Concrete 377

Est. 1992 The official student newspaper of the University of East Anglia | Striving For Truth | Issue 377 | 13 October 2020

Is the EU ignoring human rights abuses of migrants in Libya?

pgs. 6-7

An interview The hidden with Em grandeur of northern Anderson Iceland

pgs. 12-13

pg. 21

UEA u-turns after trying to charge selfisolating students £18 per day for food Matt Branston Deputy Editor

UEA have changed the price of the meal plan for self-isolating students from £18 a day to £12 a day after intense backlash.

Initially, Campus Kitchen had set up a plan to supply students with food for £252 for 14 days of isolation.

Since then, the plan has been reduced to £168. Further criticism came from the only hot meal option having to be reheated.

A second-year Law student stated: “I think when it was initially £252 for first years, it was outrageous. If [first-years] have to live in isolation, when they’re already missing out on the enjoyment of being freshers, they’re now taking even more enjoyment out. They had this idealised view of being university students, and now it’s being ruined by not just coronavirus but by teaching and now money issues”.

A third-year PPL student said: “it’s ridiculous that students are being charged this much, especially first year students who are already being charged extortionate rent, I personally offered to go and buy groceries for those self-isolating.”

A third-year Maths student echoed these thoughts with: “quite frankly, I think it’s ridiculous. They want people to stay isolated and protect the student population, but it’s financially impossible.”

At Bristol University, students are supplied with a seven-day emergency box free of charge, as well as cleaning supplies and access to a laundry service if necessary.

A Bristol University graduate said: “it’s nice the university is supporting its students and it is good encouragement to ensure students actually self-isolate.”

At Leeds University, students

can request an emergency food box for £15, containing a loaf of bread, butter, eggs, bananas, clementines, UHT Milk, porridge sachets, cereal, instant soup sachets, rice, beans, tuna, tomatoes, pasta, biscuits, chocolate creams, and lucosade.

Additional frozen meals can also be purchased for £10.

A UEA spokesperson stated: “Students are being given assistance to self-isolate and we will continue to review our support to

those students, and that includes the cost of the on-campus food delivery service.

“We have changed the charge to £12 a day for the delivery of three meals – breakfast, lunch and dinner, which equates to £84 a week or £168 for a fortnight. Meals are provided direct to the student household, rather than the block and the typical menu would include breakfast, lunch and dinner.

“Breakfast includes cereal,

morning pastry, fruit salad, yoghurt and fruit juice; Lunch choice of salads or sandwiches, crisps, homebaked cake, fresh fruit, bottled drinks and Dinner – a choice of two main courses in labelled containers to be prepared and reheated in student kitchens, dessert, fresh fruit, soft drinks.

“The food delivery option from on-campus catering services is one choice for students who are in selfcatered flats and we will continue to

review the package we offer.

"We will be refunding the students who have already paid.”

An NUS survey conducted in early September reported serious financial issues for many students.

One in five students reported a “major impact” on their finances.

Half of all students stated the income of someone who financially supports them had also been impacted. 8% of students also stated they had to take out bank loans.

13th October 2020

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Editorial

Campus may be dead, but Concrete isn't!

A lot went on this week, but a bear beats a gorilla Matt Branston Deputy Editor

Photo: Concrete/Harry Chapman

Sam Hewitson Editor-in-Chief

Since my last editorial my Masters has properly started and students have slowly but surely crept back onto campus for another year, albeit a very different year. Campus is very quiet right now, isn’t it?

I’m really enjoying my Masters so far, and balancing that with Concrete has been quite the challenge, but I am surviving so far. I am determined to make the most out of my final year at UEA (although I was determined last year was my final year and here we are) and Concrete is really helping me do that.

I have also taken on three Livewire shows this year! Joining Livewire last year was one of the best decisions I made and I am glad to be back. I am hosting a breakfast show on Tuesdays and a Specialist show with my housemate on Wednesdays, so keep an ear out for those.

More importantly, however, at

least as far as these editorials are concerned, is the long-awaited return of ‘A Week in Concrete’! Last year we received the BBC Radio 4 Student Journalism Award for ‘Best Student Programme’ which was an amazing achievement. Making our triumphant return on Tuesday at 4pm, we will be discussing some of the articles and ideas raised in this issue with our editorial team, and having what will hopefully be some informative and engaging chats about our amazing content.

This week I sat down (virtually) with Em Anderson, this year’s UEA(SU) Welfare Officer about all things coronavirus, mental health, isolation and support for our Interview section. It was a really interesting chat and we were both keen to highlight the support that is currently available to students amid this really difficult time. I cannot stress this enough, but there is a wealth of support out there for anyone who needs it. Please refer to the interview for more information about this support, and thank you again to Em for agreeing to talk to

me about the topics we covered!

Aside from that, I am incredibly impressed with the content this issue. Our Fashion Editor Imogen Carter de Jong wrote a fantastic piece about her personal story with tattoos, which was really thoughtprovoking, and Deputy Editor Will Warnes once again sheds light on human rights issues that are often side-lined (did you know he was nominated for an Amnesty International Award?).

It is also so exciting to see lots of first years and new members picking up content! By the looks of it, we have lots of great new talent joining us which is awesome, and I sincerely hope this continues! Once the first article is out into the world, I promise writing will become addictive. There really is nothing like seeing your name in print.

So, that is it from me for this issue. Thank you all for reading this issue (and my editorial), and as per usual, we are always open to any UEA students who want to join us and start writing! Stay safe everyone!

Continue as we mean to go on William Warnes Deputy Editor

With everyone settled back into university life, it’s clear to see this year will be one like no other on campus. The predominant use of interactive video seminars, breakout groups, and recorded lectures are proving controversial at best.

Though times are tough, I hope

everyone is beginning to accustom to such unforeseen circumstances.

From a personal point of view, it’s a special issue. I was provided a platform to exhibit the rigorous research I had conducted into an Amnesty International report detailing horrific human rights abuses in Libya. It’s an interesting piece and one I am particularly proud of.

The issue is complete with exciting stories from front to back.

In such troubling times, publications like ours have never been so crucial.

Both the Concrete and Venue teams have worked tirelessly to ensure it’s the best it can possibly be. If last issue laid the groundwork for the rest of the year, this one is a shining example of continuing as we mean to go on.

I really can't express how this week has been. Well, I can. I'm an incredible writer. But to go into it would take some time.

I feel like no one really cares about me talking about how great the team was, or how well they did all things considered, so instead we'll focus on something which has dominated debate in the Media Centre this week: who wins in a fight, a Gorilla or a Bear?

Turns out a lot of people I know (and who work for Concrete) think a gorilla would win. These people are blatantly incorrect and often proud of their stupidity. A gorilla over a bear? RIDICULOUS. Bears are literally twice the size of gorillas. That's vital in a fight.

It's why Shaquille O'Neal would beat Conor McGregor in a fight.

But that's not even the situation!

Gorillas are mainly herbivores or eat ants and termites. PATHETIC. Bears hunt. They actually kill animals to keep alive. That's natural killing ability gorillas are too weak to have. Bears are born killers, they have to fight for their lives every day of the gosh darn week.

It's literally undeniable. I don't understand the mentality of a person who thinks a gorilla would win. A bear has 6 inch claws, they look like the knife from Crocodile Dundee. They have giant maws.

They can fight Siberian Tigers and take down Elk. They have the reflexes to snatch salmon which swim at 36 feet per second.

I know you've watched Rise of the Planet of the Apes and think they're some smart creatures who can use an M16 and take down an army, but they can't. Gorillas get hunted by leopards. LEOPARDS. A bear can get shot and walk it off. I can't believe there are people in the world like this. People who vote Tory, people who think 5G caused COVID, and people who think a gorilla can beat a bear. All idiots.

concrete-online.co.uk

ConcreteUEA ConcreteUEA Front page photo: Concrete / Matt Branston Cut outs: Wikimedia Commons, UEA(SU), Sam Hewitson

The University of East Anglia’s Official Student Newspaper since 1992 Tuesday 13th October 2020 Issue 377 Union House University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ 01603 593466 www.concrete-online.co.uk

Editor-in-Chief Sam Hewitson concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk Deputy Editors Matt Branston & William Warnes concrete.deputy@uea.ac.uk Online Editors James Gell & Henry Webb concrete.online@uea.ac.uk News Samuel Woolford Senior Reporter: Jamie Hose concrete.news@uea.ac.uk Global Marco Rizzo Senior Writer: Henry Webb concrete.global@uea.ac.uk Features Samuel Gordon-Webb Senior Writer: Freyja Elwood concrete.features@uea.ac.uk Comment Dolly Carter concrete.comment@uea.ac.uk Science Olivia Johnson concrete.science@uea.ac.uk Travel & Lifestyle Erica Thajeb concrete.travel@uea.ac.uk Sport Luke Saward Senior Writer: Callum McWilliams concrete.sport@uea.ac.uk Chief Copy-Editors Sophie Rose-Land & Alex Viney concrete.copy@uea.ac.uk Social Media Lauren Bramwell & Eleanor Holmes Lead Photographer Harry Chapman

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, Sam Hewitson 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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13th October 2020

concrete-online.co.uk/news/ | @ConcreteUEA

Coronavirus in Norfolk: How the region compares to the rest of the UK

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Jamie Hose

Senior News Reporter

The government confirmed 12,872 new cases of coronavirus over the weekend, while scientists and health officials issued warnings that a vaccine will not be a magic solution to the pandemic.

An analysis drawn from various public health bodies (including ONS, NRS and NISRA) by the BBC shows an additional 16 cases developed in Norwich over the week from 23-29 September. The figure claims that, as of 02 October, Norwich has seen a total of 431 cases of coronavirus with 24 COVID-related deaths attributed to the city.

But a report from the Norwich Evening Standard offers much higher figures. On 01 October, it details the first patient death from coronavirus in the Norfolk and

Norwich University Hospital for six weeks. The article writes this brings the total number of coronavirusrelated deaths in the hospital’s wards up to 125.

The contrast in figures is not unique to the local level. Three different findings have been put forward as the total number of COVID-related deaths in the UK (This is due to there being three different ways of measuring the number of COVID-19 related deaths).

In August a government review into how coronavirus deaths were documented led to a system whereby only deaths within a 28day period after receiving a positive test were counted.

This puts the overall death toll at 42,317. The second method includes all instances where coronavirus is mentioned on the death certificate, even if the person had not been tested for coronavirus. This method

“it is “highly likely” the epidemic is spreading at an exponential rate” puts the overall death toll at 57,114.

The third method is a record of the total number of excess deaths – it tallies up how many more people are dying than would usually be expected for this time of year.

This method puts the total number of coronavirus deaths at 64, 878.

COVID-19 has returned to UEA as well.

On 29 October it was announced that two UEA students had received positive tests. One of the students’

lives in university halls, the other lives off campus. The university announced that both of their respective houses had been told to self-isolate and that they were working with NHS England and local health officials to track down anyone that might have been in close contact with the students.

Country-wide cases increased by around 7,000 a day during the week of 01 October. Although statistics from the ONS suggest the rate of increase is slower than in previous weeks, the government advisory body Sage says it is “highly likely” the epidemic is spreading at an exponential rate. This means the virus is accelerating in the speed at which it spreads.

At the same time, a report from scientists and researchers brought together by the Royal Society has looked at dispelling the myths around what a vaccine could achieve and the amount of time it could take.

While the government’s scientific advisors remain optimistic that some people might get a working vaccine by the end of this year, rolling it out to begin mass vaccinations in early 2021, the report urges for a “realistic” view.

Estimates in the report say it could take up to a year after the vaccine becomes available to achieve widespread vaccination. Concerns over the required amount of raw materials, such as glass for vials, and refrigerator space have also been raised, with some vaccines needing to be stored at -80C. Currently, there are 200 experimental vaccines in production.

Many questions surrounding vaccinations also remain unanswered, such as: whether boosters will be required, how the vaccine will work with aged or weaker immune systems, and whether the government will make it a mandatory requirement.

EU pursues legal action against UK government Aislinn Wright News Reporter

EU Pursues Legal Action Against the UK Government for breaching the Terms of the Brexit Agreement The EU will formally begin the process of legal action against the UK government following last month’s controversial announcement that the UK will pursue new legislation

in breach of parts of the Brexit withdrawal agreement signed last year. The European Commission Chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a short address on Thursday that the EU has sent a ‘letter of formal notice to the UK government’ which begins the EUs ‘infringement proceedings.’

Von der Leyen went on to say the ‘draft bill is by its very nature a breach of the obligation of good

faith laid down in the withdrawal agreement.’ The UK government has one month to respond to the letter. This comes following the UK government’s failure to meet a deadline of the end of September which the EU set out in response to the UK’s announcement of a new Internal Market Bill last month.

The proposed bill breaches international law by contradicting

the protocol surrounding Northern Ireland which was agreed to during last year’s Brexit negotiations.

The Northern Ireland protocol includes Northern Ireland continuing to follow EU trading regulations in order to avoid the creation of a highly controversial hard border in Ireland.

The Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis has previously

admitted that the new bill does break international law in a ‘very specific and limited way.’

The UK government continues to insist the new bill is to ‘create a legal safety net to protect the integrity of the UK’s internal market.’ The controversial bill is now being debated in the house of Lords following the approval of UK lawmakers on the 6 September.

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13th October 2020

News Damning report finds a culture of sexual assault and bullying in East of England Ambulance Service

UEA alumnus wins Nobel Prize for discovery of Hepatitis C virus Roo Pitt

News Reporter

The 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology for Medicine has been awarded to UEA Alumnus, Michael Houghton, who shares the prize with Harvey J. Alter and Charles M. Rice for their discovery of the Hepatitis C virus.

The announcement was made earlier today by Professor Thomas Perlmann, Secretary-General for the Nobel Assembly and the

“We are immensely proud to see one of our graduates go on to win the Nobel Prize”

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Samuel Woolford News Editor

A recent report into East Anglia Ambulance Service Trust (EAAST) has found that the trust has ‘inadequate leadership’ and that this leadership ‘fostered a culture abuse’.

In the wake of thirteen allegations of sexual misconduct including predatory behaviour by staff, the regulator Care Quality Commission (CQC) released findings relating to the management of the EAAST.

Regulators said that “The trust did not have effective safeguarding procedures to prevent the abuse of service users and staff in relation to criminal allegations made against staff.”

Inspectors found that a ‘culture of bullying was normalised’ and leadership wholly inadequate with staff being unsure of where to turn.

The report also found that managers and staff ‘did not consistently promote a positive culture that supported and valued

staff’ Continued levels of bullying, harrassment and discrimination and the organisation had failed to take adequate action to reduce this.

The report also found that there was not a strong enough emphasis on ‘health and wellbeing of staff’ and the style of leadership amongst the executive did not demonstrate an open and empowering culture leading in some cases to members of the leadership team having a defensive and combative approach to investigators.

Following the report the trust was placed under special measures by the CQC. The Eastern Daily Press reported recently that staff members were made aware of allegations of sexual misconduct several months before the report was published.

Chief executive of the East England Ambulance Service Trust Dorothy Hosein committed to solving the problems within the ‘troubled’ organisation upon her takeover in 2018.

Norfolk and Suffolk Mental Health remove 300 young people from waiting list Jamie Hose

Senior News Reporter

A regional mental health trust has admitted the removal of more than 300 young people from its waiting list was a deliberate decision and not due to “human error.”

The Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust (NSFT) sent out the letter in May informing people their appointments had been cancelled and that their referrals had been closed because of coronavirus.

“Our service is not able to support everybody in the way that it used to,” the letter read. The service,

already nicknamed the worstperforming mental health trust in the country, offered recipients a phone line to call in order to get advice instead.

The NSFT admitted shortly afterwards that it should never have sent out the letter.

In September, the trust was taken to task by the county council’s health scrutiny committee, a body of elected councillors entrusted with holding mental health services to account. Brenda Jones, a Labour Party councillor, asked: “On the accidental discharge of young people – surely the mistake wasn’t just a clerical error but came from senior leadership?”

Speaking on behalf of the trust,

Dr Sarah Maxwell, clinical director of children and young people’s services, replied: “It wasn’t a straightforward clerical error. It was part of a decision based on what we were having to plan for in terms of the pandemic.

“At the outset of the pandemic, we knew we had a lot of young people on our services. We were expecting to lose 50% of our staff due to being unwell or being redeployed. We were acutely aware we were going to have a lot of young people with nothing offered to them.” Criticisms were also raised that the incident was connected to an inspection of the trust’s centre for young people at 80 St Stephens Road, Norwich. The Care Quality Commission (CQC)

slammed the facility and the trust, citing “confusing” and “ineffective” waiting lists.

“Staff admitted they had significant concerns that they could not manage caseloads safely and that patients were not always being seen according to their need or risk,” inspectors said.

Some recipients of the letter accused the NSFT of using coronavirus as an excuse to cut down on waiting lists following a devastating review. The NSFT denied this claim.

Dr Dan Dalton, chief medical officer, said: “This clearly was something where we got it wrong.

I’m absolutely confident it was done for the right reasons.”

Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine. Houghton, who graduated from UEA with a degree in biological sciences in 1972, went on to complete his PhD in biochemistry at Kings College London.

In 1982 he moved to the Chiron Corporation in California, it was here that he discovered Hepatitis C. Houghton now resides at the University of Alberta and heads up the Li Ka Shing Applied Virology Institute in Edmonton. In 2019, Houghton received an honorary degree from UEA. Vice-Chancellor Professor David Richardson said: “We are immensely proud to see one of our graduates go on to win the Nobel Prize.

Professor Houghton demonstrates all that can be achieved in a scientific career and serves as a great example for all the students at the university today.

I was delighted to welcome Professor Houghton back to UEA in 2019 to receive an honorary Doctorate in recognition of his contributions to science and global health.”

Following the announcement

by Professor Perlmann, Gunilla Karlsson Hedestam also from the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine said: “The Nobel Laureates’ discovery of Hepatitis C virus is a landmark achievement in the ongoing battle against viral diseases.

Thanks to their discovery, highly sensitive blood tests for the virus are now available and these have essentially eliminated posttransfusion hepatitis in many parts of the world, greatly improving global health.”

This award is the first of the 6 announcements of Nobel Laureates expected between today and the 12 October 2020.

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13th October 2020

CELEBRATING EXCELLENCE 1ST - 31ST OCTOBER UEA.SU/BLACKHISTORYMONTH

Global investigates

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13th October 2020

Deputy Editor William Warnes crisis: is the EU ignoring human A shocking report produced by Amnesty International has revealed brutal human rights abuses against Libyan refugees.

Various interviews conducted by the organisation detail harrowing accounts of rape, torture, unlawful killings, and enforced disappearances.

It is believed European Union policies are partially to blame for the humanitarian emergency.

Libya is in crisis. The country is currently locked in the midst of a brutal civil war, with thousands of refugees hoping to escape the violence and lawlessness gripping an entire nation.

The struggle is primarily a brutal account of civil violence between the UN-backed GNA (Government of National Accord), who occupy the majority of Western Libya, and the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (LNA), who control much of the east.

Since the demise of authoritarian leader Colonel Muammar Gaddafi

in 2011, the country has been a desolate region beset with chaos and rampant human rights abuse.

Amnesty International’s report has exposed further accounts of shocking violence towards refugees attempting to flee a broken state.

The damning report has found much of the abuse is being permitted by EU member states who are attempting to prevent an irregular influx of migrants in

“It is believed European Union policies are partially to blame” Europe.

It is believed training, speedboats, and other assistance has been provided to the GNA’s

LCG (Libyan Coast Guard) and GACS (General Administration for Coastal Security), by particular EU members to carry out the interception of migrants before their disembarkation in Libya.

The report highlights such support has been provided without any guarantees of respect for migrants’ rights.

The European Union has come under heavy criticism for their implementation of ‘pushback’ policies in certain member states.

Humanitarian organisations have openly condemned such strategies while claiming they violate the rights of legitimate refugees and asylum seekers.

Greece is a country that has faced heavy criticism for the way in which the Athens government is expelling migrants and preventing entry at borders.

These are claims the state has consistently denied despite numerous reports saying otherwise.

Such policies throughout the

Union have led to thousands of migrants being left in limbo, trapped in refugee camps or forced to return to a war-torn homeland.

“The country has been a desolate region beset with chaos and rampant human rights abuse” According to the International Organization for Migration, the LCG disembarked at least 8,435 people in Libya between January and midSeptember of this year.

A significant number were then handed over to the Directorate for Combating Illegal Migration (DCIM) before being placed in centres believed to be housing shocking cruelty.

This includes enforced

disappearances, indefinite and arbitrary detention, torture, and extortion.

The report included an interview with “Dawit”, a refugee who had escaped forced conscription in his country of origin before being captured by a GNA-affiliated mafia in July 2020.

He said: “for 15 days, they beat us with iron rods, they beat us with hoses, they beat us with anything they have. They ask us to pay 6,000 Libyan dinars for each [person], whether an adult or baby”.

“Zahra”, a refugee who escaped forced labour in her home country, reached Libya in 2018 before being detained in the town of Bani Walid.

She said: “I was beaten, prevented from eating and drinking so frequently that I wasn’t able to walk and had problems in my kidney”.

An anonymous migrant who has been in Libya for four years said: “Right now refugees [are] going to cross the sea…

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photos: Wikimedia Commons

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13th October 2020

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

investigates the refugee rights abuses in Libya?

[There is] no evacuation and no resettlement… refugees in Libya are at risk. [We are] between life and death”.

A number of refugees have confirmed reports of death in DCIM detention centres.

July 2020 saw a particularly

“Refugees in Libya are at risk. [We are] between life and death” heinous incident in which three unarmed migrants were shot dead by security forces.

It is believed the armed officers opened fire on a large group of refugees after they attempted to flee detention in the city of al-Khums.

Speaking on the issue, Amnesty International researcher Diana Eltahawy said, instead of being protected, refugees and migrants

“seeking a better life” are “met with a catalogue of appalling human rights abuses…

Despite this, even in 2020 the EU and its member states continue to implement policies trapping tens of thousands of men, women and children in a vicious cycle of abuse”.

Abuse against migrants and refugees outside such detention centres is also commonplace with many facing exploitation from traffickers, armed groupsand militias.

A significant number have detailed reports of employers who refuse to pay wages or provide lower rates than initially promised.

It is believed women and young girls are particularly at risk of exploitation by armed groups, with “Zhara” stating: “The women work as housekeepers, but they often leave work after a few days due to the sexual harassment and rape.

They are afraid of working in Libyan houses”.

A specifically violent incident occurred in May 2020 when 30 refugees and migrants were killed by traffickers.

It is believed the group were

captured whilst attempting to cross the Libyan Desert in search of work.

The traffickers repeatedly tortured their captives while waiting for a ransom shortly before opening fire on their victims.

Bangladesh, the nation from which 24 of the victims originated, cited a survivor when announcing: “They tortured them inhumanely for a ransom.

At some point in their ordeal, the captives killed the main kidnapper.

In retaliation, the militia fired indiscriminately at them”.

Despite the violence, local law enforcement is not an option for migrants and refugees desperately searching for safety.

“Ahmed”, an interviewee in the Amnesty report, claims: “If I walk to

“The traffickers repeatedly tortured their captives”

the [police] station, they tell me to show my passport.

If I do not have a passport, they tell me I am an illegal immigrant and will be taken to a detention centre…

If you go to complain against someone in the police, maybe his cousin or brother is in an armed group and that is why you are afraid for your life and cannot go to the law”.

It is difficult to comprehend such a desperate situation from the comfort of our homes in the UK. However, it is crucial these stories are heard and resonate with those who are prepared to listen.

We are all aware of the desperate plight of migrants and refugees.

Five years ago the world was shocked and outraged by the photographs of three-year-old Alan Kurdi dead on a Turkish beach. The child was found lying face down in the sand after drowning aboard an overcrowded migrant boat in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite this, it appears the world is becoming increasingly ignorant to such an alarming and desperate situation.

“The world is becoming increasingly ignorant to such an alarming and desperate situation” It is shocking to believe the European Union could contribute to such horrific scenes, with numerous states claiming to represent the ‘free world’ operating such vicious pushback systems. The words of those in peril must be heard, whilst those in power must do more to prevent further atrocities. The eyes of the world must now look towards places such as Libya with tearful eyes and a heavy heart.

Anguish and grief grips the many who are simply wanting for a better life, but instead remain helpless and completely at the mercy of a lawless state in a seemingly endless turmoil.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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Global

13th October 2020

Violent clashes have erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan over disputed region

Humanitarian w o r k e r s a c c u s e d of sexual exploitation of DRC women Freyja Elwood Global Writer

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Marco Rizzo Global Editor

Several hundred people, both military and civilian personnel have lost their lives on both sides as a result of the biggest escalation of hostilities in recent years.

The fighting began on the 27th of September and saw the Azeri military clash with Armenian forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia proper. Both sides currently accuse the other of breaking the ceasefire.

The three-decade-long conflict has been relatively quiet since the 1994 ceasefire, with occasional escalations such as the 2016 “FourDay War”. This is the most severe increase of hostilities in years and it re-ignites the century-long question over the sovereignty of the ethnically Armenian region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Civilian settlements have reportedly been the target of artillery fire by both sides. Ganja,

Azerbijan’s second largest city was the subject of shelling by Armenian forces as retaliation for the bombing of Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital, Stepanakert.

The International Red Cross has condemned the “indiscriminate shelling and other alleged unlawful attacks using explosive weaponry in cities, towns and other populated areas”.

Both countries have enacted martial law, with Armenia mobilising its army, imposing curfews, and moving civilians into shelters.

Azeri president Ilham Aliyev

“Indicriminate shelling...on cities, towns and other populated areas”

stated that hostilities would be ceased once Armenia announces its retreat from the territories occupied after the 1992 conflict.

Experts judge that Azerbaijan’s continuation of the war is partially a result of Turkey’s public support for the fellow Turkic nation. Both nations share cultural ties as well as a mutual distrust for the Republic of Armenia.

Armenia, supported by Russia, has stated its willingness to collaborate with International mediators. Currently the three powers of Russia, USA, and France (chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group) have called for an immediate end to the fighting with little effect. Iran has meanwhile offered to act as the mediator for peace talks.

The region of NagornoKarabakh has been a disputed territory between the two nations for decades, going back to the early 20th century and incentivised by Joseph Stalin’s decision to make the region an autonomous administrative zone under Azerbaijan.

“no official peace treaty was ever signed” Conflict over the region flared up again in 1988 when the two then-Soviet Republics clashed following demands by Armenians in Azerbaijan to transfer control of the area to the Armenian SSR. A period of guerrilla clashes ensued before the all-out war in 1992. While the two countries agreed to a ceasefire in 1994, relations have always been difficult as no official peace treaty was ever signed.

The breakaway region has been de-facto independent from Baku as the Republic of Artsakh since the end of hostilities in 1994. Despite this, no UN members currently recognise it as a sovereign nation.

Thousands of fires spread through Paraguay Lauren Bramwell Global Writer

Thousands of wildfires in South America have caused the Congress of Paraguay to declare a national emergency.

There have been over 5,000 individual wildfires so far, with further spread predicted in the following days and weeks. The fires have been said to be fuelled by record high temperatures, strong winds and the drought across South America – specifically in the Chaco region which contains many dry forests. Temperatures are beating

records at 45.5C, and Paraguay’s Directorate of Meteorology expects no rainfall until October 7.

Paraguay is relying mainly on citizen donations and therefore the fire-services are significantly struggling to cope with the amount and severity of the fires. Thick smoke can be seen even from Asuncion, the country’s capital.

Joaquin Roa, the chief of the National Emergency Secretariat, said “all the fires that have been generated are controlled but we have not won the battle, we cannot lower our guard”.

He also stated that the Chaco

area was a “breeding ground” for wildfires due to the record

“We are breathing smoke“ temperatures.

The bill, that was passed October 1, followed the government’s

announcement stating they were overwhelmed by the situation.

The national emergency bill has been put in place for ninety days and further resources have been set up to help aid the fire-services.

According to Guillermo Achucarro, a climate police researcher at Base-IS research centre in Asuncion, these fires are a direct result of Paraguay’s (and the global) environment: “Now, we’re literally tasting the environmental crisis: we’re breathing smoke.”

“The same thing happens every year, and every year it’s as if it were a surprise,” Achucarro said.

Humanitarian workers in the DRC accused of sexual exploitation On the 29th of September, the UN World Health Organization reported that it was investigating claims of sexual exploitation and abuse against WHO staff in the context of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Fifty-one women have now come forward regarding the claims, with most cases occurring in Beni, the city at the centre of the country’s worst Ebola outbreak from June 2018-present.

The claims made by the women were investigated by two journalists from The New Humanitarian news agency and the Thomas Reuters Foundation respectively. Alongside the WHO, claims have been made against Congo’s ministry of health, World Vision, UNICEF, ALIMA, Oxfam, the UN’S IOM agency & MSF. Out of 22 allegations reported, against ALIMA, IMC, WFP, UNICEF and REMED – so far only 4 agencies are under investigation.

The women say the exploitation began when they were approached at locations where successful job applicant lists were posted in public spaces – hospitals, supermarkets, job centres, and from there they would be asked to work as cleaners, cooks and community outreach providers for charity staff with the possibility of earning twice the national monthly salary.

From their position of subservience, the women claim sex was either propositioned to them in exchange for promotion/ employment or they were forced into sexual intercourse with workers, and fired if they refused.

The CARE International group, a gender-issues research group, found through discussions with hundreds of Congolese citizens that sexual exploitation by charity workers during the Ebola outbreak was a “consistent finding”.

The WHO responded saying it was “outraged” at the claims, promising a “robust investigation” and has re-emphasised it has a “zero-tolerance policy with regard to sexual exploitation and abuse”.

However, whilst this scandal will disappear with the news cycle, it will take a lot longer for the communities in the Democractic Republic of Congo to heal from both a catastrophic epidemic and a plague of sexual abuse.

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concrete-online.co.uk/global/ | @ConcreteUEA

Belgium forms a government after 16-month deadlock Ted Tuthill-Jones Global Writer

The new Belgian government, led

by Alexander De Croo of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats, or Open VLD, has taken the oath of office at the royal palace in Brussels, 494 days after the latest federal elections.

The government has been formed as a coalition of seven parties, with the new Council of Ministers including a Deputy Prime Minister from each party, as well as Prime Minister De Croo.

The coalition comprises the centre-right Open VLD, Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V) and Reformist Movement (MR) parties, the centre-left Socialist Party (PS) and Socialist Party Differently (sp.a) as well as the left-leaning environmentalist parties Groen and Ecolo.

Parties not represented in May 2019, began the nearly 500 the new government include the days of negotiations from which the nationalist New Flemish Alliance current government has emerged. party, which got the largest share of Since the elections Belgium has the vote in 2019 with 16%. Similarly, been under the stewardship of a the far-right Vlaams Belang party, caretaker government led first by which received 12% of votes cast, is also not represented.

The formation of this new g o v e r n m e n t marks the end of a long period of political uncertainty in Belgium, which began in December 2018 with the collapse of Charles Michel’s Government over his decision to support the UN Migration Pact.

The resulting election, which took Photo: Wikimedia Commons place on the 26th

Former Italian minister on trial over controversial policy on migrant arrival Marco Rizzo Global Editor

Matteo Salvini has gone on trial for kidnapping charges over the controversial policies during his ministerial days which denied migrant rescue boats the right to dock on Italian shores.

Formerly the Interior Minister, the right-wing leader of the League Party has been called by Sicilian courts in Catania to answer accusations of abuse of power and kidnapping over the 2019 Gregoretti Incident.

The event saw the coastal guard boat Bruno Gregoretti being denied access to the port on the

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Italian island of Lampedusa. Salvini had stated that the migrants would not be allowed out of the boat until other European countries agreed to welcome them.

The boat had aboard around 140 migrants picked up while trying to cross the Mediterranean from Libya, all of which were forced to spend six days on the vessel before the dire sanitary conditions which developed aboard forced authorities to allow them to disembark.

This was the result of his decision early in his government career in 2018 to declare every Italian port closed to any ship that had been involved in the rescue of migrants fleeing north Africa.

Salvini stated that he “…will plead guilty to defending Italy and the Italians”.

His defence rests in the argument that he was not alone in the decision to essentially hold the migrants captive, insisting the choice was one agreed collectively by the government.

Other farright political figures in Italy have stated their support for Salvini including former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, himself at the centre of multiple legal actions.

Recent developments have shown that the current Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has been called to testify in the trial.

Charles Michel and later by Sophie Wilmés, who led Belgium through six months of the COVID-19 crisis and has taken the role of Foreign Minister in the new government.

The final round of negotiations lasted almost 24 hours and were led by De Croo and socialist Paul Magnette.

T h e coalition found agreement on a common budget which includes €3.3 billion for new policies as well as €1 billion for investments and a further €1 billion for temporary measures.

A COVID-19 commissioner will also be appointed to manage the health crisis in Belgium, which has one of the world’s highest per capita death rates and a death toll that recently passed 10,000.

Additionally, two new government ministers will be appointed to begin preparations for potential state and governmental reform after 2024, which could bring about significant changes to how Belgium is run and where powers lie.

Speaking at a press conference on the 30th September De Croo said that “what seemed impossible, what took so long, too long to happen, is a fact: the federal government is formed”.

De Croo also paid tribute to his socialist co-formateur Paul Magnette, who expressed his “deep relief” at the end of “a too deep crisis which damaged the confidence of our citizens”.

Kyrgyzstan opposition protesters storm parliament over alleged rigged elections Marco Rizzo Global Editor

Protesters in Kyrgyzstan have reportedly seized power in the Central Asian republic following the storming of parliament building.

This comes after days of protests over election irregularities.

All of the main opposition parties had seemingly failed to reach the threshold of votes necessary to gain seats in parliament. Additionally, three of the four parties allowed into government are alleged to

“Protests started on Monday 5th and quickly across the whole country”

have substantial ties to the current president President Sooronbai Jeenbekov.

Protests started on Monday 5th and quickly spread across the whole country before turning violent. By Tuesday there were hundreds of injured protesters and one death.

Several political prisoners were freed from jail, including former president Almazbek Atambayev and Sadyr Japarov, the man which would be appointed as acting prime-minister.

Reports from the BBC state that the opposition has control over the armed forces.

President Jeenbenkov had reportedly fled his offices early on Tuesday morning and has since stated his conviction that the opposition has acted illegally to seize control of government.

He has also stated his desire to annul the election results and to leave office in favour of “strong leaders”. In the same video message,

“Kyrgyzstan has always displayed a free and open democracy” he ordered the armed forces to not open fire on protesters.

While the previous two presidents have also been removed by protests and public pressure, Kyrgyzstan has always displayed a free and open democracy - at least in comparison to its former soviet republic neighbours.

Currently the opposition parties claim to have formed a council responsible for the formation of a new government, however reports show that the different parties are already in conflict.

EU imposes sanctions on Belarussian officials over election irregularities Henry Webb

Senior Global Writer

Following August’s controversial presidential election result, the EU has imposed sanctions on a number of Belarussian officials.

The election, which saw a disputed victory for incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko, has seen numerous allegations of election fraud. The EU’s sanctions affect 40 officials, for “misconduct of the electoral process”. Sanctions include a travel ban within EU member countries and an asset freeze which will make funds from EU companies and citizens unavailable to the listed individuals.

Lukashenko is notably absent from

the EU’s list but is subject to separate sanctions by the UK and Canada.

The officials were also accused of “repression and intimidation” against the media, peaceful protestors, and opposition politicians.

An EU source explained that: “The EU sanctions regime is based on specific reasons and legal grounds — in the case of Belarus it’s for breaches of rights of the population, disrespect for citizens’ fundamental freedoms and for election fraud,” Germany’s chancellor, Angela Merkel, supported the sanctions, saying “The European Union is now taking action against those who are opposing democratic movements.”

Charles Michel, EU Council president, said that the EU believes “the people of Belarus have the right to determine their own future.”

Belarus has since imposed its own sanctions in retaliation, though the list of EU officials affected has not been published. In a statement, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said “Belarus is always in words and in fact against confrontation. We are for dialogue and understanding.

But as a sovereign state, we are also determined, albeit not without regret, to respond to unfriendly actions in order to naturally protect our national interests.” They have accused the EU of “striving towards the deterioration of relations with us.”

Features

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13th October 2020

I lost my best friend over a text message Hamilton Brown Features Writer

COVID-19 has put a magnifying glass over a lot of relationships during the summer lockdown; people were finding new information about people every day because they had no workplace, school or social activity to depart to in the daily rhythm of life.

Social distancing has allowed me to develop a much stronger appreciation of my best friends.

Except for one.

Unfortunately I lost a friendship, someone I respected more than

“Social distancing has allowed me to develop a much stronger appreciation of my best friends” anyone else; my best friend from secondary school We were as thick as thieves in school, FaceTiming most nights even though we had spent six hours together at school. Even until two in the morning some nights, we’d

laugh and joke about everything and anything.

But what I didn’t realise was it was a routine; something which – because she was a friend and there was a great sense of camaraderie – I completely shrugged off.

Maybe she would call and I’d have to rush up to my room from my family; but i considered her a friend if not a part of my family.

We continued this lifestyle throughout school and university, and all was going fine. Then ‘lockdown’ struck.

In the first few months, I felt completely lethargic and didn’t desire to talk to anyone. I sat in my room, watched TV and ate poorly.

And she kept FaceTiming, as she had done all those years before.

But I began to tire of my three hour conversations of nothing; I had no energy to laugh or engage even with the people closest to me.

So I avoided her calls, didn’t tell her why, or made up some excuse.

And so naturally there arrived a boiling point, where things had to be said.

I picked up the phone one evening in April and she questioned me about why I had been so ‘elusive’.

I could have told her any excuse, but I thought to myself, what is friendship if it isn’t based in truth?

In my head, I rehearsed a Shakespearian style monologue.

But in reality what I said to her was: ‘I don’t think we should talk every day. I’ve been thinking about it for a while and there have been times you’d call and I’d scurry away from my family to talk to you.’

She looked at me, a cold visage moving over her face. I could see in that very moment a clear shift in her view towards me.

She’d lost friends in the past, and she probably thought I would never leave her. And yet there I was telling her I didn’t want to talk to her.

In my eyes, I was just telling her how I was feeling, I felt our relationship of seven years would survive this turbulence, but soon she stopped texting me like before, only replying with single words.

When questioned, she accused me of only wanting a ‘part-time friendship’ where she was there to entertain me, which was abhorrently untrue.

In the past, I loved and respected her, but the more I thought about it, the more my view had changed.

It became clear we were no longer friends, and it stung like a hornet.

I spent many sleepless nights going over what had happened and wishing I could change it.

But I had to see the reality and progress with my life, fostering the friendships I still have.

There are still times now when I think of her and wonder how she is.

But I’m glad we are no longer friends.

In hindsight, I was clinging on to the past, to secondary school and someone I no longer am.

I cut a toxic relationship and I am better off for it.

I don’t particularly miss her but I miss what I have lost, a close friend, someone to share memories and overcome challenges with.

Friendships aren’t always easy, and only true friends understand.

Be honest.

Photo: Pixabay

Socialising made possible in the age of COVID Beatrice Montgomery-Christy taster sessions to the bad film Features Writer

I wasn’t the only student arriving for university this year, apprehensive for the year ahead. It looked like socialising - at least in the traditional sense - was dead. Long gone are the days of packed nightclubs and manic r u n n i n g between freshers d r i n k s ; from kayak

society meet-ups, even meet-ups with lecturers and course mates. So then, how do you meet anyone at all and do anything close to socialising in the age of COVID? The easy response is: Don’t. But that would make for a very short article and a dull semester. So, how do we get through this semester, legally?

Well, if you can’t meet many people outside your flat then make the most of what people there are inside it. Needless to say, this semester in terms of new friendships is definitely a case of

quality over quantity. Getting to know your flat mates - not just passing them in the kitchen, but sitting down and chatting about their life, pastimes and future hopes - is incredibly important.

Hanging out with these people, is

“I’ve spent far less on pints than originally expected”

the closest to the traditional form of socialisation many of us crave. The rest is new - or at least different and requires a bit of improvisation.

On the plus side, UEA is now offering projectors to each flat. So we’ve taken a spare bedsheet to use as a screen in the kitchen and watch films most nights. Next time we should probably make popcorn. Yes, bonding in your flat is more intense than previous years, but I reckon I know more about my flatmates compared to previous freshers.

Even better, our relationships have survived beyond first impressions and judgments, surely a positive sign.

But yes, it can seem intense and it does make you feel rather jealous of the previous experiences of last year’s students. But if

being inside makes you feel rotten, then look out of your window. We are lucky: acres of green space that old friends who wanted to be bang in the heart of a buzzy big city, could only dream about. Yes, it seems wet some days, and the wind can be savage so which may put a dampener on your mood. However - and I probably sound like your parents at this point - it’s amazing how much better campus is with a reasonable raincoat. So wrap up warm and dry and go outside to enjoy the views and muddy terrains - they are both things UEA has in abundance. On the bright side, I’ve spent far less on pints than originally expected. So maybe when this is all over, I will actually be able to enjoy a COVID free night out without the guilt. University life is never easy, so let’s make this year count.

“How do we get though this semester, legally?”

Photo: Wikimedia Photo: Wikimedia Commons

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13th October 2020

concrete-online.co.uk/category/features/ | @ConcreteUEA

Sam Gordon Webb: Must I be impartial?

Let’s cut to the chase: impartiality matters a lot. And yet the answer to the question posed above is far from straightforward. In matters of justice and freedom, ‘impartial’ arbiters are indispensable to any functioning democracy - indeed we expect nothing less.

But one’s level of respect for the term often depends on where - not why it exists; must we expect it of everyone? Whilst judicial impartiality remains a prerequisite in a court of law, the story is more tangled in the world of news media.

For the BBC, impartiality stands forefront to everything. But to many others - aptly summarised by the late G.K Chesterton - “a man can no more possess a private religion than he can possess a private sun and moon.”

But a key question exists over the extent to which Chesterton’s own definition of impartiality “indifference which is an elegant name for ignorance” - ignores the fundamental essence of the term itself; its enduring malleability. It is a choice suited to some better than others. More precisely, it is fully possible to make this choice, far

unlike the choice to have a ‘private’ solar system.

Generally valued for its objective and measurable characteristics, impartiality is defined as the equal treatment of opponents and disputants. But for BBC Director General Tim Davie, impartiality is more of a ‘negotiated’, shapeable ideal as opposed to a concrete artefact. In essence, the decision

“In essence, the very decision to act ‘impartially’ is both private and optional.” to act impartially - note the word ‘decision’ here - derives from conversations surrounding the relative importance of certain positions. Hence minority opinion is given as much light as required, but never enough to overshadow majority expression.

When considering the

‘malleability’ of the term, the problem at the BBC has less to do with reneging one’s right to expression - or to have “convictions” as Chesterton put it - and more to do with having extreme faith in the value of impartial news, allowing viewers to make up their own minds on key issues.

‘In my view party political statements are not the right thing to be asking if they are a part of an impartial news organisation,” Mr Davie recently told the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select committee. Not once does the BBC Charter make any bold claims of righteousness, instead specifying its decision to enact ‘due impartially’ - that is to say impartiality ‘adequate or appropriate to the subject and nature of the programme’. Even Mr Davie himself described the career move of an opinionated columnist or partisan campaigner as a “valid choice”, just not as a BBC employee.

In essence, the very decision to act ‘impartially’ is both private and optional. Nonetheless, Mr Davie’s sternness could have a damaging effect on the corporation’s ability to attract and retain key talent.

Upholding impartiality involves renowned and popular presenters toeing the line, and not all do.

Andrew Neil recently left the BBC to join GB News, a recently founded and thoroughly anti establishment news channel modelled around U.S based Fox News. The jury is out over whether or not British viewers have an appetite for more partisan news coverage.

But impartiality has a separate problem: both the left and right have completely different notions of what constitutes ‘impartial” verses media bias, further propagating claims of prejudice from opposing ends of the political spectrum.

Understandably so, significant issues cause significant emotional responses. But anger is unalike passion. Brexit has widened divisions between people on both micro and macro levels, in cities like London and university campuses like UEA’s.

Far from disabling and in the age of fake news, treating rivals and adversaries equally benefits us all.

This explains why impartiality underpins the editorial process at Concrete, engaging with a variety of stories and perspectives to expose genuine truths about today’s world.

Then again, the choice is yours.

Photo: Unsplash

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Photo: Wikimedia

Wear a mask, it’s not much to ask!

Always wear your mask inside university buildings, except in your flat

HANDS FACE SPACE download the NHS app at www.covid19.nhs.uk Photo: Unsplash

Interview

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13th October 2020

Editor-in-Chief Sam Hewitson talks to about COVID-19 and mental health, What would yours and the SU’s main concerns be regarding student mental health right now and what can be done to minimize those concerns?

One of the biggest concerns is the fact that students are confined to their houses and flats. There’s less opportunities for going out and socializing and meeting people in person, particularly if they’re quarantined or self-quarantining or self-isolating.

I guess some of the things that we’re doing to support that is really highlighting our buddy scheme, which I can’t recommend enough.

It’s a really good scheme, which allows first years to pair up with returning students who can be best to answer any questions that they have and help them meet other people.

There’s also lots of online events going on. Clubs and societies have tasters going on at the moment so that’s a really good way to meet people, if only virtually and hopefully be able to meet them in person in the future. There’s been lots of

widening participation events and outreach going on as well for groups such as commuting students and mature students.

So yeah, there are some really good things being organized to get involved with. The events page on the SU website is really the place to look out for those kinds of things.

We’re just trying to make sure that we really listen to student concerns at the moment and voice those to the university because again, it’s really important that those concerns get across and that we can help out with all of those things.

Any advice for looking after mental health? Particularly while studying and also while living through pandemic? Either from your own experiences or other advice floating around?

It’s a difficult time. That phrase gets chopped around a lot at the moment, but it’s true, I suppose.

I think from my perspective, it’s different looking into it versus how it was two or three months in, but from my perspective and from talking to the other offices, some of the things that can be really helpful are making sure you stay in touch with friends a n d family at home, as well as spending time with y o u r

housemates and your flatmates.

I think sometimes it can be easy when things are a bit difficult when you’re feeling a bit isolated to shut yourself off from other people, but doing things like having a meal with your flatmates or going for a walk around the lake, making sure you get some fresh air and exercise. Those are just some small things that you can do every day that might boost your wellbeing a little bit. It’s not the same as you’d like it to be, but I think those kinds of things can help boost your mental health a little bit.

I think also, like I already said about getting involved in clubs and societies, student initiatives, so you really felt like part of a community, because I think that’s something that again is harder at the moment, particularly for new students moving away from home. So I think getting involved in clubs and societies, and also reaching out, whether that’s to us (UEASU), to student services, to your friends, family, when you feel like you need support.

What support is currently available to people who need to self-isolate?

We’re aware that student services are in regular communication with students who are self-isolating, so they should be signposting towards various food delivery options, which includes the SU shop delivery service which she has can access by the Snappy Shopper app.

As far as I’m aware, there’s also an offer of clean bedding if students need that and are having issues if they’re self-isolating.

That’s kind of an

ongoing conversation that we’re having with the university, and I will continue to kind of post information about that on my officer Facebook page. So do keep an eye on it.

Are there any changes to support for those not self-isolating?

“It can be easy ...

I to shut yourself off from other people”

think on the whole services, certainly from the SU perspective, are remaining the same, apart from the fact that everything is moved to online or virtual services.

So for example, for advice you can get access to that through Photo: Concrete/ Roo Pitt

the SU website. From my understanding, working with student services there are some changes to their talking therapies. so that’s now designed to reduce the waiting time, so they should be on a one appointment basis.

So would that just take the form of an online consultation and therapy?

Yeah, certainly from student services it’s video calls services. But, I think in some cases telephone would be an option if that’s the preference for students, and similarly with email.

UEA was recently criticised for the price of the Campus Kitchen food delivery service to those self isolating, which you then addressed via your officer Facebook page.

Although it has recently been amended, what other options would you like to emphasise to those worried?

The SU shop is offering a delivery services service by the app Snappy Shopper. There are of course local food delivery services, but I know

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13th October 2020

concrete-online.co.uk/category/features/ | @ConcreteUEA

UEA(SU) Welfare Officer Em Anderson access to food and available support students a different route into student services.

Students also have their academic advisors who they can talk to virtually and should be in contact with, and then there’s the residential life team, which includes residential life managers and Student Services Residents (SSRs), who together offer 24/7 points of contact for students, so they’re really good first point of contact as well. I should by the time this is in print have a post up on my officer blog about some of the services in a bit more depth. I’ll share that on my officer Facebook page as well when that goes up.

Do you think there’s a risk of student welfare because of restrictions because of a lack of in person interaction through societies, teaching etc.?

that availability with that can, especially at short notice, be hit and miss. So hopefully the SU shop can serve as a good alternative.

But I think it’s again important to highlight that if students are having concerns with that, they can get in touch with me or with the other officers, and with the advice service.

On the recent conversation about the particular campus kitchen food delivery service, we are pleased to see that UEA has reduced the price.

But looking around the sector, there are some other really good examples of how institutions have been supporting self-isolating students, so with things like a few days of free food or with toiletries and so on included in those selfisolation packages, so we’re really keen to work with the university to see what else we can offer to students.

Are there any other specific avenues of support that you haven’t already highlighted that needs to have attention drawn to?

I guess I’ll start by reiterating

It’s definitely a concern that there is a reduced and restricted access to meeting with other people and that is naturally going to have an impact on wellbeing I think. Like I said, it’s important to see if you can get involved in online events, to be spending time with flatmates and Photo: Concrete/ Harry Chapman housemates, to reach out when you’re the advice service because they’re struggling, a really, really good first point of although I do want to contact that if they can’t offer you acknowledge that it the initial support themselves, can be difficult to they can sign post students to the do that. correct services that might help But just to them out. Myself and the other say, we’re here student officers are here to listen as a student to student concern, but some of union if you’re the other means I haven’t talked having a difficult time to signpost to the right support. I guess the fact that if you’re a returning student living with your

returning housemates or living with new students, you are probably experiencing some of the same feelings. So hopefully there’s some good people to talk to you about how you’re feeling even if that doesn’t necessarily get rid of the situation, hopefully it will make you feel a bit safer, more comfortable in it and less alone, definitely.

Do you think it’s still possible to have a rewarding university experience, and how would that be possible?

It is obviously going to be a different student experience than what one would normally expect and hope for. At the moment, we’re in a period of adjustment and it is a learning experience for everyone. But, I think that kind of through involvement with clubs and societies, through engaging with the people that you live with, through really getting involved and engaged with your course, it can be a rewarding experience. Hopefully we as an SU can support that and facilitate that.

Again, listening to student concerns about how we can improve that and make it the best experience possible within the circumstances.

personally to minimise the impact and worries surrounding COVID? I think coming back to the impact of restricted socializing is really a key priority for me, and for some of my colleagues it’s something that we talk about a lot, in terms of the impact that having a reduced social circle has on relationships whatever kind of relationships they may be.

We’ve got some work coming up on loneliness and student isolation, and it’s something that I’m hoping to do some work on in the next month or so, because I know that it’s a big concern. We’re getting more opportunities for continuing to voice your concerns to the university coming up, so I’m. keen to listen to students and talk to the university about how they can help as well as doing what we can to help.

I think keeping up regular communications is a really important thing at the moment.

We’re using our Facebook pages and our blogs, and hopefully moving forward, we’re finding different ways to listen to students and talk to them.

Lastly, is there anything you and your department are doing

Phot

Jame

“We’re always here as a student’s union if you’re having a difficult time” about, include the embedded student services teams within faculties, so that’s including wellbeing advisors and sort of other support that just gives

Photo: UEA(SU)

13th October 2020

14

HOME OF THE WONDERFUL

Spotlight on UEA Burlesque Society We are Burlesque society, and no matter what shape, size, race, sexuality or gender identity you are, we want everyone who joins us to feel included, empowered and sexy! We stand for inclusivity, body confidence and self expression through performance and dance.

If you’re a fan of dance, drag, lip-sync and tease you may well be a fan of burlesque too! We’re here for all ability levels and creating an environment full of positivity

and fun for everyone. We put on several themed shows a year around Halloween, Christmas and Valentines Day to name a few! This year our Freshers Show and Halloween Show will be one event, due to some understandable delays because of COVID. We’ve been working hard to adapt and ensure all our events are COVID safe and that everyone can be socially distanced and protected. Our stage shows are

still going ahead with certain limits to adhere to government guidelines, and we are so excited to show you what we’re all about.

In our sessions you’ll learn everything from some basic moves and dance routines to more about the origins of burlesque, performers, hair, makeup, costume and characterisation!

We meet every week on Tuesday and Thursday from 7-9pm, with limited spaces for each session to maintain social distancing, so we’d love to have you whichever day suits you best.

We are really friendly and closeknit as a society and we have lots of socials planned as well to get to know each other and have a good time!

We want to make this the best year for burlesque despite the circumstances.

The best places to reach us are our Instagram and Facebook, so don’t be shy — whether it’s joining up or attending a show, we Photo: UEA Burlesque Society hope to see you soon!

Explore your faith with UEA Catholic Society We are CathSoc, a lively and diverse community of Catholics centred around the celebration of faith and community building who meet regularly to worship, explore our faith and relax together.

We are a small home away from home for those who want to find a different kind of family here at UEA and make friendships lasting beyond your time here.

Coronavirus has definitely put an interesting spin on this year and all the events we had planned but nevertheless we got quite a few things in the books.

Our events for this year include online quizzes, a virtual games championship, lectio divina sessions, online retreat sessions, barbeques (After coronavirus stops playing

Hide and Seek with us), some casual walks around campus and more.

We invite you, regardless of your faith, to partake in the celebration of mass with us.

Sunday Mass at 1pm, 3.30pm and 6pm in the Multi Faith Centre (MFC) and have Weekday Mass on Wednesdays 6pm & Thursdays 1pm.

Please check our Facebook page for the signup sheet if you’d like to attend.

Join our weekly Sunday Social for a chat and find us on Discord from 8-9 pm.

PART OF A SOCIETY OR CLUB AND WANT TO FEATURE ON THIS PAGE? Email Sam (Editor-in-Chief) at concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk or Bronwen Brown at bronwen.brown@uea.ac.uk

It’s a wise move to join UEA WISE Society

Did you know that only 22% of the UK’s STEM-related workforce are female?

Here at UEA Women in Science and Engineering Society, our aim is to support, promote and nurture women in these fields, working towards gender equality in STEM. This term we have a great line up of virtual events, which are free with our £4 annual membership:

Women in STEM panel (with panelists from top employers)

13th October Workshop from

Black

Facebook: WISE Society UEA Instagram: @ueawise LinkedIn: UEA Women In Science and Engineering Society

masters, meaning you can make or join any storyline in any system.

We act as a link and provide the rooms for you to go to whole new worlds for a few hours.

On Saturdays we have our wargames events, where we play games like Warhammer which simulate large scale battles between futuristic groups.

The society owns some miniatures you can use if you’d like to give it a try without needing to buy anything.

Finally, we used to host live

action role play events, and we have a unique system created by our LARP officer and some external groups.

This section is on hiatus since you can’t really melee fight people during a pandemic, but you can follow our socials for updates on this.

All of our games are an amazing way to connect with people and forget about your worries, if only for a short time.

You will find people with similar interests to yours, and there’s no obligation to go to any events, it’s all up to you and your schedule.

28th

October

Zurich -

CV UK

4th November - Girl Get That Grad Job! (sponsored by Accenture, with partnerships from multiple graduate employers) Check out our UEA SU page for more information or follow us on socials at:

Fancy a game?

From Catan to Dungeons and Dragons, from Warhammer 40k to Frontier, we at Games Society play all the games you could ask for.

Every week, you can join us at our board and card events to play any of the 50+ board games we own, including many classics but also some extremely niche games, and a game which went out of print a decade ago.

We hold weekly role-playing game events, which tend to be mostly D&D 5e, but where we give total freedom to the dungeon

You can find us at Facebook: https:// www.facebook.com/ueacathsoc Email: ueacathsoc@gmail.com Instagram: uea_cathsoc Discord: Discord link on Facebook

Photo: UEA Catholic Society

Photo: UEA Games Society

13th October 2020

15

Let’s talk about Taiwanese Society

The Taiwanese Society was founded with the aim of having a supportive community for all Taiwanese students at UEA. In addition, we strive to share our country and culture with our university’s student community.

Whether you’re Taiwanese or not, we welcome you to be a part of this cultural exchange!

We host a range of activities throughout the year and invite you to join us and have fun.

Over the past few years, we

have held and collaborated on a range of events including the Halloween haunted house, a multisociety Winter ball, Valentines day, Go Global, and our annual Chinese New Year hot pot to remind us all of home while abroad.

Although we’re uncertain of the path ahead due to coronavirus, we hope to continue safely by having fun and sharing our culture in new and creative ways while maintaining a warm and welcoming environment for all our members.

Photo: UEA Taiwanese Society

UEA’s Feminist Book Club is the ultimate best-seller

We are the Feminist Book Club! We are a group of people who love books and celebrate feminism through literature.

Each month we vote on a book relating to a theme, then meet to discuss it (virtually, of course).

Our themes this year include Black Lives Matter, Women in Resistance, Fairytales, Queer Fiction, Heroines, and Dystopia, all voted on and chosen by our lovely members.

We pride ourselves on inclusivity and diversity, welcoming everyone and anyone to our club and events!

We also create a pressurefree environment: there is no requirement to read or finish the book each month and

all

club events are optional!

Despite the name of our society, reading isn’t all we do!

Our events range from chilled Netflix parties to fun, chatty discussions, providing a range of activities that suit everyone whether you are quite shy or hoping to meet lots of new people.

We also have a blog and welcome guest contributions, from book and film reviews to creative writing pieces.

We host movie screenings related to our theme for the month; explore the city through book crawls, and create a friendly online environment through our Instagram and Facebook group.

Soon we aim to be able to offer a range of merchandise including bookmarks, stickers, or tote bags, and we hope that these will fulfill all of your bookish needs!

Our current members would agree that we successfully maintain a wholesome, friendly relationship with everyone and create a welcoming home for all of us who love to read.

It’s not too late to join, and anyone is welcome. We’d love to have you! For more of an idea of what we do and love, head to our Instagram (@ueafeministbookclub) or join our Facebook group!

need some help settling in? link up with a buddy today at uea.su/buddy

Photo: Unsplash

Comment

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13th October 2020

Young people shouldn’t be blamed for the second wave Laurence Scott

Comment Writer

Did you know COVID cases are rising at an alarming rate?

Outraged. That’s how I feel at the moment. That’s because, to some people, it’s beginning to look like young people are to blame for the second wave Mr. Johnson has announced is here.

Do you want decisions about controlling COVID to be based on politics or science? I know which one I would choose: science.

Don’t you think the recent “blame the young” narrative is political? I think so.

It’s the Tories dividing people for their own gain. Blaming youth for COVID case rises is blatantly an attempt by the government to appeal to the people who are more likely to vote: people who tend to be older...

The government also stands to benefit from division because the narrative of youthful rebellion is there to distract the public from the appalling

job the government is doing, isn’t it? Every day the government’s incompetence is kept out of the news by blaming people our age is another day of failing to hold them to account.

Plus, are you, like me, astounded by the government’s erratic approach to the virus?

One minute they’re encouraging us to “eat out to help out”, next they’re closing pubs at 10pm. Local lockdowns are confusing too. It’s very difficult to follow which areas are in lockdown, isn’t it? I admit to not knowing

the alternative. But, considering humanity can get people into space, there has to be a better solution than local shutdowns, don’t you think?

With only people who have symptoms being tested, how can we be sure it’s young people who are spreading the virus?

Boris Johnson has said everyone has become “complacent”.

However, this view is contradicted by his Health Secretary Matt Hancock, when he said young people were to blame. Why has Mr. Hancock’s boss

contradicted his view? After all, I assume they have access to the same information. Can the fight against this awful virus change so quickly?

Living on campus, my experience of the UEA is clear: young people are socially distancing, young people are staying home where possible, and young people are being cautious. It’s a ghost town here.

Last academic year it was much busier on campus. But is our UEA experience the norm? I had a look at the data to find out. The blame apportioned to supposedly selfish

teenagers breaking COVID rules is largely unjustified. A global survey has discovered young people are as every bit as cautious as older people when it comes to the virus.

Let me play devil’s advocate for a moment. What would I say to someone whose view is young people should take time to understand the rules? Or to you, if you think we should be intelligent enough to understand what we’re asked to do? After all, we are university students, sixth formers, and some will be experienced employees. My response would be this: young people are busy enough as it is, whether it’s helping as student medical doctors or working in retail, so how does the government expect us to stay up-to-date with their stipulations?

Young people would’ve clapped for carers. It was a moment of unity. Whatever happened to us as a country in such a short space of time to bring about the sudden change of heart?

Let’s unite Photo: Wikimedia Commons again.

Photos: Wikimedia Commons

Banning TikTok highlights US insincerity surrounding gun control Lauren Bramwell Comment Writer

Since the 1970s, school shootings in the USA have progressively become more common place. Before the coronavirus pandemic they were almost a weekly occurrence.

Multiple reports from parents highlight fear surrounding the word “lockdown” for their children, as it is a term they are trained to recognise and dread in the instance of a school shooting.

In order to prevent the spread of Covid-19, schools began closing and students in the US switched to home-schooling at the beginning of March.

Clearly, this was the reason there hadn’t been a single school shooting since February 2020.

Sadly, this situation changed on 16th September when 17-year-old Eric Aguiar was shot and killed in a California high school car park.

Washington Post reporter, Robert Klemko, tweeted: “Last month was the first March without a school shooting in the United States since 2002.” Why has it taken a global pandemic and the subsequent closing of schools to

make this possible?

“A country so terrified of losing ultimate control” According to Sandy Hook Promise, firearms are the second leading cause of death among American children, yet the country still has very little gun control. It is a country so terrified of losing ultimate control it has plans of banning the app TikTok, fearing it is a threat to US national security. They have done this before even considering an increase in gun control.

Although the infamous app has resulted in several devastating deaths and external data misuse is a definite possibility, gun violence and the lack of gun

control result in an average of eight children dying a day. The pace at which they were considering banning this app is shocking when you compare the statistics of TikTok with the statistics of gun violence.

Gun violence and school shootings have been a

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

massive problem in the US since the 70s and nothing seems to be happening in the way of progression.

In my opinion, banning semiautomatic rifles in America would be ineffective as it would simply encourage the purchasing of more dangerous guns.

Therefore, gun control is not about

banning guns or taking guns away from those who are qualified and stable enough to own them, it is about putting legislation and manufacturing changes in place to prevent the mass devastation gun violence is currently causing. How many young lives could be saved if a shooter had to reload his gun every 5 bullets instead of every 10?

Recent statistics have also shown a rise in gun sales during the pandemic. Igor Volsky, executive director of Guns Down America, commented: “When this pandemic ends and we emerge from this physical distancing reality, the guns will remain.” It is clear to see once schools reopen fully, multiple shootings are inevitable.

Covid-19 has exposed how normalised these tragedies are.

How has it become the norm for a country to have weekly school shootings? How is it acceptable for a leader of a country to completely disregard the importance of gun control? This horrific reality is unacceptable and preventable.

Gun violence is a public health crisis.

17

13th October 2020

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

Offshoring is utterly inhumane Photo: Pixabay

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Dolly Carter Comment Editor

‘Offshoring’ - not a term I am fond of. To be found with ‘offloading’, ‘offcasting’, ‘offending’.

‘Offshoring’, in terms of business, is defined as relocating processes or services overseas and taking advantage of lower costs to improve competitiveness.

‘Offshoring’: an idea being considered by the UK government in an inhumane attempt to fix the asylum system.

Loosely translated to: put them over there and they’re no longer our problem.

Plans have been revealed detailing an asylum processing centre on a remote UK territory in

the Atlantic Ocean. According to the Financial Times, one suggestion was Ascension Island, an offshore location sitting 4,000 miles from the UK. However, after an assessment carried out by the Foreign Office looked into transferring migrants to the island, the proposal was abandoned. Alan Nicholls, a member of the Ascension Island council, dubbed the plans a “logistical nightmare”.

Laura Trott, Conservative MP for Sevenoaks in Kent, backed the idea, stating it would “reduce the pressure” on Kent, which was “unable to take any more children into care”.

Australia has been operating offshore processing and detention centres since the 1980s, with

Home Secretary Priti Patel taking inspiration from policies which have proven successful in other countries.

In my opinion, this policy would simply use geographical location to solidify migrant status as the ‘other’, reinforcing stereotypes of ‘otherness’ and perpetuating the ‘us vs. them’ mentality within British society.

I cannot forget the grotesque voyeurism involved when footage emerged of Sky News and BBC Breakfast teams interviewing dinghies full of migrants while they struggled to navigate the Dover strait.

In this instance, it was immediately clear how the media viewed these people as the ‘other’, almost less than human

and undeserving of basic human rights. Apparently this mindset is now being adopted by the UK government and is worryingly close to being brought into legislation – a terrifying concept.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, Labour’s shadow home secretary states: “this ludicrous idea is inhumane, completely impractical and wildly expensive – so it seems entirely plausible this Tory government came up with it”.

While I agree full-heartedly with his sentiments surrounding struggling to find the humanity in these offshoring plans, I also find it is undermined by his anti-Tory sentiments.

Seemingly, migrants are yet again being used as political pawns in desperate attempts to one-up the

opposition.

It breaks my heart to think it could have been any one of us in this situation, fleeing persecution and looking to the UK for asylum.

In agreement with Rossella Pagliuchi-Lor, a United Nations refugee agency representative to the UK, the proposal has the power to “change what the UK is – its history and its values”.

Reinforcing the concept of the ‘other’ in our society is a step backwards in solving this matter, rather than the step forwards Priti Patel believes she is making.

This ‘out of sight, out of mind’ tactic could soon develop into something far more sinister.

And by the time that happens, none of us will have the power to stop it.

The relative insignificance of Freshers’ Week Oscar Ress

Comment Writer

Freshers’ Week is infamously known as the alcohol-fuelled week of partying to start the university experience. This year, due to extraordinary circumstances throughout the world, it was very different.

The multitude of events put on by student unions had to follow strict Covid-19 protocols, meaning partying and excessive drinking were put on hold.

For many this seemed a significant blow. Having events every night is a challenge hundreds of thousands of students take head on and absolutely love.

On a positive note, for those freshers who have been disheartened by the lack of parties, clubbing, and entertainment on offer, there will always be opportunities to meet people, including those who are keen to drink. New students who worry about the prospect of having to make friends without plenty of alcohol for Dutch courage should not worry at all.

Freshers’ Week, despite all the hype, often fails to live up to expectations - it can actually be a very nerve-wracking time.

As one of my first lecturers presented so clearly, university is a unique time in a young person’s life, by which she meant little else requires you to move across the country or even the world and to leave your family and friends behind

at such a young age.

The first week is often spent simply adjusting to this huge change and meeting an overwhelming amount of new people.

Weeks later, you may discover of all those new people you will add on Snapchat or follow on Instagram who may seem, in that particular intoxicated moment, to be potential life-long friends, many will never be seen or communicated with again.

Personally, this weighed on my mind quite heavily, especially at the start of university life. I was often told university was where I was going to make friendships to last a lifetime and the thought this just wasn’t going to happen for me concerned me greatly.

This was coupled with having to decide where you want to live and

who you want to live with within the first four months if you want to get the best available places for second year.

In my experience, however, it was not people I met in the initial week who I ended up living with. I have four friends from my first-year flat who mean a lot to me and who I am extremely excited to live with for another year. I was especially fortunate with my flat as I also found someone I fell in love with.

I understand not everyone will have the same experience, but the great thing about university is people are on a socially level playing field and the ability to shake off the labels and baggage from secondary school is what makes it a place where anyone from differing backgrounds and with differing

interests can thrive.

I urge every university student to make sure they join at least one sport or a society, as these groups focus as much or even more on the social side than anything else. If you can combine meeting new people with some exercise, being able to extend your knowledge in a subject, or express your passion for a cause then there is no harm in it at all.

Freshers’ Week is certainly not the be-all and end-all of your firstyear experience.

If I could say anything to all new students it would be this: while you may miss out on one week of particularly intense partying, there is no lack of opportunities to have a great time and meet friends who will present themselves over the next three or four years.

Science

13th October 2020

18

Phosphine gas found on Venus suggests signs of life Rosina Poller Science Writer

Mankind has often looked up at the night sky and wondered if we are alone in the universe. A recent discovery might just have found the answer to that age-old question in the clouds of Venus.

Conditions on Venus have always been dismissed as incompatible with life. Its surface is hot enough to melt lead.

Its clouds are abundant in sulphuric acid. Its atmosphere has pressures up to 90 times that of the Earth. This all changed on the 14th of September when a study was released from an international team of scientists, led by Professor Jane Greaves from Cardiff University, detailing the discovery of a

Telescope in Hawaii, Greaves and her team detected the absorption spectra of radio waves from Venus and identified the presence of phosphine gas.

This discovery was further verified using the Atacama Large Millimetre Array in Chile.

Dr William Blain, biochemist and astrobiologist from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was enlisted to deduce the probability of the phosphine being a biological by-product. His team found that the production of phosphine would always consume

energy.

Therefore, this reaction is unlikely to occur spontaneously, nor could it be due to UV light breaking down molecules as the rate would be 10,000 times too slow to account for the amounts of gas detected.

In an interview for The Sky at

“The amounts of sulphuric acid... is incompatible with the biochemistry of all life we know” biomarker, phosphine gas, in the acidic clouds of Venus.

Greaves was inspired by famous astronomer Carl Sagan’s discovery that the pressure and temperature in Venus’ clouds reduce to habitable levels as altitude increases.

Using the James Clerk Maxwell

Photos (above and below): Wikimedia Commons

Night on the BBC, Blain said: “We just could not come up with any combination of sub-surface, on the surface, in the atmosphere, in the clouds, anything, that would explain the presence of phosphine”.

Despite the evidence seeming to point towards the presence of microbial life on Venus, there are still concerns around this conclusion.

The amounts of sulphuric acid present in the clouds is incompatible with the biochemistry of all life we know of. There are only two ways that life could survive these conditions: either this life has a completely different biochemistry to what we see on Earth; or has a protective ‘armour’ which shields it within the acid droplets. The latter poses a few issues – how would they create this shield? Eat? Or exchange gases?

Some forms of life on Earth have shown resistance to sulphuric acid, for example, succulents have a thin waxy layer which protects them from the acid, so this idea cannot be ruled out.

If these findings do mean there is life on Venus, not only do they answer the age-old question faced by mankind, it means that many planets, like Venus, that were ruled out in the search for habitable worlds could indeed harbour extraterrestrial life.

Furthermore, if life has somehow managed to evolve independently on two neighbouring planets in our solar system, then it is surely more common in the universe than we ever could’ve imagined.

Record-breaking fires rage across California Emily Hawkes Science Writer

Since the beginning of the year, Since the beginning of the year, more than 8,300 wildfires have burned over 4 million acres across California.

More than double any previous record of land to ever be burned in a single year in the state.

The fire encompasses an area

“More than 8,300 wildfires have burned over 4 million acres”

larger than Connecticut, resulting in 31 fatalities and the destruction of an estimated 3,687 structures, causing many to lose their homes and livelihoods.

This follows 17 of the 20 deadliest wildfires in Californian history since 2003.

The statistics are frightening,

with the largest fire on record nearly five times the size of New York City occurring in Mendocino National Forest, just north of San Francisco.

“increase in wildfires in pat four decades can be pinpointed to climate change” The extreme production of smoke left an orange hue across the sky of the West Coast leaving residents feeling helpless and frightened by the severity of the situation and fast approaching flames. Current fires have been made worse by powerful winds alongside hot and dry weather.

Human encroachment into nature has also influenced the rate of wildfires, with a 100-fold increase in housing developments in dangerous fire zones across the western US between 1940 and 2010.

It has also been predicted that the El Dorado fire could have been started by a smoke-generating pyrotechnic device from a gender reveal party.

Forest management decisions also contribute as build-up of vegetation can rapidly become fuel.

Whilst human encroachment into nature and land management play a part, the fundamental cause is ultimately the continuous rise of global temperatures and the impeding force of climate change.

Lower precipitation, intensified wind and warmer air temperatures heightened by the impact of climate change dry the forest and surrounding vegetation, resulting in a lethal concoction ideal for extreme wildfires to arise.

A published review assessed the effect of climate change on wildfires around the globe.

The study focused on 57 research papers published after 2013 when an extensive review on climate science was published.

In every study, the relationships between climate change and not only frequency but severity of fire weather was found.

Dr Matthew Jones from the University of East Anglia who led the review believes the eight to ten-fold increase in wildfires in the past four decades can be pinpointed to climate change.

America is not the only country struggling with the increasing threat of wildfires.

In 2019, Australia had the warmest and driest year on record which ultimately contributed to an estimated 10 million hectares of land being burnt

“the current crisis in California is a glimpse into a future” between 2019-2020.

Records also reflect this with the country now being 1.4 °C warmer than the world average temperature was during the pre-industrial period.

It has been estimated that from 1979 to 2019, fire weather conditions have risen to a total of eight days on average around the globe.

In the case of Western America, climate-associated shifts such as increasing heat, changing rain and snow patterns, as well as changes in plant communities has dramatically increased the chance for more frequent and intense wildfires.

Therefore, it can be concluded

that the current crisis in California is a glimpse into a future dictated by the actions of climate change and our current generations willingness to ignore the ever-present issue.

Climate change has also been brought into the political debate during the build up to the 2020 US election.

In response to the wildfires and

“climate change is driving the increasing thread of wildfires”

apparent climate change Trump simply stated, “It will get cooler”, leading to angry criticism from Biden who calls Trump a “climate arsonist” for blatantly ignoring climate science.

Evidently, climate change is driving the increasing threat of wildfires, or more simply put there’s no smoke wihout fire

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13th October 2020

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

DNA suggests Americans had E n d a n g e r e d p i l e a t e d role in populating Pacific islands gibbon born at Blackpool Zoo Ally Fowler Science Writer

Lauren Bramwell Science Writer

How Polynesia was initially populated has been up for debate and speculated by scholars for many years.

But a new study has found evidence and suggests that Indigenous people in South America travelled over 7,000 kilometres of open sea to reach eastern Polynesia more than 800 years ago.

The study, led by Alexander Ionnidis and Andres MorenoEstrada, compared lengths of DNA segments.

The results implied that these travels back and forth from South America to eastern Polynesia occurred over 800 years ago.

This is the first study to offer genetic evidence surrounding this debate.

Thor Heyerdahl, a Norwegian explorer, initially tested this idea of South Americans settling on the Pacific islands in 1947, in the Kon-

Tiki expedition.

However, the universal thought during that time was that Asians were the ones to populate eastern

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Polynesia around 1,000 years ago.

Therefore, the idea of South Americans having a role in the peopling of Polynesia was not widely accepted and continually dismissed.

This new study also potentially shows how the ancestral populations of Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, travelled to South America and returned with sweet potatoes.

The genetic evidence that came from this study then shows that those ancestors could have brought back along with them, to most of the eastern Polynesian islands, South American DNA. Although the DNA tested in the study was retrieved from present-day individuals,

Moreno-Estrada has argued that only a larger genetic study can confirm whether or not South Americans did in fact initially travel to and populate Polynesia. There also needs to be further study into how these findings fit into the already known studies such as the ethno-historical records and evidence of plant distributions.

Furthermore, Nature has suggested that because this recent study has analysed the sweet-potato plants’ origins in Polynesia, there should be further research done to assess the potential voyaging between islands and the find out how many voyagers took place.

There are also some remaining questions that require further DNA evidence and studies to be carried out, for example extracting DNA from ancient bones.

Still, Ioannidis et al.’s findings were revolutionary in how scientists can now view the early presence of Native South American’s in eastern Polynesia.

New regulations on human genome editing announced Mariam Jallow Science Writer

When we think of gene editing, our thoughts tend to lean towards the stuff of comic books rather than therapies for cancer treatments or modifying crops to survive in arid conditions. Genome editing consists of various technologies and methods used by scientists to alter genes.

Such technology heavily relies on genetic editing tools like CRISPRCas9, to cut, delete, or insert genes of interest into a sequence of DNA. However, these methods are not 100% effective, and can sometimes result in random mutations due to the editing of non-target locations.

With regards to human genome editing, research is currently focused on treating debilitating and mostly fatal diseases, such as cancers, cystic fibrosis and other rare genetic conditions in a non-heritable manner. However, there is a branch of research centred around altering the germline. That is, causing changes to the DNA of reproductive sperm and egg cells. The main controversy over this particular area of genetic study stems from the fact that these genetic modifications would be heritable. Consequently, any changes made to the parent DNA would be passed onto future

generations. This raises questions of consent, especially that of the unborn descendants that will inherit these genes. Additionally, some fear the rise of ‘designer babies’. Babies whose genomes would be altered to include desirable genes and remove undesirable ones, such as specific disease resistance.

Such experiments have been heavily debated, and in some cases public outcry. For example, He Jiankui, Chinese biophysicist, used CRISPR/Cas9 technology to modify the sperm cells of males infected with HIV to be HIV-resistant. These engineered sperm cells were then fertilised via IVF and implanted into the non-infected female partner of the men in the study.

This experiment has since resulted in the birth of three children: two twin girls born in October 2018 and another child born in August 2019.

In light of He’s work, this led to the formation of The International Commission on the Clinical Use of Human Germline Genome Editing.

This is a joint committee put together by the Royal Society, the US National Academy of Sciences and the US National Academy of Medicine.

T h e commission recently

published concise scientific criteria and standards that must be achieved before clinical use of gene editing on the human germline.

Propositions made by the commission currently include that germline editing should only be used in cases where a genetic disease that will ultimately lead to an early death and/or serious medical problems will inevitably be inherited.

Additionally, the commission also recommends that this process only be considered in the event that no other pathway is possible for couples to produce embryos that don’t carry these specific genes.

Whether these guidelines are enough is a question bound f o r debate in both t h e

public and scientific spheres.

Many see this as a step in the right direction, however, some regard the Commission’s publications as a roadblock to accessible treatments for debilitating and life-changing diseases for children, both present and future.

Ivy and Chamoa, two pileated gibbons at Blackpool Zoo, have recently become proud parents.

This is the third gibbon born to this pair, with there being only 14 living in zoos across the UK. Pileated gibbons are currently classified as endangered, so this bodes well for the future of their species.

Naturalist Sir David Attenborough signs up to Instagram Sir David Attenborough has joined Instagram. However, his move to the social media platform is not for purely entertainment reasons. In his first post, he tells us “the world is in trouble.” He warns of the current disasters of climate change, and urges us to join him in fighting it.

Beaked whale beats record for time submerged A Cuvier’s beaked whale shocked researchers when it was recorded to have spent 3 hours 42 minutes submerged underwater.

On average, the species spends around an hour underwater. It is believed that this is the longest dive ever recorded for a whale, and perhaps even for mammals as a whole.

Oldest evidence of Homo Sapiens found in Arabia Seven human footprints have been discovered in the Arabian Peninsula - dated between 112,000 and 121,000 years old. Found at the edge of a now-dry lake, it is believed these ancient travellers stopped here on a journey. Among these human footprints were also a variety of animal footprints.

Sparrows sung ‘sexier’ songs over lockdown, study finds

Photo: Pixabay

When lockdown hit and human noise pollution plummeted, the calls of sparrows also appeared to change.

Although they sang more quietly, the quality of their calls increased.

The males generated calls with lower amplitude, apparently a big factor for attraction, creating such greater effect that different species of birds were even allured by these sparrows.

Travel & Lifestyle

20

Meet these incredible travel world record holders!

Ally Fowler Travel Writer

There are numerous world records relating to travel; most are truly extraordinary, and it is difficult to imagine how anyone would be able to achieve them.

However, countless record holders stand as testament that the unimaginable is always possible, so long as someone is willing to try.

On 31 May 2019, Lexie Alford, a 21-year old woman from Nevada City, California, became the youngest person in the world to have visited all 196 countries.

Having grown up with a family who owned a travel agency, she was exposed to travelling from a young age. After realising she had visited 72 countries by the time she’d finished high school (two years early) and acquired a local college degree at 18, she took it upon herself to make it into a challenge.

Her final destination was North Korea. After struggling with the US ban on travel to the country, she stepped into the North Korean section of a conference room in the Joint Security Area of the Korean DMZ, allowing her to fulfill her record.

Alford’s travels as an adult have been entirely self-funded, with the

occasional brand deal to help fund her project. Money she had been saving since she was 12 years old supported her for the first year and a half, and a later position in her family’s travel agency as a consultant kept her going through the rest.

In the description of her story on her website, she says: “I was determined to show everyone that the world isn’t as scary as the media portrays it to be and that there’s kindness everywhere”.

Her website is also packed

“I was determined to show everyone that... there's kindness everywhere” with photos and blog posts, with recounts of her experience and advice pieces, such as ‘Travel Tips for For Solo Female Travelers’.

A more local record is one that is constantly being attempted: the quickest time to visit all 270 London Underground stations. The current record is 15 hours 45 minutes and

38 seconds, set on 21 May 2015 Steve Wilson, one of the record holders, is also accredited as the record holder in 2009 and 2011.

Geoff Marshall and Anthony

“his journey also helped him witness the kindness of strangers”

with Keavney travelling a total of 2,080.14 km across Ireland.

Keaveney’s walk aimed to raise funds for Pieta House: Suicide and Self Harm Crisis Centre in memory of a friend.

In an interview with Travel Secrets, he said that the idea emerged after he did a barefoot hike up Croagh Patrick, West Ireland.

His campaign was roaringly successful; he raised over €13,000 for Pieta House.

Smith (who held the penultimate record in 2013 with 16 hours 20 minutes 27 and seconds) explained their process in an interview with the BBC: "It's like the wheels of a bicycle spoke - you start on the outside and then go back into London, everything comes into the middle.”

This record is so competitive and coveted that record holders refuse to share the specific routes they’ve taken to achieve the quickest time.

Meanwhile, in 2016, Irishman Eamonn Keaveney became the Guinness World Record holder for the longest barefoot journey. His journey took 104 days, starting on 1 May and ending on 12 August,

His journey also helped him witness the kindness of strangers - despite preparing to sleep in a tent most nights, he only ended up using it a few times, with many people offering him places to stay as he passed through the country.

Even though each person mentioned in this article has completed an entirely different feat, they are all united by the same thing: the desire to be the best at what they do.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

How to eat your way around Norwich Imogen Carter de Jong Lifestyle Writer

My stomach and I have had the pleasure of munching and sipping various food and beverages at many Norwich establishments over the course of my time here.

I look upon the map of Norwich as a sort of tasting map now areas associated with memories of savoured meals gone by. Here is a glimpse into that tasting map, a brief introduction to the endless sprawl of cuisine the city has to offer.

We begin on Elm Hill, where one is besieged by a quintessentially British and rather sensuous scent. At first the smell is only just discernible: a whiff carried in the wind. Treading closer, the scent becomes allconsuming. The building in the distance seems too good to be a true, veritable mirage. The aroma comes in waves: warm, golden, crispy, oily - the smell of fry-ups.

‘Olive’s’ is housed on the corner of Elm Hill, before Wensum Street becomes Magdalen Street. Like the odour oozing from its cosy interior would suggest, they are a breakfast establishment, serving generously portioned fry-ups seven days a week. The menu caters to vegans and veggies alike, with food cooked to order. Highlights include their vegan black pudding; their

halloumi fries, and their winning combination of both fried bread and toast. The atmosphere is cosy and the decor eclectic, making it a perfect spot for a weekday catch up or a lazier weekend affair. Other honourable breakfast mentions include the more central ‘Cafe 33’, or ‘The Waffle House’ if you are in possession of a sweet tooth!

If you were to head further

Photo: Pixabay

down Wensum Street, you’d come upon ‘Ancestors Coffee’, a small but mighty cafe nestled between the endless antique shops of Magdalen Street. Narrow and steep, it’s as if the building has been squeezed to slot in between its neighbours, so the stairs are not for the fainthearted, but there’s seating downstairs for those needing wheelchair-access or with prams

in tow. Serving speciality coffee as well as vegan delicacies like buddha bowls, it’s the perfect spot to while a few hours away. The tall windows coincidentally offer perfect people-watching opportunities to have a nose at the constant stream of shoppers traipsing up and down the street outside.

On your way back into the city through London Street, you’ll pass

‘Artel’, and further down, ‘The Little Red Roaster’. ‘Artel’, like ‘Ancestors Coffee’, offers a range of vegan treats alongside their usual fare, whilst ‘The Little Red Roaster’ has a range of heartier lunch options in a more tucked away, quiet atmosphere (that is, if the ‘Olive’s’ breakfast didn’t fill you up!) Closer to campus, there’s ‘Mitre’ on Earlham Road, and ‘Kofra’, on Onley Street.

For food on the go, Norwich market is a smorgasbord of street vendors: falafels at ‘Falafel and Friends’, ‘Coral Bay’ for classic Jamaican dishes by a husband and wife team, and Kinder bar, Freddo and Biscoff cookies as big as your head at ‘And eat it’.

Finishing off the day with dinner is a trickier business, for the options are endless, catering to all tastes and cuisines. For a date-night treat, ‘Shiki’ in Tombland offers Asian food described as “Norfolk meets Japan”. For phenomenal, ‘I-can’t-believe-it’s-vegan’ vegan food, ‘The Tipsy Vegan’, is a must visit - their macaroni cheese is not to be missed. For a relaxed meal with friends, ‘Brick Pizza’ provides traditional sourdough pizza cooked before your very eyes.

Or there’s ‘Didi’s Dining’: authentic Caribbean food that’s never, in their words, “freezer to microwave”.

Wherever your journey takes you, I hope you too can begin to establish a tasting map of your own savoured, food memories.

21

22nd September 2020

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

Traveling a post-pandemic world for UK travellers Erica Thajeb Travel Editor

Ever since the pandemic hit and countries across the world are forced into lockdown, most of us have been itching to hit the road and start travelling again.

As infection and death rates change each day, the UK government is constantly updating their travel corridor list. But what does the most recent list look like?

If the travel bug has been especially impossible to appease, you may be delighted to know that

“Most of us have been itching to hit the road and start travelling again” UK travellers can (at least, as of now) visit several overseas destinations without restrictions.

The first one is Germany. The

German Interior Ministry has recently announced that travellers coming from the UK no longer need to show a valid reason for entry.

Standard immigration rules still apply, but this means it’s possible to visit for a holiday.

Although certain regions in England, Scotland and Wales are considered high risk, those who can provide a negative test result at least 48 hours prior to arrival can freely enter without quarantining.

Meanwhile, the Government of Gibraltar lifted air travel restrictions a few months ago, so you can fly into this exquisite peninsula as long as you have a valid travel document.

You could also choose to travel to Greece, where you’d only have to complete a Passenger Locator Form online before arrival. Note that you may be asked to undergo testing by

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

the Greek officials, although this is fairly unlikely for passengers coming from the EU and the UK. Italy and Vatican City have also opened up their doors for UK visitors.

Unless you have been to one of the listed highrisk countries 14 days prior arrival, entry is as simple as filling a selfdeclaration form.

The local authorities have stated that UK travellers would most likely be exempted from any self-isolation requirements.

Some countries like Barbados and Antigua and Barbuda will ask for a health certificate and recent negative test, while others require you to undergo a self-quarantine period.

Still, many borders remain closed for tourists from the UK, such as Japan, Australia, Finland, Hong Kong, Vietnam and New Zealand.

“my personal advice is for all of us to avoid foreign travels” You should also remember that any previous trips you’ve had might affect future ones.

Many countries will ask for your travel record up to 14 days before your arrival, simply to check if you have been to any areas that are designated as high-risk.

All in all, these destinations are mainly lifting travel restrictions because their COVID-19 curve has significantly declined, or at least flattened.

However, my personal advice is for all of us to avoid foreign travels for the time being, unless it is absolutely necessary.

Stick to local getaways and holidays.

Besides, it’s a good way for us to truly explore nearby destinations and discover some hidden treasure troves!

The hidden grandeur of northern Iceland Sam Hewitson Editor-in-Chief

If we are building a list of hidden gems around the world, Iceland should not be on this list. Everyone knows Iceland is the epitome of natural beauty and offers so much for a relatively small island.

A photographer's paradise and filled with natural spectacles seen nowhere else, most have been recommended to visit “The Land of Fire and Ice”.

of the country. For the first few days we were based in Isafjordur, a small, sleepy fishing village (which was still the third largest town in

“It was so quaint and quintessentially Scandinavian”

would pull into the dock with a small trickle of tourists in tow. But that was all there was of the outside world.

From here, we travelled even further north to the most northern point of Iceland, Hornvik.

When I say the area was untouched, I mean it.

There was nothing there, and there never has been.

Arctic foxes with their summer coats were brave enough to try and steal food from us, and the air was so crisp and clean.

Nearby waterfalls could be heard

That is Northern Iceland.

If all these are not enough to entice you, what about the fact that

“more stunning untouched scenery was waiting for us”

However, there remains one relatively untouched region of the country, Northern Iceland, an area I have been very lucky to have visited.

As part of a five week expedition across Iceland, my group and I spent two weeks in the north west

Iceland). It was so quaint and so quintessentially Scandinavian, where barely anyone spoke English and old painted timber houses and buildings lined the streets.

Occasionally, a cruise ship, probably on a circuit around Iceland,

in the distance, and were so big and beautiful that if they were in the UK, or almost anywhere that wasn’t Iceland, they would be nationally recognised as the biggest and best.

Our expedition took us further down the coastline where more stunning untouched scenery was waiting for us, and we were all repeatedly blown away.

The water could not have been more blue and the grass could not have been more green.

Think of what you know of the Scottish Highlands or the Lake District, and enhance that scenery tenfold.

but it is truly a dazzling spectacle.

I promise it will be the best sunset and sunrise you will ever see.

Photos: Sam Hewitson

it’s the perfect place to witness the magical allure of the midnight sun?

“it will be the best sunset and sunrise you will ever see” Many people are not aware this is a thing, (I had no idea until I went) but the midnight sun is a sight to behold.

The concept may sound alien,

It is worth noting, however, there is little attraction to Northern Iceland or reason to travel there if you are not an outdoorsy person.

You will have to sleep in a tent, and you will have to do your business in a tiny triangular wooden hut (we called them Toblerone toilets), which I admit is not ideal.

Personally, I would say that the sacrifice is definitely worth it.

As I said before, Iceland’s attractions are hardly a secret.

Northern Iceland, as it is further out of the way, is as untouched now as it was thousands of years ago, so definitely look into making the trip before everyone else does.

Sport

13th October 2020

22

How not to celebrate: The story of how Essex’s Bob Willis Trophy victory quickly became showered in controversy

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Chris Price Sport Writer

Picture the scene. You and your team have just won the inaugural Bob Willis Trophy; the most prestigious trophy available to you. Brimming with elation, you and your teammates walk onto the balcony to lift the trophy. What you’re not expecting, is an abuse of your religious views.

Yet, this is precisely what happened to Essex cricketer, Feroze

Khushi, whose faith forbids him from having any contact with alcohol. As such, while his teammates had a celebratory beer, Khushi was trying to find the middle-ground between retreating from the alcohol, whilst also joining in the celebrations.

He was doing rather well until his teammate thought fit to give him a beer shower.

Whilst probably fair to assume ignorance over malice, you have to question how this was even possible. Well, it’s complicated.

When the Formula 1 circus is

in Bahrain, they use non-alcoholic champagne. Yet at the Qatari World Cup, alcohol will be allowed in designated spaces. It begs the question which culture supersedes the other? The host? Or the guest?

Keeping in mind that Muslims overachieve in the English cricketing game (in relation to overall UK demographics), you would think that the players would be aware of something that is of such importance to their teammates.

Additionally, given that the point of podium-based alcohol is the

spraying rather than the drinking, surely non-alcoholic versions would do the job.

The players have all night to drink following their victory; if they’re that upset about such a small loss in alcohol, they have bigger problems.

Insofar as accommodating religion in sport as a whole, diversity-wise, it’s doing alright.

Sport is the ultimate meritocracy.

If you’re no good, you won’t be played, if you play well, you’ll play again.

In terms of the minor details that can prove so problematic to individuals, whilst more can be done by the various governing bodies, the onus seems to be on the awareness of players.

For an excellent example, look no further than England’s 2019 cricket world cup winning side allowing Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali to slightly move to one side before beginning the champagne celebrations.

It wasn’t hard then and it isn’t hard now.

Loyal by name, Loyal by nature: A brave display of solidarity by San Diego’s football team

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Callum McWilliams Senior Sport Writer

As you can imagine, media coverage on second-tier football in the USA is sparse, but a recent match between San Diego Loyal SC and Phoenix Rising FC was important for reasons far beyond football.

On the 30 September, Phoenix player Junior Flemmings used an alleged homophobic slur towards San Diego midfielder Colin Martin.

Martin, who publicly came out as­ gay in June 2018, informed the match officials of the incident and what followed has ramifications for the entire sporting world.

Coach and co-owner of San th

Diego Loyal, Landon Donovan gave the referee and opposition coach an ultimatum.

Either the abusive player is taken off by substitution or through a red card, or the Loyal’s walk off the pitch.

At this point, I’d advise everyone reading to find the video of this exchange online, it perfectly

documents the fiery moments leading up to this landmark moment. They walked.

It should be noted that San Diego were actually 3-1 up against Phoenix at the time, a massively unexpected lead in the fight for a playoff place.

It was an amazing time for the Loyal’s to forfeit the game. In

doing so, they lost any chance of qualifying for the play-offs, their season was over, and the players were well aware of this leading up to the decision.

Donovan and the rest of his players have showed us how far we still have to come in football to face up against bigotry, homophobia, and all forms of discrimination in our game. The decision to walk off at such a critical point shows clearly where our priorities should be.

Football has a well-documented and long-lasting problem with homophobia, strong actions like this show the world that enough is enough.

Since the incident, reaction has been largely positive, with the two teams releasing a joint statement declaring that they are working together to develop ‘educational programmes where players, staff, and supporters will meet to share their backgrounds and life experiences’. This incident comes just one week after the Loyal player Elijah Martin was racially abused at another match. In fact, both San Diego and Phoenix were actually planning to stop the game in the second half to hold a banner saying ‘I will speak, I will act’ after the racial abuse in the previous match.

What follows on from these events in terms of policy is currently unclear– but one thing is certain, San Diego have gained a Loyal fan in me.

23

13th October 2020

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

Ferrari’s decline: How the Prancing Horse stuttered, rather than galloped into their 1000th grand prix

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Sebastian Lajos Sport Writer

Remember the 2016 Formula One Canadian Grand Prix? No, not the race itself, but the interviews afterwards. An affable Sebastian Vettel uttered a one-liner that has stuck with me ever since: “Everybody’s a Ferrari fan. Even if they are not, they (still) are a Ferrari fan”. As the Scuderia recently competed in their 1000th grand prix on their home turf at Mugello, I could not help but wonder whether this is still the case and if so, why.

2008 F1 Championship runnerup for Ferrari, Felipe Massa, once said: “In the Ferrari team, if you win you have pressure, if you are not winning (…) you have even more”.

Rob Smedley, his long-time race engineer confirmed this, but noted the outstanding rewards that come with the unparalleled pressure of

performing at a quasi-“national institution” like Ferrari: “You are in this fish bowl with all the eyes of Italy looking at you, but (…) If you withstood the test, Ferrari will always be (in) your heart”.

Indeed, since the glorious Schumacher days of 2000-2004, many have taken the ‘Ferrari test’; from the team’s last drivers’ champion in 2007, Kimi Raikkonen, to Red Bull’s four-time champion, Sebastian Vettel. Intriguingly, I believe that Ferrari’s past dominance in the sport is so apparent in any driver’s mind to make them confident that they can revive it themselves with the team. This is despite this dominance peaking in the 2000s, long ago enough to be considered a piece of sporting history.

I was so happy for Vettel when he switched to Ferrari back in 2015, because I felt he had rediscovered the joy of his early Red Bull days.

That, I could tell from his first laps

around Fiorano, in the winter of 2014. His interactions with the team before and throughout 2015 and

“Everybody’s a Ferrari fan. Even if they are not, they (still) are a Ferrari fan” his general body language proved he was truly elated to drive for the team of his childhood hero, Michael Schumacher.

In the build-up to his first season in Maranello, Vettel delightfully stated: “Everything is red and it is a very special colour because it means so much (and it has) so much history”.

Back then, I really thought that Sebastian had found a new home.

He seemed genuinely fulfilled and at peace, always ready to joke about the Mercedes dominance.

By embracing the so-called ‘Ferrari way’, he seemed confident that he could steer them back to their championship-winning ways of the past.

Fast-forward to 2020, and the laughter in his team’s radio has quite literally turned into tears, anger and resignation for Vettel, unceremoniously let go by the team without a single title success. I find Sebastian’s rise and fall from grace with the team and the tifosi very telling in terms of why Ferrari is the promised land of any racing driver.

Expectations are astronomical, so demises can occur in an instant, even for someone with the third most grand prix victories in F1 history.

Nonetheless, it is this relentless pressure and striving for excellence that makes Ferrari so appealing. The ‘Ferrari way’ is less of a strategy and

more a way of life for supporters of the prancing horse.Vettel’s seriously gifted teammate, Charles Leclerc will hope to succeed where Vettel failed. Being recently mentioned along with Mario Andretti or Alain Prost – both former champions for the Scuderia – Charles commented: “It feels unreal”.

However, the Monegasque readily admitted, he has a long way until he can rise to the level of such greats. His soon-to be teammate, Carlos Sainz, welcomes the complexity of the Ferrari environment, considering it the due “preparation” for any aspiring world champion.

Whether Sainz and Leclerc can succeed where their predecessors failed remains to be seen. However, despite a lack of championship success in over a decade, F1’s biggest team remains the ultimate destination for young talents and versed champions alike.

Great Scot! Can Andy Murray return to his grand slam-winning ways?

Matt Branston Deputy Editor

It’s not a revelation to say that we treat star athletes like superheroes.

They are our idols, our legends, the modern demigods.

How could a Man City fan not see Aguero as a hero when he scored THAT Premier League winning goal against QPR? How could a Lewis Hamilton fan not see him as a hero when he stormed the final lap of Brazil to win his first F1 world championship in 2008?

And how could you not see Andy Murray as a hero when he took the title at Wimbledon in 2013, the first British winner in 77 years?

But now Murray, despite the three Grand Slam wins, despite the two Olympics golds, is 33 years old, has had two hip surgeries, and is having to use wildcards to enter tournaments since he is not ranked.

In his only match of the French Open, he was outclassed by the similarly injury-prone Stan Wawrinka.

Now people are asking if he should stop taking up wildcard slots and set down the racket once and

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

for all.

It’s difficult to see Murray struggle and it’s understandable to have issues with him taking up tournament slots.

But it is not like athletes haven’t struggled in the past and then overcome injuries to return to greatness. And when they do, it is what sport is all about; succeeding against the odds, when no one else gave you a chance.

Tiger Woods dealt with horrific back injuries but returned to golf and won the 2019 Masters.

Ronaldo missed countless

football games with knee injuries just to come back and tear up the 2002 World Cup. Niki Lauda crashed, suffered horrendous burns and came back to race in the same season, won multiple F1 titles, and cemented a career as undoubtedly one of the greatest drivers ever.

It is what makes sport worth watching, someone overcoming all the obstacles to show their undeniable greatness.Obviously, no one wants to see their hero fade out, but if you don’t give them the chance to try, greatness can’t happen.

And that’s even worse.

24

13th October 2020

Sport

Why you should consider (coronavirus-permitting) a Year-abroad in 2021

Luke Saward

great opportunities she had missed.

Sport Editor

They’re “fun if you’re good at them and funny if you’re awful”.

This is how one UEA Year Abroad student described trying out new sports during her time studying at the Okanagan campus at the University of British Columbia in Canada.

Earlier this year, the coronavirus outbreak caused thousands of UK students studying abroad to seek a swift return home to avoid being

“they’re fun if you’re good at them and funny if you’re awful” stranded in their pastures new.

Having had to return in March, I expected this student to be downbeat in my interview with her, understandably upset over all of the

“such sports are much harder to run Completely the opposite, she was very keen to stress all that she had experienced during what sounded like a whirlwind 6 months.

With her university organising discounted ice hockey tickets, in addition to group outings going skiing and snowboarding among other activities, she never had to travel further than an hour from campus to have fun.

Such sports are much harder to run over here, hence they tend to require further travel and cost much more to participate in; studying abroad provides the opportunity to affordably experience an entirely new sporting culture.

From competitive snowshoeing and curling, to giving ice skating, tubing and even hydroflying – as pictured above – a go, this student

really demonstrated the diverse range of new sporting activities available for those on a year abroad to try out. Her favourite sport to participate in was curling, but as a spectator it was ice hockey.

She gave a great account of her time at Prospera Place – the stadium of the Kelowna Rockets.

Here for approximately $20, she could sit on the front row, almost within touching distance of the puck.

“even the players seem more lighthearted over there” I was told of the family-oriented atmosphere, with young children being taken along by their parents to what seemed a much more polite and friendly experience than what they would encounter at many UK football grounds.

The audience was highly involved in the day, with blimp drones distributing prizes into the

crowd,

stewards

going

around

“there is a big old world out there” with t-shirt cannons and Rocky the Raccoon (the Rockets’ mascot) greeting you with his drum.

Fans were shown on the big screen and encouraged to participate in dance competitions, with music blaring through the speakers at regular intervals.

More amusingly, the owner of the dirtiest car in the parking lot received a free ticket to a nearby car wash and various audience members were encouraged to participate in a ‘best wolf noise’ competition, which the rest of the crowd voted upon during the 3 intervals after each third of play.

Also whilst she was out in Canada, the Toronto Maple Leafs had all of their keepers sent off in a single game, so a Zamboni driver

went in goal, showing that even the players seem more light-hearted over there.

Admittedly, I went into the interview still upset that my own year abroad to America had recently been cancelled, but came out refreshed, aware of what I would have missed had it gone ahead.

Hopefully, in a year’s time, I will be stateside and the days of spectator sports will have returned and then I will be able to see James Harden’s step-back threes and Aaron Rodgers’ Hail Marys up close and personal.

In hindsight, a year abroad this year would have resulted in me living in another country, but not really experiencing it.

Now, I look forward to the future and would support my interviewee’s recommendation that trying out new sports is a “good way to make new friends”.

You can have lessons if you want to try and master your new sport, but failing miserably and together or just watching the pros from the side-lines is equally as enjoyable.

If there’s anything this pandemic has reminded me of is that there is a big old world out there.

It would be a mighty shame for us to not take advantage of it when it is available to us once again.