinebased glues, and eat animals.

I found out last week that until this year, Percy Pigs actually contained pork gelatine. (If that doesn’t bring a smile to your face I don’t know what will). I’m not vegan or vegetarian and I don’t intend to change – I yam what I yam.

Some animal rights activists believe speciesism is fundamentally wrong and immoral. In an ideal world that may be. But if I ever have to choose to save either a puppy or a baby, it’s safe to say I’ll opt for the human.

A sober sesh?

Yaiza Canopoli Comment Writer

One of my best memories from my first year at UEA is freshers’ week.

Not because of the LCR and club nights alike, but because of the incredibly varied events the university organised.

As an EU student, the UK drinking culture initially surprised me. My previous classmates liked to go out, but I never had alcohol at home, and many British students seem to love drinking.

I didn’t really discover this until later into freshers’, having remained blissfully ignorant for the first few days when only international students were on campus.

This was an amazing time for me to not only make friends, but to get started on what would become my ceaseless hunt for strange, lowkey events around Norwich.

One student society organised a free taxi ride for internationals to go roller-skating in town, which turned into a bit of a tradition.

I still take my friends rollerskating (and I do wish we got a free taxi ride every time). There were events put on day and night, ranging from chilled barbeque socials to food fairs, and oddly specific group discussions.

Freshers’ is enjoyable outside of clubs. One event I went to early on in the academic year was Sink the Pink, a drag themed club night at the LCR

“The performers kept everyone entertained whether drunk or sober” with live performances. People were drinking, but the music was good regardless, and the performers kept everyone entertained whether drunk or sober.

I’ve had similar experiences clubbing in town since, never feeling the need to drink.

So is Freshers’ enjoyable without drinking?

With friends who are on the same page as you, people who are there to dance and have a good time, and with the right music and mood, it absolutely is. And, despite what people may tell you, it’s not all about clubbing.

“I never actually regretted dropping out” Jack Ashton Comment Writer

It’s scary coming to university. I know that’s a huge understatement, and I’m sure you’ve discovered this already. There are very few scenarios in which you’re plucked from the place you called home for the last 18 years; a place with your friends and family, your favourite pubs, favourite walks and favourite spots, and then plunged into a place without any of that. And, there are even fewer scenarios in which you’re socially expected to do this.

It feels like it’s a big step. The step you have to take if you want to get somewhere. ‘Uni equals good job’ is the mantra we’re told from the start. It is, in part, true.

A major portion of highpaying jobs require

a degree-level education within the respective field. With that in mind, it feels like it’s make-or-break, doesn’t it? You have already moved out of your house so there is no going back. Right?

Well, not for the 6 percent of people who chose not to complete their course in 2015/16. And not for the increasing number of people choosing to end their degrees prematurely; a number which increases further among black students, working class students and students who struggle with their mental health, for example.

Though the number of students applying to university is increasing, there is also an increase in those who come to feel that this it isn’t their only option.

A friend of

mine in Sheffield watched the moment her housemate dropped out. She walked in on moving day with her family (having just flown over from Bulgaria), looked at her room, shook her head, turned on the spot and walked out. Bye. It’s easier than ever, and is now a more common option.

My experience was a little trickier – various meetings with senior advisors, a couple of awkward phone calls to my mam and a hell of a lot of goodbyes meant I was no longer a student at Liverpool University.

There’s plenty of reasons why university might not be for you. You

could be more homesick than you thought you would be, you might have struggled to make friends, or moving to a big city simply might have been too much for you. Or, above anything else, it just might not be right.

I never actually regretted dropping out. It was an incredibly relieving feeling to be able to say “nah it’s just not for me”, and frankly I still don’t have a good reason why.

I had a pretty chill group of friends, was moving fine through my course and wasn’t particularly homesick,

but I just didn’t feel that it was all there, and it wasn’t.

A year later when I came to UEA I could tell that I was readier for university, my half attempt at a gapyear had changed plenty of things about me, and I felt like I wasn’t as much of a little kid anymore (definitely still was). For a lot of us, UEA is wonderful; but that doesn’t mean it has to be for you.

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22nd September 2018

Science

2

Rising Heatwaves: a hazard to health? UEA micronutrient

research impacts World Health Organisation

Evlyn Forsyth-Muris Science Writer

7,000 more people could die per year due to increased temperatures by 2050, says new report by the Health Protection Agency.

The report found that if no changes are made there could be a rise of 257 percent in heat related deaths. So should we be worried?

Well, the study found that London, the Midlands and the East were most effected, and that the elderly were most vulnerable. In the 2003 heatwave, 27 percent of heat related deaths across the UK were seen in Norfolk.

So the impact here has the potential to be significant, although not especially to the student community.

However, the projection of an additional 7,000 deaths per year is based on no adaptations being made to combat the heat. Human behaviours and government policies do have the potential to significantly reduce this number.

But with one study predicting ambient departure rises of up to 6.8 degrees by 2080, more needs to be done than some late night electric fan purchases.

Recommendations have been made as to methods for reducing heat related mortality, such as widespread introduction of airconditioning.

But even this has many downfalls. It would magnify the already problematic urban heat island effect seen in large cities like London and is likely to create a

Hannah Brown Senior Science Writer

Photo: Pixabay social disparity as wealthier individuals are more able to pay for air-conditioning.

“In the 2003 heatwave, 27 percent of heat related deaths across the UK were seen in Norfolk” A more sustainable method is to change building regulations so that new buildings are more like that seen in southern European countries, with deigns that

promote airflow and cooler indoor spaces without the need for airconditioning. Although this would take decades to become widespread.

But why is the heat killing us?

Most research has failed to come up with a clear answer.

However, one study suggested that during heatwaves people deteriorate faster and are less able to seek medical assistance, meaning they die before they present for care. Another study theorised that respiratory diseases are more susceptible to exacerbation under extreme heats.

More research is clearly needed to understand ‘why’, in order to reduce the predicted number of heat related deaths by 2050 and allow us to enjoy the hot summers worry free.

Crucial to ensuring the human body continues to function, micronutrients are essential vitamins and minerals that every person around the world needs in a balanced diet.

Deficiencies in micronutrients - such as iron, magnesium, and vitamin A - can be life threatening, but having too much of a nutrient can also be detrimental to one’s health.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), around 1.3 million children die per year from a lack of micronutrients.

It’s therefore crucial that we learn as much as possible about micronutrients in order to reduce this number.

Different populations need varying levels of certain micronutrients in their diet, due to diverse dietary compositions and other contributing factors.

Important research is being done on exactly what levels are needed for certain groups.

For the past 30 years, UEA’s Professor Susan Fairweather-Tait and Dr Lee Hooper have made major contributions within the field of micronutrients.

They are currently participating

in research projects to help learn more about how vital micronutrients are in keeping the human body functioning healthily.

Prof Fairweather-Tait and Dr Hooper have been able to assess the effects of levels of micronutrients on a multitude of health issues This comes after UEA committed to a research programme aiming to further knowledge on micronutrients.

Following this research, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the WHO have been able to clarify and update their dietary requirements for both adults and children.

It is hoped that by 2050 nutritious food will be supplied worldwide, and the research is helping organisations such as HarvestPlus – an organisation Prof FairweatherTait has close links to - understand what level of nutrients are needed in certain parts of the world.

The work of UEA’s scientists has helped to clarify the link between micronutrients and human health, and it is hoped that future research will continue to do so.

Future projects include a study which is currently underway exploring the bioavailability and speciation of iron in plant food.

This has been conducted in response to recommendatons for reduced meat consumption.

Scientists find liquid water on Mars Hannah Brown Senior Science Writer

It may sound like an episode of Doctor Who, but scientists believe that they may have found an underground lake on Mars.

“In this kind of environment that we know on Earth, in the Antarctic, we have bacteria” Blurry radar scans of the planet reveal what is believed to be a frozen, salty reservoir some 12 miles across and lying around one mile beneath the surface of the planet’s South Pole (pictured right).

Water has been found on other moons in our solar system, but up

until now it has been a struggle to find water in large quantities on Mars.

If this image truly turns out to be an underground lake, it is likely not to be alone, and may lead to other exciting discoveries.

It may show us what happened to water on Mars, give humans a potential secondary planet, and, thrillingly, may hint to the potential existence of extraterrestrial life.

Whilst Mars today is cold, sparse, and dry, chances are that billions of years ago it was home to multiple bodies of water and likely had a warm surface temperature.

Scientists hope that investigating this lake can help us understand what caused the climate to change so drastically.

But scientists say we shouldn’t start thinking that we might be meeting the stereotypical little green man any time soon.

“In this kind of environment that we know of on Earth, in the Antarctic, we have bacteria,” says Elena Pettinelli, who co-authored

the paper on the potential waters of Mars and works at the Roma Tre University in Italy. “They can be deep in the ice.” The bacteria therefore may be similar to ones found in our own Antarctica.

H o w e v e r, it may be a

this will certainly require some technological developments that at the moment are not available.”

Unfortunately, it is possible that the lake isn’t really a lake - it might just be sludge, or rocks with large pockets of air.

surface.

“Getting there and acquiring the final evidence that this is indeed a lake will not be an easy task”

“Getting there and acquiring the final evidence that this is indeed a lake will not be an easy task,” says Roberto Orosei of the National Institute of Astrophysics in Bologna. “It will require flying a robot there which is capable of drilling through 1.5km of ice and

In fact, this is more likely than finding a giant frozen reservoir under the planet’s surface.

But whatever the mysterious mass is, scientists are eager to learn more about it.

(Photos [L-R]: Science Magazine, European Space agency, NASA [background].)

Photo: Scan of reflective substance, likely water, beneath the surface.

Photo: Satellite taking a scan of Mars fair

while before we w i l l actually know what lies beneath the

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22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/science/ | @Concrete_UEA

Medicinal cannabis on path for legalisation Orla Knox-Macaulay Science Writer

It is now September. The long days of summer are fleeting, and autumn will soon be in our midst.

While the green leaves turn into sunsets on the trees, a different type of greenery is soon to be available to purchase for ‘exceptional circumstances’.

As of this new season, specialist doctors in the UK will legally be allowed to prescribe medicinal products containing cannabis.

As announced by the home secretary Sajid Javid, those that “meet safety and quality standards are to be made legal for patients with an exceptional clinical need”.

This came after the Chief Medical Officer, Professor Dame Sally Davies, said that people should be given access to treatments that can really help.

These products can be used to help patients such as Billy Gladwell and Alfie Dingley, who were denied access to cannabis oil in the past for their seizures. Now, with the help of these treatments, a normal life for them can ensue.

94% of UEA students support the use of medical cannabis for severe conditions

In response to patients like those boys, Mr Javid said that “our position on cannabis related medicinal products was not satisfactory”.

And, in a drastic turn of

events that seems to be an archaic standpoint on cannabis, he stated, on Gladwell’s 13th birthday, that the legalisation of cannabis products was in full swing.

His mother was without words

and could only say that “never has Billy received a better birthday present”.

Cannabis is currently classed as a Schedule One drug, meaning that the governent does not recognise

it for any therapeutic or medicinal value.

Because of this, the Department for Health and Social Care and the Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will now have to develop a clear definition of what cannabis-derived medicinal products are.

This will then allow them to be prescribed to patients that suffer with seizures and/or epilepsy, to name a few conditions cannabis has shown potential to treat.

Many in the medical field have welcomed this change warmly.

Donna Kinnair, from the Royal College of Nursing, said the decision was “very welcome”.

Dr Tom Freeman also said something to the same effect.

However, the former justice minister, Sir Mike Penning, stated that there were still some unanswered questions regarding the rescheduling of the treatments for individuals like Alfie Dingley.

It seems that most UEA students strongly support the use of medicinal cannabis in severe medical cases, with over 94 percent of respondents responding ‘Yes’ to a Twitter poll we ran last week.

different every single day do something

something

different

Do something different encourages students to try UEA’s Huge RANGE of Activities for Minimal cost, sparking their interests and developing new skills fInd out more: ueadifferent.com

Travel

20

22nd September 2018

Slyvie Tan explores Norwich culture Leaving home for university can be daunting, especially for us international students who have travelled far from home. Have no fear!

Norfolk is often underestimated for being a cultural city filled with lots of authentic shops, restaurants and places to explore, giving you a slice of home as well as an opportunity to explore other cultures.

University

Let’s start with where we are – UEA! UEA has around 32 cultural societies. If you’re feeling down and needing someone familiar from home to share some love, the cultural societies are there to support you as well as bring your culture to UEA. It is also a good place to start if you’re interested in immersing yourself into different cultures, without having to fly there. An event to watch out for is the annual Go Global event where students come

together for food and performances from over 30 different countries across the globe, for a single night of cultural celebration.

As you can see, there is lots to get involved with at UEA, so immerse yourself in our culturally rich university!

Restaurants

Nothing feels more like home than your mother’s home-cooked meal in your belly. There are lots of restaurants that offer international food - here are a handful of recommended places to explore Norfolk’s culinary scene.

Let’s start off with Chinese food.

The Royal Plaza Restaurant offers mainly Sichuan cuisine as well as Shanghai and Cantonese dishes. If you like it hot and spicy, this is the place to be. A less spicy option would be Baby Buddha Chinese Teahouse ,where they serve nice Cantonese stir fry as well as dimsum.

Up in Cromer, there is a hidden

gem, the Constantia Cottage Restaurant, that serves Greek cuisine. It is one of the only tavernas in Norfolk that entertains customers with traditional bouzouki music.

Definitely try the kleftiko if you visit.

If you’re looking for a cheeky kebab, then Krasades Taverna in town is all you need to satisfy your cravings.

Shiki is an amazing Japanese dining restaurant near Norwich Cathedral that offers great bento box lunch deals.

Soyokaze is another authentic Japanese restaurant that provides the Japanese minimalistic ambience.

Be sure to get there early as there are only a few tables for lunch and dinner services.

Love tacos? Well Jive is the place to be for its 2-for-1 taco Tuesdays.

Another good place for Mexican food is Pedro’s Tex-Mex Cantina because you can feast on your cheesy enchiladas while wearing a sombrero! There are many more to explore...

Shops

In terms of shops to buy clothes and trinkets, there are not many in Norfolk as most things are available online these days. However, there are a few shops that sell Asian snacks and treats for those keen. Oriental Delight is a wholesaler that mostly sells east Asian products.

The prices are slightly cheaper here, but it is a longer distance from UEA. In the city, the Orient Express is another popular place to shop at. It offers a variety of Asian food products. Spiceland is the go to for spices and ingredients for south Asian dishes.

Only so much can be mentioned in this article, but don’t let that stop you from experiencing the vibrant and lively cultures in Norfolk. Find comfort in the ones that feel close to home and experience the others.

When y o u leave you will have experienced every slice of its culture, making Norwich your home away from home.

A local's guide to Norwich Jake Morris Travel Writer

As a local boy, I think I am well placed to showcase the delights of my home county. Although it feels that Norfolk is the land of the forgotten, it is well worth exploring during your time at UEA. If you have a car then the possibilities of exploring quaint market towns, such as Holt, Burnham Market and Beccles, are endless, but I am going to focus my attention on the places that public transport makes easily accessible.

Perhaps the best known attraction is the North Norfolk coast.

Take a boat trip out to Blakeney Point to see one of Britain’s best viewing

Photo: Matt Nixon

sites for seals, or move west up the coast and you’ll find the sand dunes, pine trees and enormous expanses of sand that make up the beaches around Holkham.

Cromer is a well-known seaside town with train and bus links to Norwich. The pier and arcade are always enjoyable with an ice cream, and the infamous summer carnival is well worth a trip to.

If you head east around the coast you come to a series of quieter villages and beaches which are reachable by the Coasthopper bus service from Cromer.

Here you will find tucked away little gems with high cliffs and empty expanses of golden sands.

There is, of course, the Norfolk Broads, miles of inland waterways

with an abundance of wildlife.

Why not take a group of mates and rent a motor boat or canoe for a day out? Towns like Wroxham have good transport links to Norwich, and are perfect places to hire a vessel.

“It feels that Norfolk is the land of the forgotten " If you like your history then you would be amiss to

not see the county’s attractions.

Norwich was England’s second city in the time of William the Conqueror, and has a historic Norman Castle and Cathedral, both of which are just a ten-minute bus ride away from campus.

The countryside is dotted with stately homes, such as Blickling and Houghton Hall, all of which have extensive woodland and parks attached providing a more genteel (and potentially cheap) break from student life.

For a faster paced environment try exploring Norwich, or the seaside t o w n

of Great Yarmouth famed for its pleasure beach, pier, and healthy night life.

Norwich has an amazing food and drink scene with independent restaurants and bars offering cuisines from around the world, and your UEA experience is not complete without a trip d o w n Prince of Wa l e s Road on a Saturday night.

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22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/travel/ | @Concrete_UEA

Beverly Devakishen: travelling to "dangerous destinations"

Coming to America Chapter 1 Amelia Rentell The queue for customs in Chicago takes two hours and my connecting flight has already left. I am crying.

I leave my phone at the desk when checking my bags in for the next flight and don’t realise until I’m leaving the terminal.

I cry more. A wonderful steward finds it for me and gives me a hug whilst shuffling me on to an airport shuttle that I go round twice before getting off - usually I am good at travelling alone.

In Oklahoma, the air is so hot it’s like walking in a sauna for the first two weeks. On my second night there are 33,000 lightning strikes and a bridge collapses from the rain. The next day it is sunny again.

Ask any local and their favourite weather saying is "if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes".

“On my second night there are

33,000 lightning Photo: Unsplash I was scrolling through the segment on the British government website that offers British citizens advice on which countries are currently too dangerous to visit. It cites killings, political instability and theft as some of the reasons why one should not go to a country.

Many of the 'dangerous' countries that were listed were far from the West - destinations seemed to get more and more deadly further East.

The ironic thing is that my Singaporean family is always trying to warn me about how 'dangerous' the West is.

They read headlines about

strikes and a stabbings, shootings and violent protests in the West and fear for my safety.

However, having lived in England for two years now, I can assure them that these foreign lands are not actually that dangerous.

There have been reports of violence, crime and political chaos while I was in the UK, but these are things that one might find in almost any other country.

I have had someone come up to me, say they want to visit Asia, and then ask, "But is it too dangerous?"

My first instinct is to laugh, because people back home ask me that in regards to England all the time.

Sometimes, you never know how safe or dangerous a certain place is until you've been there yourself.

People fear the unknown. The more fearful you are of a place, the bigger the chance that the country is vastly different from yours.

But once you learn to embrace those differences, it is liberating to know that you don't have to fear the rest of the world. It makes you more self-confident, it empowers you to push yourself.

Even if a destination truly is dangerous, putting yourself in risky situations for a short period of time is eye opening.

As a tourist, you get to leave a

country after your visit is up, but you would have experienced what people who are living there will go through for the rest of their lives.

This will open up your world view and help you to become more empathetic to people who have to fear for their lives every day; you might even start to think about what you could do to help people living in these danger-ridden countries.

So why not expose yourself to truly meaningful travel experiences, go beyond your boundaries and literally put yourself out there?

You'd be surprised at how much you can learn by stepping out of your comfort zone.

Solo vs group travelling Amy Newbery Travel Editor

Whether it’s for ‘soul-searching’, a graduation trip or just for fun, there are millions of travellers every year.

I have travelled a lot - both alone and in a group. Of course, both have their positives and negatives, but does one triumph over the other in the world of travelling?

I prefer travelling with at least one other person because I feel safer and have someone to rely on which is especially useful in a foreign country. On the other hand, travelling alone allows me to take in a country without any distractions.

The first time I travelled overseas by myself it was to Scotland from France; I was going to visit some family friends. I was still in my teenage years, perhaps 13 or 14. I was scared and nervous. What if I got lost? What if I couldn’t find the people meant to pick me up?

However, as the years passed by, I found myself enjoying travelling solo more and more. I enjoy long bus rides just listening to music and staring out of the window. I enjoy walking around new places, and immersing myself fully in different cultures.

However, it’s important to realise that you are vulnerable when travelling alone. Although

you should be aware of your surroundings regardless of whether you're alone or in a group, it’s especially important when you’re by yourself. For example, avoiding badly lit alleys is something to keep in mind when travelling alone. Also, keep an eye on your belongings because you won’t have anyone to look out for your things.

Despite this, you shouldn’t be put off travelling alone because as long as you are smart and safe about it, travelling alone is absolutely fine.

Additionally, joining a group tour before or after arriving in a country is an option if you want extra security.

Travelling in a group can be a lot

of fun if you are with a good group.

Although, the bigger the group, the more difficult it can be to plan a trip because people might want to do different things. It’s also common for fights to happen during trips because when you’re stuck with the same people for an extended period of time, you can get on each other’s nerves.

Both options have their limitations but I think one should try both in their lifetime. That way you can decide which one you prefer.

Ultimately, travelling should be a fun and eye-opening experience that broadens your view of the world; you just need to find out what works for you.

bridge collapses" I go to Walmart and it is the size of an airport. The tap water tastes like chlorine and apparently comes from a lake you can’t even swim in. Gross. My housemates and I eat dinner together and talk about dating culture in our different countries: Belgium, South Korea and Japan. I feel worldly.

On my first day, I have a three hour class. The classroom looks like it came right off a movie screen and there are these weird desks that I don’t realise how to sit behind.

You have to slide the desk part out to get the chair and the first time I almost fall and the chair makes a loud scraping noise. Everyone looks at me and I smile-laugh like you do when you trip in public. We say our names but no one realises I’m British until three weeks in.

What an insult. At least I have figured out the desk.

My first house party reminds me of all the things I never did at 16 and this childhood do-over feels strange since I live in a whole other country to my Mother. It’s fun.

I have to fill out a risk assessment that is so patronising that I continue to question child or adult? I have a garbage disposal and air conditioning, I really live in America.

An uber driver asks me if I’m from Sweden, another asks me on a date.

It rains for two days and I could be in England… then my phone buzzes with a tornado watch.

Image: Vecteezy

Sport

22nd September 2018

22

Polo club looking to grow Tennis aim for success Juliette Rey Sport Writer

Mounted players, a mallet in one hand, reins in the other; welcome to UEA Polo. This society offers you a chance to try this fun-filled, unique and fast-paced game on horseback, in which a mallet is used to hit the ball into a goal. Teams are mixedgender and are made up of four players on each side, arena Polo differing slightly with three players per side.

Matches, called Chukkas, last seven minutes due to the intensity and the speed of the game, allowing the horses to get their well-needed respite after a match.

The sport varies between seasons. In winter, training takes place at MHF Polo S c h o o l ’s arena in Harlow, Essex and in the summer, training takes place at Silver Leys Polo Club, an expansive terrain the size of five football pitches. All lessons are £35 an hour, including horse and helmet hire. Despite not being involved in BUCS and Derby Day, UEA Polo’s training sessions are a great way to learn the basics and technicalities

of the sport.They help players to prepare for the ultimate Polo Championships: winter and summer SUPA (The Schools and Universities Polo Association), a three-day Polo competition. Last year, the Winter Championships took place on 7 February in Rugby. The turnout was great, with beginners performing well for their first tournament and the novices winning two of their matches. Players and supporters were treated to international matches between the UK and the USA. UEA Polo also took part in a friendly Christmas tournament, at the MHF arena, against Kent and Royal Holloway universities in which both beginner and novice teams competed. Summer SUPA took place on 8 June in Offchurch Bury Polo Club.

The new President of the society, Harriet Mallender, lays out the goals for this year, stating that the main focus is to “gather more interest for both players, and supporters”, as well as “being able to have three teams compete, with one beginner and two novice.”

Other than the usual attendance at winter and summer SUPA, Mallender also outlined other fixtures for the year ahead, including “more friendly matches with Cambridge, Kent and Essex universities”, and outlining two star players: Archie Nicholson, and Megan Andrews. UEA Polo has made this stereotypically inaccessible “gentleman’s sport” open to all, and welcomes everyone with open arms; experienced players, riders, and those who have never ridden.

Meyzi Adoni

Sport Senior Reporter

New BUCS season means new team members and most importantly, new goals. Tennis is popular in the UK, and after the success of Andy Murray it has become more so.

However, if you have never had a chance to watch a tennis match before (you have to), you have probably heard the names of big players or even tried to catch up with some tennis drama.

I spoke with the UEA Tennis team about their goals for the upcoming season, how last year went and more… One of the first things I asked was how do they feel about their performance last season? They said “last season was our best yet with the 1sts winning the league and getting promoted, and the 2s staying up. Also, the girls team finished high too.”

Even though the men’s team did not performs as they wanted to during Derby Day in Essex, overall the whole UEA Tennis team had a successful season last year, but of course they have higher goals and some newness for the upcoming season.

“Following on from the success of last year we’ve added a 3rd men’s BUCS team for the first time ever.

Along with our three Sunday local league teams too.

We also have brand new teams for recreational players that don’t make BUCS that will compete against other universities on Saturdays as part of the Tennis Foundations Fast4 scheme, launched this academic year for university tennis.”

So, we have a lot of tennis matches to watch this year, and a lot of people who love playing tennis will have a chance to compete against other universities.

In terms of goals for the upcoming season, they are aiming for their 1st teams to “remain and solidify their status as a Midlands 2 team.” Also, they are hoping to have more members this year. Last year they had 102, but this year they believe this number could go higher.

If you want to get involved with UEA Tennis and meet the committee and other members, attending the first social of the year could be a good option; they told me that last year everyone connected really quickly and had a great time. It was “one of the best” socials of the year.

Last year, the tennis team had a record number of players on tour with almost 30 people. This year, they are wishing to expand this number and also plan to have more members.

The competition is hard, but UEA Tennis is ready. Fans, don’t forget to support them; we can’t wait for the new season to start.

Photo: Charlie Knott

run by students, for students buddy(su) is the number one way to settle in at UEA, make friends, get to grips with uni life and find your way around campus and the fine city of Norwich. sign up now: uea.su/opportunities/buddysu

23

22nd September 2018

concrete-online.co.uk/category/sport/ | @Concrete_UEA

UEA Sport in brief

Lacrosse hope to adapt to life in second tier Tony Allen

Fayre do’s

Sport Editor

This Wednesday (26th), new and returning UEA students are invited to see what’s on offer at the Sports Fayre. UEA has over 60 clubs who will have stalls manned by current members, on hand to explain their sport. The Sports Fayre runs from 11am to 4pm in the Sportspark.

UEA Lacrosse Club has continued optional training sessions over summer, hoping they can keep players fresh and hit the ground

Dam Good UEA men’s Lacrosse completed a pre-season trip to Amsterdam, facing Amsterdam Lions and Enschede Phoenix. Travis Payne, Will Vickers and Sam Campbell were among the scorers, with good performances by Charlie Albuery in his first game in goal and Ollie Briggs on his debut.

Photo: Tony Allen Photo

: Thom

Gall

Try again Norwich UEA’s Rugby team finished their first week of pre-season training with a comprehensive 101-0 win over Norwich Rugby Club’s third team at Colney Lane on Saturday.

Tries came from Rendell, Baker, Reed, Chanda, Kilby and Abraham.

Women’s rugby kicks off in October, and the touch rugby side are hoping for another successful season.

running come October.

The men’s firsts will aim to consolidate their position in the Midlands 1A BUCS division, the second level of university Lacrosse, after promotion last term.

Their opening competitive fixture sees them travel to Coventry to face Warwick on 10 October in what could already be a seasondefining fixture against another team expected to be scraping for survival. Keep reading Concrete for a full report of that match.

A season of experience in a higher division and the entry that allows them into the national BUCS knockout trophy, will also give the

team hope that they can avenge last year’s Derby Day defeat to Essex on home turf.

UEA have retained the majority of the squad which romped to Midlands 2B victory unbeaten, but have lost a few key men to graduation, not least goalkeepers Chris Irvine and Jordan Read, plus popular club President Andy Bloore. The team have also kept a breadth of attacking options with Sam Campbell and Sean Cullum still available for selection. As is Mitchell Hoverd, who is entering his final year after a summer of coaching the next generation of Rob Pannells in America a l o n g s i d e professional player and key member of Israel’s World Championship team Max Seibald.

Travis Payne (pictured) returns after a year abroad to captain the team and will be at the sharp end of UEA’s attacking threat.

In his first Eagles stint, Payne was selected for the South of England representative team and has kept up his Lacrosse since playing with the Malaysian national side while studying there and enjoying a spell in Amsterdam.

While Payne will undoubtedly be the team’s leading light going forward, another key player could well be Kurts Auza.

The Latvian youth international became a fixture in the team last term and is still only about to start his second year. A good season and a few goals from the physical midfielder could well prove the

difference for UEA. For the first time, UEA will field a second men’s team, in the regional adult Saturday SEMLA league. Captained by Tom Sanders, the aim is to give emerging players and those on the fringes of the first team squad some valuable game time against competitive opposition across the South-East.

“UEA Lacrosse might go into Derby Day in a stronger position than ever”

Their first home match will take place on Saturday 13 October at the far end of Colney Lane, with the club inviting anyone with an interest in finding out more about university Lacrosse to come down and lend the team their support.

UEA’s women team will run two BUCS teams. Last season the firsts secured a respectable midtable position in Midlands 2A while the newly-formed seconds did superbly with a mix of freshers and experienced players to place third in their inaugural season in Midlands 3A. The combined team won Derby Day by a score of 7-3, including players from both sides.

The target for the firsts this season will be to push on and look at the top half of Midlands 2A, plus beat Essex again (which would be some of the squad members’ third successive Derby Day triumph), while the seconds, who also start on the 10th by welcoming Leicester’s second string to Colney Lane, will hope to continue their development of new players and get more positive results like last season.

The firsts, who also start away at Warwick, will be without their star

striker Emily Stoker, who netted a hat-trick against Essex. However, they have been boosted by the return of last season’s President’s Award winner Cat Stallard who has decided to extend her stay in Norwich.

Last year’s Captain and the team’s most exciting creative player, Phoebe Hartz, will also be an important member of the squad. Hartz is an expert at creating opportunities and dictating the pace of games with her mazy runs from midfield and goalscoring instinct.

Derby Day victors Michelle Ward (midfield) and Tabby Reuben (forward) will bring their experience to the roles of seconds’ captain and club captain respectively.

Reuben’s male counterpart in that role is Charlie Albuery, who told Concrete Online about his summer adventures at the Lacrosse World Championships in Israel.

The women will also benefit from the return of several players who studied abroad last term: Alex Sturdy, Fiona Smith (who played college Lacrosse for UCLA) and new firsts captain Georgie Sutton are all back in Norwich and available for selection.

UEA were boosted by freshers who were given competitive minutes in 3A and will look to progress to the firsts this year.

The seconds team is already bearing fruit in that regard, especially in midfield and attack.

Adela Milà-de-Puri could be a key player as the firsts aim for the upper reaches of Midlands 2A. The tenacious midfielder, entering her third year, is a popular member of the club and after a good season in the firsts in 2017-18, was a late addition to the Derby Day squad following an unfortunate injury to Ellie Lynch.

This season is set to be a good one for last season’s UEA Sport Club of the Year runners-up.

Yoga: “this club is about creating community” Rebecca McDonnell Sport Writer

Borne again UEA’s sports clubs have new logos this year, designed by Norwichbased creative agency Borne.

Hoc-key to success UEA’s Hockey teams are back for pre-season. The men played friendlies this week, while the women’s seconds got a great result, winning away against Harleston Magpies’ fourth team.

The Yoga Club is one of UEA’s largest sport clubs with an annual intake of over 200 members.

Yoga is a non-competitive sport; a welcoming community of individuals. All genders, all levels, and all abilities are welcome.

No experience is necessary with the wide variety of classes catering to all levels.

They are an inclusive club which offers 12 sessions a week in a variety of yoga styles, from vinyasa flows to Sivananda, all taught by experienced and qualified yoga teachers.

The committee itself is a very welcoming group who are a wide variety of levels from beginner to qualified yoga teacher.

Last year was a very successful year for the club as they had their highest intake of members ever.

They also increased their social media presence and had some very successful and well-attended socials, both alcoholic and nonalcoholic.

They organised an aerial-yoga session for a group social, which involved a dynamic yoga flow with the support of a yoga hammock for that weightless, upside-down, deep stretch.

Other social events include morning yoga and brunch, and the annual surf and yoga weekend trip, which is always a big hit.

Club President, Berce Serzer, says this year they aim “to get more and more people from all sports, societies, and interests doing and experiencing yoga, to make our club as inclusive as possible and to be a

strong community this year”.

They also plan to do more aerial and acro-yoga socials and create more opportunities to work with students during high stress periods of exams and deadlines; working with other sports clubs and societies during UEA’s mental health and wellbeing campaign.

For this club, everything is about keeping fit, moving mindfully, and creating community.

UEA Yoga Club can easily be contacted through Facebook, Instagram and the club email, ueayogaclub@gmail.

Photo: Madeleine Bonella

24

22nd September 2018

Sport

UEA Football frustrated by Easton

Photo: Tony Allen

Tony Allen Sport Editor

UEA’s footballers were frustrated by a strong Easton FC at Colney Lane in their fourth fixture of the season in the local Anglian Combination Division 1.

The visitors, one of the league’s early pace-setters, were looking for a reaction after a 6-1 League Cup defeat the previous week while UEA, who won 2-0 at Blofield to progress to the next round, had been averaging over two goals scored per game.

After a minute of silence observed in honour of Anglian Combination referee, Steve Boddy, who passed away last week, the first half was an even affair.

UEA looked lively down both flanks, using their pacy widemen to fashion attacks from the back, although there were a few gilt-edged chances created for UEA’s forwards.

UEA’s Luke Young was a constant threat with several marauding runs.

Their defence managed to play the offside trap well against the Easton College-based visitors, with UEA’s high defensive line restricting them mostly to shots from range.

The visiting goalkeeper picked up an injury and, after half an hour,

he had to be substituted.

In a quirk of local football, owing to the lack of available away players, he was replaced by his manager Chris Brownbridge, who also happened to be the previous No1 before taking the hotseat and guiding his side to Division 2 promotion last term.

UEA then failed to pounce on a parried free-kick which bounced dangerously but was smothered by Brownbridge.

Both sides had a whiff of goal, with a pair of Easton free-kicks amounting to nothing and the impressive Mohammed Hassan trying to lob Brownbridge but only finding the roof of the net.

Soon after UEA had the ball in the net through Young, but it was ruled out for an earlier infringement and the teams went into the break goalless.

As the second half progressed, the Easton team were getting increasingly frustrated with some of the refereeing decisions.

UEA goalkeeper Tom Smith made a stunning double save to keep the scores level, batting away a deflected shot off-balance with his trailing hand before holding on to the second effort. He was then equal to another dangerous strike from range.

However, he was unable to keep

out a header from George Crowe to put Easton ahead, directing a fierce cross just inside the far post and beyond the hapless UEA stopper.

UEA kept pushing for the final half hour, but a pair of corners came and went – UEA hitting the side netting with one – and several free-kicks in promising positions sailed over as the home team were continually frustrated and prevented from getting any clear chances, despite a period of good possession.

“Today wasn’t acceptable. They know that” As they held on, Easton’s defence were outstanding, snuffing out any hint of UEA danger.

Lewis Wardell was immense, using his physicality and intercepting a number of UEA through balls.

Despite their relatively young average age, Easton are a team full of experienced local footballers, and they started to get under UEA’s skins.

Any hope of a comeback was effectively extinguished when the hosts had a man sent off for an altercation with an Easton player – a silly and completely avoidable loss of discipline which saw a headbutt and push.

In local football, a young, skilful team like UEA cannot be affected by the gamesmanship and niggles from stronger, more physical and experienced players.

On this occasion they were, giving newly-appointed Head of Football Paul Neary food for thought.

The team travel to Manchester this week to train with coaches from United and play against the Carrington scholars.

Neary is still working on putting his mark on the squad and is keen to introduce more strength and conditioning training to get the most out of his young charges. He said: “The more professional an environment you can make it, the better it’s going to be for the lads.”

Neary told Concrete: “Today wasn’t acceptable and it won’t happen again. They know that.”

After the match, continued Neary, the team discussed “Negotiables and non-negotiables.

Expectation, mindset, teamwork.

“We need to talk about in-game management, how we move the

ball about in possession, what we do in transition. We need to not get involved in any mind activities from the opposition side and concentrate on what we’re doing, not get distracted.

“If you go 1-0 down, it’s always going to happen in football, it’s about how you react to that, you look for positive reactions. That was a game where you need your leaders to stand forward. You find out who your leaders are.

“It’s a work ethic you need to have. Play with intensity and quality, and you’ve got to have work-rate.

If the work rate’s not there you’re going to struggle.

“We had a couple of free-kicks that we could have tested the goalkeeper with, especially as a reserve when he came on – I don’t think we tested him at all.

“Whatever we’ve learnt up in Manchester, I want to emulate that here. The ethos, the values, the never-giving-up attitude. Hopefully [soon] you’ll see a more fluid team play, a more attacking, creative side, fearless of making a mistake.”

Meanwhile, the reserves took their first step towards a Carrow Road final with a 9-1 win away at Bohemians in their first Norfolk Junior Cup match of the season, with Jody Scowcroft netting four goals in Great Yarmouth.