Est. 1992 The official student newspaper of the University of East Anglia | Striving For Truth | Issue 382 | 26 October 2021
Drink spiking crisis at UEA
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Interview: UEA's COP26 Festival
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Black History Month: Representation in STEM + - =
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UEA one of 39 UK universities who refused to divulge details of sexual harassment complaints
Dolly Carter
Editor-in-Chief
Out of 164 UK universities, UEA was one of 39 which refused to divulge any information relating to their sexual
harassment complaints. Journalists from Al Jazeera Media Network sent identical Freedom of Information (FOI) requests to all 164 universities and higher education institutes in the UK,
asking for information relating to reports of sexual misconduct, reports of sexual misconduct resulting in internal hearings, and the outcomes of those hearings. When asked why UEA was part
of less than a quarter of UK universities who refused to release any details, a university spokesperson said: “The information requested was judged to be seeking individual data and as such would not come under the FOI legislation – it’s not possible to comment on why other universities took a different view… Other universities might record the information in ways that make it easier to provide without disclosing personal data, but that is speculation”. The FOI sent to UEA was originally made on 1st April 2020 and can be found in the UEA FOI Disclosure Log under reference number FOI_20-088. In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000, a UEA Data Protection Specialist confirmed in a letter of response to Al Jazeera that “the University does not hold information on minutes of internal hearings relevant to complaints made against a student”. Instead, they detailed that “notes may be made at an internal hearing which are then used to write a formal response letter, and the letter then becomes the record of the hearing”. The Data Protection Specialist then went on to note a number of exemptions which had been applied to parts of Al Jazeera’s request. Firstly, they believed that the disclosure of some of the requested information would breach the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This information includes “the dates of internal hearings, the outcomes or sanctions applied
relating to the originating complaints, and any minutes of internal hearings”. Within the letter of response, they also stated the total number of internal hearings is “very low”. Bearing this in mind, they believe “the combination of data requested would be so specific that it could lead to identification of the incidents and the individuals involved”. According to the Data Protection Specialist, for incidents where the alleged perpetrator is a member of staff, the minutes for internal hearings would be part of the individual’s personnel record and could only be considered “intensely personal”. They also acknowledge that Al Jazeera would accept minutes with sensitive information redacted. However, they claim that releasing any of the information requested would include “personally identifiable information and would therefore be contrary to the GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018”. Finally, they said: “we have not identified a lawful basis that would allow or require us to disclose this information”. SU Welfare, Community, and Diversity Officer Aaron Campbell stated: “I am personally very upset and disappointed at UEA’s decision to not send any data following an FOI request on sexual harassment complaints. Especially considering that the university was one of the few not to do so… From my understanding, UEA take sexual harassment complaints very seriously. However, I am looking to ensure they are doing the best they possibly can”.
Editorial
26th October 2021
Climate change, as told by you Sam Gordon Webb
Deputy Editor
The University of East Anglia’s Official Student Newspaper since 1992 Tuesday 26th October 2021 Issue 382 Union House University of East Anglia Norwich NR4 7TJ 01603 593466 www.concrete-online.co.uk
Image: Dolly Carter
Asking the important questions about climate change Dolly Carter
Editor-in-Chief
This year, Concrete have made a commitment to ensuring accurate, timely, and consistent climate change coverage. In the context of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), we believe that issue #382 is exploring the important questions about sustainability, conservation, and climate science. This year, we have introduced a ‘Climate Change Corner’ to our Science section, which is overseen by our Science Editor Mariam Jallow. Thus far, this has included an interview with Dr Jeff Price on his upcoming talk at the Norwich Science Festival, an interview with PhD student Aayushi Awasthy on her podcast ‘Why haven’t we solved Climate Change Yet?’, and, this issue, focusses upon coverage of a talk delivered by four UEA Climate scientists answering the question: ‘Are we heading for extinction?’ We have also been reporting on climate-related issues in a range of other sections, including pieces
on Extreme E changing the face of motorsport, sustainable coffee being offered on campus, greenwashing in the textile industry, and a contribution to our ‘Global Investigates’ series questioning whether the EU are exporting the climate crisis abroad. Our Breaking News team have also been hard at work offering updates on the most pressing stories, covering deadly record-breaking temperatures in Canada, the “code red” IPCC report, and scorching heatwaves in the Pacific Northwest. Coverage of Norwich Science Festival has also begun and this year, we’re sending a whole host of writers to report on the events. Look out for write-ups of the ‘Hello Future Fashion’ workshop, the CliFi children’s fiction talk, and an exploration of the impacts of climate change on Norfolk’s biodiversity in both this and next issue! Personally, I got to know the faces behind UEA’s COP26 Festival in the Interview section of this issue. Festival Director, Ekaterina Dudakova, and organisers Charlie Bench and Meg Watts discussed their personal stories
with the environment, the events taking place in the festival, and the lasting impact they hope to have upon UEA’s attitude toward climate change. Concrete are also delighted to be teaming up with UEA to deliver the Report for the Future climate journalism program. As part of ClimateUEA, a universitywide initiative bringing all of UEA’s climate research and innovation activities together, Project Change aims to work with young people across the region to inspire, inform, and equip them with the tools they need to understand the complexities of climate change. Report for the Future is a chance to ensure young voices are heard in the climate change debate by helping young people to become subject experts on COP26. Concrete are helping with this by being on-call to aid them in producing their reports throughout the duration of COP26 and I’m delivering virtual media training to all participants! Please join us in our commitment to the climate through accurate, timely, and consistent coverage – let’s ask the important questions about climate change.
Rejoicing in normalities and facing realities Freyja Elwood
Deputy Editor
Where has the time gone? Term seems to be flying by and I’m starting to wish it would slow down. This is my third issue of Concrete in print and I think I/we are all starting to get into the swing of things a bit more. The content in 381 was my favourite ever Concrete, and the content for this issue, once again, raises the bar. I can’t wait for you all to get your hands on it. Personally, I’ve just been pootling
along trying to enjoy myself. The postpublication pub trips we have in the Concrete team, winning the Cambridge Autumn Head with my friends in rowing (UEABC) and enjoying my new modules. Life sort of feels back to normal. I think what’s shocked me the most is how much I’ve craved this familiarity and normality. And whilst the pandemic is certainly not over, and could return, it does feel almost like a thing of the past. This Concrete issue is focused on the topic of Climate Change with the COP26 approaching. And whilst my cravings for familiar life have been satisfied, we
must now get uncomfortable with the reality this planet is facing. I hope this issue inspires and motivates you to make positive changes in your life, as it has done with myself. How should things be different now? How could things be different now? Should we have new political systems or new approaches to certain things? What can we as individuals do to leave our planet better than we found it? Let’s answer these together over a Snake Bite (whilst discussing the change of cordial, SU explain yourself ) and an SU Pizza. See you in three weeks.
After the success of Concrete’s previous edition, the team are back with more stellar content. Take a look at our sports section for a roundup of all the sporting action from the university’s sports teams, including rugby, rowing, and tennis. Check out the Features section for Editor Maja Anushka’s personal experience of dealing with diet culture. In Travel and Lifestyle, find the five best places for a ‘green’ walk in Norwich by Andre Hughes. In Science, delve into the psychology of why we watch horror films in our ‘Bizarre Science’ column, and learn about efforts to increase the number of Black academic staff in STEM university programs. Explore the Latin America’s femicide crisis in our Global Investigates, an issue I’m sure resonates with people across our local community. People come and go, but Concrete will always be here, reporting the facts and holding people to account. Ahead of COP26 taking place next month, our attention focuses, rightly, on the matter of climate change. What can we do as students to reduce the detrimental impact on our planet? Or more fittingly, we can start by re-watching ‘The Trick’, a BBC Drama starring Jason Watkins about a world-renowned professor, Philip Jones, who found himself in the middle of an international media storm after leaked emails appeared to suggest the effects of global warming had been exaggerated. Despite receiving poor reviews, widely described as being rather dull and unexciting, parts of the one and half hour long film were filmed on campus, and the story itself showcases UEA at the forefront of research dedicated towards the pursuit of the truth. On that note, let’s keep up the brave work of our predecessors.
concrete-online.co.uk
ConcreteUEA ConcreteUEA Front page photo: Concrete/Samuel Baxter Cut outs: Unsplash (left), Yoli Wallbanks (centre)
Editor-in-Chief Dolly Carter concrete.editor@uea.ac.uk Deputy Editors Sam Gordon Webb & Freyja Elwood
News Una Jones Senior Writer: Rachel Keane Global Aislinn Wright Senior Writer: Hamish Davis Features Maja Anushka Senior Writer: Lily Boag Comment Lauren Bramwell Science Mariam Jallow Senior Writer: George Barsted Travel & Lifestyle Tristan Pollitt Sport Oscar Ress Senior Writer: Metin Yilmaz Breaking News Emily Kelly UEA Correspondent: Jim Gell UK Correspondent: Addie Cannell International Correspondent: Melody Chan Online Editors Matthew Stothard, Ray Khawaja & Rianna Jones Copy Editors Sophie Colley, Phoebe Lucas & Julia Reynolds Social Media Manager Badriya Abdullah Lead Photographer Samuel Baxter
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, Dolly Carter. 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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“A matter of seconds can change the lives of victims”: an interview with UEA(SU) Women+ Officer Patrycja Poplawska Emily Kelly
News Writer
With an influx of cases of drink spiking taking place across the country and within the UEA community, statements have been issued from both the SU itself and from Womens+ Officer Patrycja Poplawska condemning those involved in the practice and offering advice for those who have been affected. I had the opportunity to sit down with Patrycja and speak to them about the problem. She made it clear if a case of spiking is reported, it is “thoroughly investigated by the students’ union, and while the investigation is ongoing, the perpetrator is not allowed into any SU events. If they are found guilty, their SU
UEA
membership is completely revoked, and they are unable to join societies or attend events like Damn Good. It is then escalated and reported to the university, who will follow their own disciplinary procedure which could result in exclusion from your course, and of course pressing criminal charges is always an option.” When asked if this was severe enough, Patrycja told me she does think these punishments are adequate, as “a matter of seconds can change the lives of victims, both physically and mentally. "Also, if you’re excluded from your course, this goes on your record, good luck finding a job as a lawyer or a doctor- people with allegations like that will never find work again. "The SU does have a complete zero-tolerance policy on spiking, and I think we need to make that clear.” She pointed to resources
Students'
Freyja Elwood Deputy Editor
UEA(SU) and Activities and Opportunities Officer, Lizzie Payne, have released a joint statement following the incidents which took place at Sportsnight last week (6th October) and the subsequent reforms to the club night. In the statement, the SU apologised for the disorganisation, citing unexpected attendance numbers and security concerns as the reason for the cancellation of the night. Following this the statement
Union
announced a series of changes to Sports Night. Payne wrote that Sportsnight would be moved “into the LCR, where [UEA SU] can hold the event at a higher capacity”. Additionally, the event will now be ticketed, and while these are initially set to be free, the statement pointed out that “the LCR costs around £5000 to open, so going forward we may need to resort to a small charge to cover our costs”. It is unclear how much will be charged for those wishing to attend the events, but the statement clarifies that only UEA Sport members can access
University to reintroduce discounted taxi scheme after student staff outrage Dolly Carter Editor-in-Chief
In a statement collected by Concrete, the University have announced their intentions to reintroduce the discounted taxi scheme for student staff members working late nights at their venues. A university spokesperson said: “The university is currently reviewing policies and is planning to reintroduce a UEA version of this discounted taxi scheme. Unfortunately, there is a different set of financial criteria that applies to the University as an employer as opposed to the Students’ Union and that needs resolving initially”. UEA agreed to take over management
of several SU outlets after concerns the SU would go bankrupt in August 2020. The scheme was discontinued after this takeover, but the SU continue to offer all its student staff in their venues who work past 10pm the opportunity to take a taxi home, for a cost of £2. The Students’ Union Welfare, Community, and Diversity Officer Aaron Campbell stated: “We hoped this provision would be taken on by the university for student staff working in the ex-SU premises such as the shop. He continued: "We feel it is a real shame that the university is not offering this service and that this could impact student safety and we would urge them to reconsider”.
such as Drinkaware, which can be used to highlight a number of the signs and symptoms to look out for if you suspect someone has been spiked, including “nausea, confusion, loss of balance and lowered inhibitions.” In terms of reporting instances of spiking, they said there are “two parts to the process: on the night, you can go to any member of staff- Venues, bar, security or Alcohol Impact, who are specifically trained to help in these situations. Equally, if you think your friend has been spiked and isn’t in a position to report it, make sure to report it on their behalf so they can get the help they need. Reporting on the night informs our security that something’s going on and gives us the best chance to catch them so they can be held accountable, so try to give as much information as you
issue
can. After the fact, we also have Report and Support and Advice SU, and it’s really important that if you feel comfortable, you report instances such as this to the University.” Patrycja assured me SU are taking a proactive approach to dealing with spiking, with an “awareness and education campaign” taking place for staff and students in the near future. Furthermore, she was keen to promote the anti-spiking devices available for bottles in the bar and mentioned “the SU are looking to get more of these for different kinds of drinks, such as something to cover cups”. “Student feedback is also really important to us,” she said to me, “I attended an event with Feminist Society talking about how we can keep women safe on campus, and all their suggestions were fed back to the union and be
Sports
tickets and that these will be capped to one per person. Alcohol Impact will also attend future events, and security will now be able to breathalyse people if they suspect they are too intoxicated to go into the LCR. Anticipation for the return of UEA’s free club night for sports members, combined with a screen shot circulating stating a capacity of 350 in Blue Bar, caused chaos. Sports clubs had arrived on campus as early as 8pm in order to ensure attendance, but were met with no security presence or queuing system. By around 9pm a “queue” had
introduced into their future plans”. When asked whether current messaging, which has been accused of placing the onus on victims by members of the student community, was effective, Patrycja said, “it’s always important that we are telling the people who would even consider spiking someone to check themselves, to remember that you’re not only ruining your own lives but other people’s too, and you’re making everyone uncomfortable.” To end the interview, Patrycja offered these reassuring words: “we also want to make sure we’re helping people to keep themselves and each other safe, so while the focus should always be on the perpetrator and those considering spiking drinks, but there are things we can do to keep each other safe”.
Night
statement
begun to form at the main doors to BarSU, yet due to the lack of barriers this spanned at least five people deep and continued around the corner onto The Street. In order to reduce the width of the queue, once security arrived they placed two barriers alongside to stop it extending and instead opened the side entrance to BarSU, causing a swarm to form around these doors. The crowd proceeded to make their way through the main doors, despite no security present at the entrance. The dividing doors between Red Bar and Blue Bar were in place causing
a build up of around 150 people, with many others trying to enter from the side doors at the same time. The situation inside became dangerous and with very limited movement space, a crush began as more and more people began arriving. The doors were expected to open at 10pm, however, when it became apparent that they weren’t, the crowd inside began to ease, with many using alternate routes such as the toilets to get around or out of the building. At around 10.30pm it was circulated that the night had been cancelled and the crowd dispersed with many opting to remain in the Square.
Photo: Concrete/Samuel Baxter
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Vacant stores seek new owners in city centre Sam Gordon Webb Deputy Editor
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Boris Johnson against making misogyny a hate crime Rachel Keane
Senior News Writer
The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has said he does not support calls to make misogyny a hate crime. He claims there is“abundant”existing legislation to combat violence against women and “widening the scope” of what the police are expected to do will only exacerbate the problem. This comes after the murders of Sarah Everard and, more recently, Sabina Nessa of which have raised the profile of discussions regarding women’s safety in our communities. Womens’ rights campaigners say misogyny is a “root cause” of violence against women and are calling for it to be considered a hate crime in England and Wales. If misogyny became a
hate crime it would give judges the ability to increase the level of punishment inflicted upon those who partake in a misogynistic offence. Under the current system, hate crimes can fall under race, religion, sexual orientation, disability, and transgender identity but do not extend to prejudice against women directly. In response to calls to include misogyny amongst this list of hate crimes, Johnson said: “What you need to do is get the police to focus on the very real crimes, the very real feeling of injustice and betrayal that many people feel”. Labour MP, Stella Creasy, suggested she felt this response was inadequate, telling the BBC: “The fact the prime minister dismisses it and doesn’t have an alternative plan speaks volumes about whether you can trust Boris Johnson to take this seriously”. It does seem Johnson agrees
“there must be radical change” in policing. However, he believes this should be aimed at tackling the most heinous of crimes, such as rape. Others argue it is the smaller offences that must be taken more seriously if we are to combat the bigger ones due to a perceived culture of acceptance and normalisation of violence against women which they wish to disrupt. Justice Minister, Victoria Atkins, told the BBC’s World At One that women should no longer have to put up with unpleasant or violent banter that makes them feel uncomfortable, nor have to deal with being “touched up” whilst on public transport. An extra 650 police officers will be dispatched to London’s streets over the next six months to try to reduce violent crime. For many, however, this does not create a feeling of safety, particularly after the sentencing
of a Met Police officer for the violent murder of Sarah Everard. Following Sarah and Sabina’s cases, the Met Police recommended women flag down a bus should they feel unsafe with an officer. This has also been met with uncertainty and outrage. In an attempt to tackle the male-dominant culture within the police, the PM has suggested recruiting and promoting more female officers would be beneficial. There are also several reviews and independent studies underway to decide whether misogyny should be considered a hate crime. The Law Commission - an independent body that advises the government - has said sex or gender-based hostility should be a hate crime, but are yet to release their official recommendations. Met Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick has also announced a separate review into the force’s standards and culture.
One of Norwich’s most prominent vacant stores has been finally bought after Topshop were forced to close the site following the collapse of Sir Philip Green's Arcadia Group. Despite fears the unit in the Haymarket would struggle to find a buyer, a three-million-pound purchase is expected to be completed by the end of this month. The buyer is thought to be a locally based “national property developer which specialises in mixed-use developments". Tim Ashe, an associate director of the real estate GWC behind the sale, told reporters “the buyer does all sorts of things, from retail to residential and offices - you can probably expect some kind of mixed-use adaptation. He also suggested the catchment area made it less vulnerable to major closures than towns and cities in other counties, saying “major retailers that maybe once had 200 or 300 branches nationwide are wanting to cut that down to say 100-or so, but to these companies Norwich is an attractive place to be...a strange part of the world where you're about an hour or so away from the nearest big city, whereas if you look at Yorkshire you have big cities like York and Leeds close to one another, so they're more likely to lose one of them.” However, many of the city’s most notable vacant spots have yet to be reoccupied, prompting concerns from local businesses and consumers alike. Debenhams closed in May, but the six-storey building - one of the largest retail spaces in the city - has yet to confirm a purchase. This comes after it was widely assumed a single buyer had been found in July with "positive plans'' for the site. The former BHS in St Stephens Street closed in 2016 following the collapse of the high street giant and having been temporarily occupied by Primark until the retailer moved to a permanent location in the city centre, the storefront has been left uninhabited.
Prince Charles: climate change inaction could be ‘catastrophic’ Phoebe Lucas News Writer
Asked about the recent climate change protests at his home in Balmoral, Prince Charles offered: “it isn’t helpful, I don't think, to do it in a way that alienates people”. He warned of a "catastrophic" impact if more action is not taken to solve the climate crisis. The Prince of Wales mentioned the lack of action
regarding the climate change crisis and frustration must be directed “in a way that is more constructive rather than destructive." Prince Charles has found his own methods to reduce his carbon footprint without being destructive. He told the BBC how he doesn't eat meat and fish on two days of the week or any dairy products on
another day in an attempt to be more friendly to the climate. He acknowledged how difficult it can be to make changes to reduce environmental pressures and added if more people reduced their meat and dairy intake, “it would reduce a lot of pressure on the environment”. He also explained how most of his vehicles are electric, and
his Aston Martin has been modified to run on E-85 fuel. Made up of 85% of bioethanol which is derived from wine surplus and alcohol extracted from fermented whey, in essence, his car is powered by the derivatives of wine and cheese. Firmly believing in the power and finance that businesses can bring to the crisis, the prince acknowledged how governments can bring
billions of dollars to the campaign, but the private sector can provide trillions. He continued to express his fears that many business executives are not prioritising the climate effort as they should. For Prince Charles the climate conference in Glasgow will be a “last chance saloon” and a “disaster” if the world won’t come together to tackle climate change.
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Universal Credit: “biggest ever overnight cut to social security” Una Jones News Editor
The increase to Universal Credit, amounting to £1,040 a year, was brought in to support those on low incomes during the pandemic. The government announced its withdrawal of the support on October 6th and is projected to risk pushing half a million people and children into poverty. Katie Schmuecker, deputy director of policy & partnerships at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, has branded it "the biggest ever overnight cut to social security". Resolution chief executive
Torsten Bell tweeted about the impact, suggesting: "4.4 million households, with 5.1m adults and 3.5m children, will see their incomes fall by £1,000 overnight”. The withdrawal of the Universal Credit uplift coincides with increases in the cost of living as the Bank of England has predicted inflation will rise 4% in the coming months and is unlikely to be matched by wage growth by most economical sectors. Rising prices are being found in areas driven by necessities, such as gas and electricity and will add to the struggles of those on lower incomes. Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng
has admitted people in the UK will be facing “a very difficult winter”. As a result, families have detailed the reduction in their income, paired with the rising cost of living, which will force them to choose between “heating or eating”. The government has defended the decision to reduce Universal Credit payments, saying the £20 uplift was always intended to be temporary and encouraging people back into work is the best way to tackle poverty. On the other side of this statement, families find themselves having to adjust to the decreased income alongside the governments’ proposition to increase National Insurance bills. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
From April 2022, National Insurance tax will be rising by 1.25 percentage points to help get the NHS back on track following the backlog from the Covid-19 pandemic and potentially contribute to long-awaited reforms to social care. As National Insurance is paid for by both employees and businesses, the Institute of Directors has expressed concerns where one in three firms may be encouraged to put a stop to expanding and therefore stop recruiting. Especially, while firms recover from the impacts of lockdowns and take over from furlough payments, they may find themselves more hesitant to recruit.
This goes against the government’s aim by cutting universal credit to get more people back into work to tackle poverty. The increase was confirmed and voted on by MPs last month and additionally infringes on a manifesto commitment signed up to by the Conservatives in 2019. Julian Jessop suggested that the National Insurance tax increase will not benefit the social care reforms for a number of years due to the backlog. He suggests "it’s a missed opportunity to have a fundamental rethink about social care and tax” and branded it a short-term fix “that may end up fixing nothing at all”.
The Green Party elects new leadership Rachel Keane
Senior News Writer
Carla Denyer and Adrian Ramsey have been elected as the new co-leaders of the Green Party of England and Wales. This comes as the party are polling at 9% in recent opinion polls, making them the third biggest UK party by voting intention. Previous co-leader, Sian Berry, recently stepped down after deciding her own beliefs on supporting the rights of trans people in the UK were not backed by the whole Photo: of the Wikimedia party. Commons As a result of the democratic structure of the party, decisions could be made which were irreconcilable with her own views. Berry acknowledged her failure to change the opinion of her colleagues on trans issues was a failure of her own leadership. Jonathan Bartley, the other previous co-leader who served with Berry, declared his reason for stepping down was to give new leaders the chance to fully engage with their new role before a potential snap election in 2024. Denyer and Ramsay now have big plans to gain more councillors and MPs across the UK, providing green policies with a larger platform. Ramsay first became a councillor
in Norwich when he was just 21 and later became the deputy leader of the party. Denyer also has a lot of experience in the party as a Bristol councillor. Between them, they want to make sure climate change is at the focus of every policy choice in the UK. On her election, Denyer said; “it is clear that the other major political parties have failed to bring about the change that is necessary.
“the other major political parties have failed to bring about the change necessary” More than ever before, it is vital that Green policies are adopted for the benefit of our climate and our communities”. Ramsay has also said they would campaign vigorously for the introduction of policies such as the four-day working week and universal basic income, highlighting their approach was “just as much about social justice as it is about tackling the climate and ecological emergency”.
Sleep Out at Carrow Road for The Benjamin Foundation Charity Rachel Keane
Senior News Writer
The Benjamin Foundation Charity is running a Sleep Out Under the Stars this November to raise money and awareness for homelessness within our communities. Based in Norfolk and Suffolk, the Benjamin Foundation works to end youth homelessness by providing safe accommodation for vulnerable young people, alongside offering mental wellbeing support through
counselling and job coaching. The event will take place at the Carrow Road Stadium in Norwich on the 11th of November, supporting a sister event at the Portman Road Stadium in Ipswich on the 4th of November. The aim of the sleep out is to raise awareness for homelessness, as well as raise donations to support local young people. The charity is inviting members of the public to join in with the sleep out to help bring attention and funds to this worthwhile cause. Whilst the charity is clear the
Sleep Out does not intend to replicate experiences of homelessness, it is hoped it will generate a deeper amount of compassion and attention to those who are currently without a home. In 2019, the event raised a record £100,000 for the charity. Jessica Glover, events manager at the Benjamin Foundation, said: “Money raised at SleepOut enables us to do even more to help young people when they need us most, supporting them to create the building blocks to successful, independent living”. Whilst the event was cancelled
in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Glover has announced the charity, “are thrilled to bring our Sleep Out events back for 2021 in a Covid-safe way and we are grateful for the support of our exciting host venue Norwich City Football Club”. In order to make the event possible, there is a £25 fee for registration, although there is a £10 discounted rate for students. The Benjamin Foundation hopes participants will raise sponsorship or donations for their sleep out so as to raise as much money as possible for the charity to continue their
work. The charity does not just work to help those who are already experiencing homelessness but aims to prevent it from happening. Its staff and volunteers are deeply integrated in the local community, supporting young children, young carers, and families, aiming to promote hope, opportunity, stability and independence. Find out how to get involved and all the information you will need at: https:// benjaminfoundation.co.uk/event/ norwich-sleep-out-2021/
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GLOBAL
Pandora Papers leak reveal offshore assets of the World’s elite and super-rich Aislinn Wright Global Editor
The pandora papers is the name prescribed to the leak of 11.9 million files from companies specialising in offshore trading, a financial practice used by the super-rich to hide assets and avoid taxation. The leak has revealed the offshore assets of more than 100 billionaires, 35 world leaders, and 300 public officials across 90 countries. The pandora papers are the biggest leak of offshore data in history, following similar leaks of the Panama papers in 2016 and the Paradise papers in 2017. The papers, which include emails, memos, and share certificates, were first leaked to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), who then shared access to data with partners including the Guardian, BBC Panorama, and the Washington Post.
Following 18 months of analysis by over 600 journalists, data in the public interest is expected to be shared in the coming weeks. Whilst having an offshore account is not illegal, the secrecy surrounding tax havens has often been a major draw for tax evaders and money launderers. Offshore assets are estimated to cost governments billions in revenue each year. The leak has caused some difficulties for prime minister Boris Johnson, as the files included details of some major Conservative party donors. The leak revealed Azerbaijan’s ruling Aliyev family has traded nearly £400m of UK property in recent years, with one property being sold to the Queen’s estate. Former prime minister Andrej Babiš of the Czech republic faced a crushing defeat in the country’s legislative elections held across the 8th and 9th of October, as just four days before the polls opened the Pandora leak revealed then Prime Minister Babiš had used an offshore investment company to
buy a $22m chateau in the south of France. Russian President Vladimir Putin did not appear by name in the files, but several of his close associates do. This includes child friend the late Petr Kolbin, who has been described as Putin’s “wallet” by critics. Gerard Ryle, the director of the ICIJ, has described the leak as “the Panama papers on steroids,” predicting the Pandora papers to have a far greater impact than any previous leak. Not only are the papers more detailed than any previous, but the leak has occurred during a pandemic that has highlighted wealth inequalities globally. According to a study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published in 2020, globally at least $11.3tn worth of assets are held offshore. Ryle said of this money “we’re losing out because some people are gaining. It’s as simple as that. It’s a very simple transaction that’s going on here.”
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Una Jones
Global Writer
World’s first Malaria vaccine approved Una Jones Global Writer
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has approved the use of the world’s first malaria vaccine, with 800,000 children having already received one dose. Four doses are necessary to be effective, as children are considered most at risk due to lower levels of immunity to the virus, the doses are given one month apart at the age of 5, 6 and 7 months. With a final booster administered at 18 months. Annually, sub-Saharan Africa has seen more than 260,000 children
under the age of 5 die from malaria. As such, the vaccine is projected to save thousands of lives, preventing 40% of cases.Health authorities have stressed that the vaccine does not work alone, but using other preventative measures such as treated bed nets and drugs that can target the malaria parasite can further reduce fatal cases. The vaccine was developed by pharmaceutical giant, GSK, who have pledged to supply the doses at the manufacturing cost, plus 5%. No exact price has been specified yet. Currently, in Kenya, most of the funding for vaccinations comes from donors such as the global vaccine alliance Gavi and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Tension in Taiwan as the Formosa Strait continues to simmer Hamish Davis Global Senior Writer
Characterised by provocative addresses and actions, a wave of renewed tension and concern has surrounded the question of Taiwan’s future in recent months- for the Island nation itself, China, and an international community increasingly focused on the region. Separated by a wedge of Pacific Ocean just a hundred miles in width from coast to coast, it might be falsely assumed that two nations within such close geographic and cultural proximity of one another have a stable relationship. The recent array of military presences in the Formosa Strait illustrates an opposing reality. Since the beginning of Taiwan’s politically alternative path to that of a mainland turned communist through China’s 1949 civil war, geopolitical tension has hung thick in the region’s subtropical air. Most recently, in a four-day period starting on October the 1st, China sent 150 aircrafts to missions in Taiwan’s air-defence identification zone (ADIZ). Regarded by China as a
show of strength against a growing western military interference in the country’s surrounding seas, for Taiwan and its international supporters, intimidation was perhaps a more apt description for the mainland superpower’s actions. A marriage between heavyfooted military tip-toeing on the edge of Taiwan’s internationally recognised airspace and Chinese president Xi Jinping’s subsequent reiterations of a historical state desire for ‘reunification’ have led many to even consider the potential for an imminent invasion. As early as last April, the head of the Pentagon’s Indo-Pacific command Admiral John Aquilino warned that an invasion of Taiwan was ‘much closer to us than most think’. Now, Taiwan’s defence minister Chiu Kuo-Cheng has stated that China would be prepared to launch an invasion within three years if motivated. This growing sense of threat carried through Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen’s speech during last week’s national celebrations as she pledged not to bow to mainland pressure and to bolster defences. Yet beyond the expansionist
bogeyman narrative of old, consumed in the west with a glass of warm milk before bedtime, is inevitably an alternative world view. Last week, an American destroyer the USS Dewey and a Canadian Frigate the HMCS Winnipeg were only the most recent military ships of monthly excursions that pass close by the
Chinese mainland through the Formosa strait. From the perspective of Taiwan’s US ally, the excursions are a marker of what the Biden administration has called their ‘rock-solid’ commitment to Taipei and what a US military spokesperson called a commitment to a ‘free and
open Indo-Pacific’. To the Chinese state these actions are the true provocations that jeopardise regional peace and stability. Clearly as the splashing persists the paddling pool spats are growing more menacing, only time will tell how much so.
Photo: Pixabay
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The US and Taliban talk aid as the dust settles in Afghanistan Hamish Davis Global Senior Writer
Still insisting that they do not recognise the newly formed Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, the US government completed their first direct talks with the Taliban earlier this month in Qatar. The main topic of progress: Aid. At the start of the month, Dohabased Taliban spokesperson Suhail Shaheen told press that a meeting with the US would address bilateral relations and the progress of the Doha agreement (2020).
“The main topic of progress: aid” Such ‘bilateral relations’ faltered at the US suggestion of cooperation
between Washington and the Taliban in tackling a recent IS-K (Islamic State in Khorasan province) resurgenceThe resurgence has killed hundreds of Shiite worshippers so far in recent suicide bombings. But progress was made elsewhere on the topics of safe passage for foreign nationals and what US spokesperson Ned Price called ‘robust humanitarian assistance’.
“The country is in desperate need of humanitarian assistance” As the dust has settled from a crescendo of fighting-a crippled infrastructure, economic hardship and widespread displacement lay in the wake of a collapsed system and the rise of a Taliban regime. The country
is in desperate need of humanitarian assistance. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), by September 22nd, 634,800 people had been displaced and 805,000 people had returned from neighbouring countries. Large scale movement, combined with Afghanistan’s second severe drought in four years, covid-19 and the political persecution of certain working demographics have all led to widespread insecurity in the daily lives of the population. Even by the half-year mark, it was projected that 18.4 million Afghan people needed aid in 2021. Now, as of September 24th, one in three people face ‘emergency’ or ‘crisis’ levels of food insecurity. Clearly then, such Taliban cooperation at talks between representatives is positive. Yet, as Boris Johnson said in mid-August: the Taliban government should be Photo: Pixabay
Bolsonaro blocks free tampons and pads for disadvantaged women in Brazil Sienna Norris Global Writer
On 7th October, Jair Bolsonaro, the president of Brazil, vetoed a bill that would allow free period products to be distributed to young, poverty-stricken students. In Brazil, 1 in 4 girls do not have the correct sanitary protection during their period, which can cause them to miss weeks of vital education. The bill was initially proposed in September, which would have benefitted over 5 million women, including those that are homeless, imprisoned or of a working-class background. Unfortunately, Bolsonaro claims that there isn’t enough money to provide this service, which,
understandably, caused outrage, and #LivreParaMenstruar (free to menstruate) began trending. There have been a fair few individuals against Bolsonaro’s decision, Espírito Santo’s vice-governor, Jacqueline Moraes, said in a tweet: “Is it ‘a privilege’ for a poor woman to have the right to a tampon? No! It’s social policy, public health!”. Clue, a renowned period tracking app, also tweeted: “Hi Bolsonaro, menstruation isn’t a luxury” and, the Brazil Solidarity Initiative used the hashtag to say that Bolsonaro’s veto is “A clear example of the misogyny entrenched in his administration”. Many large corporations have offered their support to the protestors who are fighting for the cause, and Bolsonaro is yet to
Photo:Wikimedia Commons
give a response in regards to the protests currently taking place. Last year, Scotland was the first nation to offer free period products in public spaces, and more recently, New Zealand has raised millions and is beginning to offer schools the same service. With very few places providing free period products, smaller institutions have been offering this service for those who are unable to attain sanitary care. Here at UEA, the Bloody Good Period Society have set up a “menstruation station” in the library for those in need, as well as a donation bin in the su shop of free menstruation products.
Hundreds of thousands of children abused by priests in France, report finds Jim Gell
Global Writer
In a report published on 5th October, The Independent Commission’s investigation for Sexual Harassment at the Church revealed around 216,000 minors had been sexually abused by French priests since 1950. Jean Marc Suave, head of the inquiry, found there were at least 2,900-3,200 abusers, enabled by the Catholic Church’s “deep, total and even cruel indifference” whose “immediate reaction was to protect itself as an institution”.
“There were at least 2,900-3,200 abusers” According to Suave, most victims were boys aged between 10 and 13. Considering the abuses committed in France by non-priests in the clergy, this figure could rise to 330,000, a
wide-ranging study by France’s INSERM health and medical research institute says. François Devaux, an abusee, thanked the investigation team, saying they “have finally brought victims an institutional recognition of the church’s responsibility, something that bishops and the pope have not yet been prepared to do.” A Vatican statement said Pope Francis “felt pain” upon hearing the inquiry’s finding, and his “mind goes first to the victims, with deep sorrow for their wounds and gratitude for their courage to speak out.” Although most of the cases are beyond the statute of limitations, Sauve urged the Church to pay reparations to their victims, while the report recommended the Church make drastic changes. These include a thorough repair of its internal legal system, reform in governance and training, a look at the overwhelming power wielded by priests, and increasing the number of lay preachers and women.
26th October 2021
GLOBAL INVESTIGATES
Global Editor Aislinn Wright femicide
The World Health Organization defines femicide as the “intentional murder of women because they are women.” Globally, there remains a significant lack of data in regards to femicide rates, with many governments failing to collate data specifically relating to the murder of women.
“There remains a significant lack of data in regards to femicide rates” Instead, gender based murder is counted amongst overall homicide figures, obscuring the true prevelance of femicide. This approach to femicide fails to portray the true lethal reality women face, according to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) 43,600 women and girls had been killed by a partner, ex-partner, or family member in 2012. According to data collected from 2015 by the Femicide Watch initiative, coupled with data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, 80 percent of the victims of murders involving romantic partners are women, with these crimes being notably more violent in comparison to other homicides.
“80% of the victims of murders involving romantic partners are women” Women are more likely to die from strangulation, drowning, suffocation, or stabbing than their male counterparts. The most complete data available on global femicide rates comes from a 2016 Small Arms Survey, “A Gendered Analysis of Violent Deaths,” which concluded that of the 25 countries with the highest femicide rate, 14 of these were located in Latin America and the Caribbean, though it must be noted that Latin America is also the
region with the most complete data in regards to femicide. However, if the statistics provided by this region are to be taken as indicative of a global trend, it paints the picture of a horrifyingly violent reality for women globally. The issue of femicide in Latin America first grew in prominence in the 1990s when, from 1990 to the early 2000s, the Mexican border town of Ciudad Juárez reported hundreds of women either missing or found dead, their bodies showing signs of torture. Tragically, for the women of Mexico and Latin America, this decade of violence is far from an isolated case. The femicide rate in Mexico has experienced a staggering increase in recent years. In 2019, Mexico counted a total of almost 35,000 murders, and whilst only ten percent of these are femicides, this marks an increase of 145 percent from 2015, the equivalent of almost ten femicides a day. This number, although staggeringly high, remains incomplete as several Mexican states do not count femicides specifically. Regionally, Mexico ranked only behind Brazil in the number of femicides committed in 2018. Brazil reported over 1,200 femicides, a rate of 1.1 per 100,000 women. However, Brazil is often excluded from femicide data due to its extremely poor management of data, using one of the worst systems in the world. This obscures the true femicide rate of the country. Argentina ranked third for 2018 with a total of 255 femicides, a rate of 1.1 per 100,000 women. Although estimates vary dramatically, El Salvador is believed to have a femicide rate between 6.1 and 13.9 per 100,00 women and Honduras between 5.1 and 32.7 per 100,000 women, with both countries ranking within the top five countries for femicide globally. Columbia has seen an increase in annual femicides, now averaging one femicide every two days. Despite these already high rates of femicide, and some governmental efforts to reduce the number, the annual number of femicides across the region has shown no indication of slowing. Chile typically has a lower
femicide rate than other Latin American countries, counting a total of 45 femicides in 2019 with a further 107 reported attempts. However, this seems to be increasing, following the same pattern as her neighbouring
murders of transgender women in femicide stastics, despite trans w o m e n often being victims extremely violent crimes. In November 2019,
countries. In just the first two months of 2020, Chile counted five femicides and a further 17 attempts of homicide against women. Significantly, no Latin American country includes the
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL) announced it was working on developing a new system to register femicide data for all of Latin America and the Caribbean, this will create a new standardized data
of The
base for all femicides in the region. This represents a significant opportunity to tackle the crisis,
once the full extent of the problem is known and countries can be held accountable for their statistics, appropriate measures can be put in place to target femicide.
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investigates crisis Speaking ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against women in 2020,
gender related Killings of women, and gender-based violence against women, through the establishment of national multidisciplinary prevention bodies or Femicide watches/ observatories on violence against women.”
Latin ‘Day without us,” marked the beginning of a series of protests with women walking out of work, school, and the home. The protest highlighted the lack of genuine efforts from the Mexican government to
America’s
time of the attack often being shown across news outlets. The Protest is the first time in Mexican history that so many women have protested against violence against women, the effects of which could be felt across Latin America as an increasing number of women become politicised in their fight to end gender-based violence.
“An increasing number of women become politicised in their fight to end genderbased violence”
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Dubravka Šimonovic, a UN special rapporteur on violence against women called on “all States and relevant stakeholders worldwide to take urgent steps to prevent the pandemic of femicide or
The same year, an unprecedented number of Mexican women took part in a nationwide strike the day after 2020’s International Women’s day. The protest, known as “Un Día Sin Nosotras” or a
tackle femicide and critiqued media coverage of such crimes, with protestors accusing media outlets of paying too much attention to the accused’s statements and showing little respect for victims, with their bodies and clothes from the
Several Latin American countries have made efforts to tackle femicide, though these projects are typically limited and have so far failed to deliver any noticeable change. In 2003, femicide was typified as a crime separate to standard homicide in the Mexican Penal Code under Article 325. The article stipulates that for a murder to be a femicide it must include: signs of sexual violence on the body, degrading mutilations or injuries, the body is left exposed in public spaces, a record of family related violence, or an intimate relationship between the victim and the suspect. Although this would suggest a great legal improvement for women’s rights and a step forward in the fight to reduce femicides, Article 325 has fallen short of delivering legal progress. The article includes a clause, known as the “patriachy padlock” amongst activists, which gives the judge the final decision on classifying a murder as a femicide. As a consequence, only a significant minority of apparent femicides are treated as such, with the overwhelming majority being typified as homicide and thus removed from data on sexually charged crimes. So far, 17 other Latin American countries have also typified femicide into their legal codes, with the crime often carrying a much harsher punishment than homicide. In Panama, femicide carries a twenty-five year prison sentence, five more than aggravated homicide. In Honduras, femicide carries a thirty to forty year
sentence, double that of aggravated homicide. In this way, Latin America is leading efforts against gender-based violence, few countries outside the region, and none in Europe, make any legal use of the term femicide. This does not mean, however, that there has been any significant, real-world world protection afforded to women, as femicide conviction rates remain drastically low despite the prevalence of the crime. According to the DirectorateGeneral for a Life Free of Violence, Fabiola Alanís, of all reported femicides in Mexico, three percent make it to court, of which only one percent ends in a sentencing. There has, however, been some recent progress in the fight against femicide. In 2016, the Peruvian government acknowledged the issue of femicide with the creation of the National Plan Against Gender-Based Violence, with several bodies now working towards the reduction of femicide and the prosecution of perpetrators, and whilst it remains to early to detect any change in Peruvian statistics, the project represents a significant and meaningful attempt to reduce femicide in the country.
“A significant and meaningful attempt to reduce femicide in the country” Chile has also seen some progress with Sebastian Piñera recently expanding the legal definition of femicide to include non-married romantic partners and increased the sentences for the murder of pregnant women, minors, and disabled women. Prior to the new law, known as the Gabriella Law after Gabriela Alcanio who was murdered by her boyfriend in 2018, Chile only included spouses and live-in partners as perpetrators of femicide. Though it remains too early to see any significant impact from new efforts to tackle femicide, there is significant hope that new efforts from governmental bodies, along with increasing numbers of women across the region vocally fighting for their rights and safety, that we may begin to see the tides change and a desperately needed reduction in the statistics of such a violent crime.
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FEATURES
Janteloven: the Norwegian norm that the UK helped me unlearn Synne Solbrekken Features Writer
In Norway, we have this law. Well, not really a law; it’s more of a societal norm. It’s called Janteloven or, in English, The Law of Jante.
Photo: Unsplash
There are many ways to interpret it, but it generally refers to how you should put society ahead of your individual self, don’t boast about individual accomplishments, and don’t be jealous of others. We weren’t taught about The Law of Jante in school, and I honestly don’t exactly know how I know it. I’ve just always known about it, though I’m not sure I fully understand it. It’s unspoken but somehow, still so familiar to me. It states: “You’re not to think you are anything special. You’re not to think you are as good as we are. You’re not to think you are smarter than we are. You’re not to think you know more than we do. You’re not to think you are more important than we are. You’re not to think you are good at anything. You’re not
to think anyone cares about you. You’re not to think you can teach us anything.” This is definitely hard to explain to foreigners. The law itself sounds quite harsh and, despite its benefits for society as a whole, it is very damaging to the individual. Today, it is something most Norwegians are in the process of unlearning. I can only speak for myself, but I struggle with accepting praise and being confident. Not boasting, being humble and not wanting to stand out is deep-rooted in me. I sometimes forget it’s part of my identity. That is, until I moved to England. Now, it seems I am reminded of it every day; I am different. Having to repeat my name multiple times and being met with: “Oh where are
you from?” “Norway? That’s so cool!” or, when people learn I speak/understand multiple languages: “Wow! For real?! You must be so smart!” My reply has always been along the lines of “It’s not that cool” and “I’m not that smart.” Back home, I could easily abide by The Law of Jante, but here I am unique. It’s not that I wasn’t unique before, because every person is. It’s just, here, it became so painfully obvious I wasn’t like everybody else. I started to dislike everything that made me stand out; my height, my hair, my eyes and especially my accent. I didn’t think any of these things were ugly per se: I only wanted to fit in. I didn’t want the compliments and interest in me and my foreignness to risk me becoming less than humble. I am not any better than the next
person. Compliments and interest don’t change the value of a person. I think the underlying message of Janteloven is: everything in moderation. Thinking too much about yourself prevents you from helping others. On the other hand, to help anyone else you have to help yourself. There needs to be a certain sense of individualism for people to be confident and do their best. This individualism seems more prevalent in England. So, in a weird way, coming here has forced me to focus on myself and put my individual self in the spotlight. It’s given me the confidence I needed to say: it’s okay to be proud of my accomplishments, it’s okay to believe in my abilities and it’s okay to like myself just the way I am.
Dating while trans makes me feel like an outsider Max Wrigley
Identifying as gay and transgender (or G&T as I call it), I’ve never been in a relationship. I’m not the biggest socialite and, even though I live near the city’s two gay bars/nightclubs, I’ve been too scared to go to them as I have no-one to go with. Being 22, I feel like my life’s been wasted.
Features Writer
Content warning: mental health decline, references to self-harm and overdoses Being transgender has multiple hurdles and blocks to move and overcome. Mental health and dating have proven to be my two biggest challenges to date.
“Though I live near two gay bars, I’ve been too scared to go”
“Mental health and dating have proven to be my two biggest challenges” Prior to the pandemic, I had battled the healthcare system and, since starting testosterone in 2017, I have already had a double mastectomy (top surgery) and a hysterectomy, which is the first stage of full lower surgery. I was unsure about full lower surgery at the time but I’ve known since year eight that I never wanted to have children. Having finally understood lower surgery, through having spoken to another female to male transgender who had already been through the whole thing, I’m now on a very long waiting list for the rest of the full procedure. Having had the setback of the pandemic, the waiting time for stage one (of three) shot up to at least a year. When things started to return to normal, there was then another issue: the NHS’ struggle to receive funding
Photo: Unsplash
for genital surgery. This issue was resolved within a month and I’m now waiting for my referral - which had been held in a central system while the issue was being dealt with - to be sent to the only hospital which does lower surgery procedures. While the pandemic has been a cause for the mental health decline for many people who identify as transgender - due to increased waiting time for referrals to gender identity clinics, leading to a longer wait before they can start hormones, and also a l onger waiting list for top surgery (for those who identify as a female to male transgender). For me, my mental health decline has been partly due to dating as transgender, especially
as someone who is through their transition.
only
halfway
“My mental health decline has been partly due to dating as transgender” Prior to moving to Norwich, I was let down tremendously by an LGBT charity who I bent over backwards for through volunteering for them. My mental health was already on the decline at that point as they kept claiming that they “couldn’t
help me” when they were, in fact, refusing to help me. Starting university in 2020 and not originating from Norfolk has meant that I spent a year having been unsuccessful in making any friends. I’m also still suffering from heartbreak, having previously fallen in love with my best mate and lost the friendship with him because the feelings were unrequited. Since then, I’ve struggled to trust people and I’ve been walking around the university campus feeling like an outsider. The mental health decline meant that I had endured multiple overdoses and multiple selfharm relapses, as well as plenty of debates about dropping out due to mental capacity.
Knowing how much I’m missing out on (in terms of socialisation), I’m convinced that whoever said “university is the best time of your life” was obviously a socialite as I’ve yet to be convinced otherwise. I’m also pretty sure I’ll still be single when I graduate in 2024 as you only find true love once and for me, that’s already happened with my ex-best mate. Being as far advanced in my transition that I am, I know I can be a go-to for advice for anyone who identifies as a female to male transgender - even | if I can only give advice on transitioning because I have no experience in the dating scene. I’m also in the process of writing my memoir entitled ‘Coming Out of the Shadows: My Journey Through Transition’, which will document my transition from beginning to end.
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Recovery has changed the way I feel hunger Maja Anushka Features Editor
Content warning: discussions of body image and disordered eating Hunger has changed for me. One year ago, I was in the depths of an eating disorder I didn’t realise I had. Though my friends and family were mostly none the wiser, my mentality was very black and white: food is the enemy, meals should be avoided, and hunger is the uncomfortable but better alternative to being full. Back then, my days were structured around going for as long as possible without eating a substantial meal. I did what my therapist would eventually call ‘grazing’ - nibbling on small snacks, bits of fruit, and tiny portions of food to coast through
the day. Usually, evenings would come with a huge binge of food, which I hated myself for. In truth, this was my body desperately trying to get enough calories to function before the day ended and I went to sleep. I was, unknowingly and unwittingly, in starvation mode. The effect of this, a behaviour that I had learned over a number of years of disordered eating and negative body image, is that my body never really felt hunger. I would get pangs of it, here and there, but they’d pass. Because my stomach was used to getting drip-fed all day and then having a huge meal in the evening, the hunger messages it would usually have been sending got confused and suppressed. In April of this year, I started my therapy with an eating disorder treatment specialist. The first thing she did was put me
on a strict plan, which meant I had to eat at six different times throughout the day - three meals and three snacks. When she told me this, I burst into childish, terrified tears. It felt like more food than I could ever handle. I was scared of ruining my schedule, of disrupting the comfort of my routine, and of getting fat which was, at the time, the absolute worst outcome I could imagine. There were many things which shifted dramatically when I followed my therapists’ advice. The most shocking change, though, was how quickly my body got used to the new, healthy, steady routine. My appetite and hunger patterns adjusted within two weeks or so, which, considering the ten years over which my eating disorder developed, is an almost comically short time for my biology to return to its natural rhythm. Mother Nature is a hell of a thing.
Having not really experienced true, full hunger for many years, I was suddenly hit with a ravenous, all-consuming, demanding hunger. Now that my body knew when it was meant to be getting food, it got very upset if I didn’t fulfil my obligation. I’d adjusted to coasting through an entire day on a low-level, there-but-not-quite-there hunger.
“I’d adjusted to coasting through an entire day on a low-level, therebut-not-quite-there hunger” Now, when my is empty, it’s difficult to think about anything else. focus, I get incredibly
stomach do or I can’t irritable
and nervous, and I’m overcome with a tiredness I can’t shake until I eat. I bring snacks with me everywhere now, so that I’m not caught short. The shocking part is, despite how alien it feels, this sudden, primal craving for food when I’m running on empty isn’t a new feeling. This is the exact same hunger I was dealing with throughout my eating disorder. The brain-fog, the anger, the anxiety, and the fatigue were all there, but they were stretched out into a constant state of being. I truly can’t believe I existed in that headspace, for so long, and thought it was the only way to live. Life is so much better now that my body and I get along. She finally gets to tell me, directly and loudly, what she needs, and I’m finally paying attention.
Photo: Unsplash
How I kicked the fast fashion habit Holly Jackson Features Writer
Admittedly, most of us have probably at some point been guilty of primarily buying from fast fashion brands without considering the consequences, or if there are any better alternatives out there. I used to regularly shop on fast fashion websites, but then it occurred to me that I was overconsuming and mindlessly shopping from brands with poor reputations and questionable ethical practices, which doesn’t appeal to me at all. I knew I needed to make a personal change. Moreover, it seems where fast fashion is designed and produced at rapid paces to keep up with the latest trend, they sacrifice the quality of the clothing. I was tired of spending my money on things that would arrive faulty, or soon after their arrival fall apart and become unusable. There are several steps I like to consider before I shop at a fast fashion brand. Personally, I make sure to raid my wardrobe to see if there’s any similar items that I could use instead or dig out some old clothes I’ve maybe forgotten about. I also ask my friends or housemates (if it’s something I want for a one-off occasion),
as we are happy to swap and share clothes. If this fails, I make sure to look elsewhere, whether it be a charity shop, or a website like Depop or Vinted. Quite often, I find the exact item I am looking for on a secondhand website, at a bargain price. Also, charity shopping is a fun way to bond with friends, and I like to make a day of it. If I still can’t find what I am looking for, I then contemplate if it’s really something I need. If I decide it is, and it’s an item I will wear repeatedly, I make sure to buy from a brand I know will have reliable quality, so I can make as much use of it as possible to extend its life cycle. When it comes to clothes I no longer wish to wear or feel I need, I try to sell them on Vinted where possible. If this doesn’t work, I like to give them to my friends or swap if they want to. After this, if it is still perfectly usable, I make sure to donate it to charity. As my housemate is a fashion student, she is usually happy to upcycle or alter anything where possible too. Next time you go to shop from a fashion giant, why not consider these steps first?
Photo: Unsplash
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26th October 2021
INTERVIEW Editor-in-Chief
Dolly Carter behind UEA’s
human rights abuse and climate change abuse present in her home country. She says: “because I’m so passionate about Russian politics, I’m automatically passionate about climate change”. Ekaterina moved to the UK to study at UEA and has since been involved in many aspects of university life, including becoming Co-President of Minotaur, the theatre company for UEA Drama students, in her second year.
“I’m automatically passionate about climate change” From 25th-31st October, campus will be changing. From monologue performances to a yoga session, a climate change vigil to a litter pick, UEA’s COP26 Festival is arriving. I spoke with Festival Director Ekaterina Dudakova and organisers Meg Watts and Charlie Bench to discuss their personal stories with the environment, the events taking place in the festival, and the lasting impact they hope to have upon UEA’s attitude toward climate change.
A bright and bouncy presence known by many at UEA, third year English Literature and Drama student Ekaterina Dudakova has taken on the role of Festival Director. She accredits her passion for climate-related issues to her upbringing in Russia. Pointing to Russia’s refusal to acknowledge that they are one of the main polluters due to their main economic outputs being oil and gas, Ekaterina highlights both the
Ekaterina Dudakova
She notes how the festival grew from a small idea, the seed being planted by a conversation she had with Lecturer Mike Bernardin and Professor Ralph Yarrow. Her initial aims were to implement small local change and, set on the intention that she should raise awareness of the importance of the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), Ekaterina embarked on her journey to create a festival which could engage every single student at UEA. I enquire as to the interdisciplinary approach the festival appears to be encompassing, combining aspects of science, arts, activism, and sustainability. She is adamant this is one of the most important parts of the festival, speaking from her own background in the performing arts when she says: “Arts can be the communicators of science”. We take a look at the dates of the festival, commenting on how they interact with the start of COP26. Ekaterina comments that she would like to raise awareness the week before the event takes place in order to give people a chance to become more involved by watching talks, listening to debates, and reading background material. Rather than hosting the festival during COP26, she would like to “prepare people for COP26 itself so they know it’s actually happening”. Ekaterina is remarkably passionate about the festival, particularly
the events she is directly overseeing. She speaks about Steve Waters’ involvement in the festivals, thanking him for allowing students to perform his work. In a separate interview I conducted with Waters earlier this year, he said he aims for his climate-related s c r i p t w r i t i n g endeavours to invert the priorities of drama, hoping they may “galvanise people, embolden them to think, engage, and take steps”. His monologues, entitled ‘Voices from the Reeds’, are being directed by two current students and two UEA graduates and will be performed by students during the festival. Steve will be delivering his lecture ‘Rothschild’s Walk’ in the Drama studio on 30th October. Drama and Musical Theatre Society are leading a 48-hour playwrighting and performance workshop in collaboration with Creative Writing Society, alongside an invisible theatre workshop with Professor Ralph Yarrow in which the audience members can participate in the improvisation. Though humble in thanking the team of participants who have helped to pull all aspects of the festival together, many assure me that without Ekaterina the festival would not be going ahead - a true powerhouse and beacon for generations of UEA climate activists to come.
“A beacon for generations of UEA climate activists to come” SU Environment Officer Meg Watts has also been instrumental in the organisation of the festival through liaising with the SU and contacting external speakers, workshop leaders, and activist groups. She says she is “incredibly focussed on uplifting, supporting, and connecting students and staff working on their own environmental projects across UEA”. Her insight into the festival’s specific critique of UEA is fascinating, pointing specifically to “UEA’s
Meg Watts continued use of unethical, polluting banks which are also implicated in the occupation of Palestine”. She understands the importance of the student voice, encouraging students to “question the university as a centre of knowledge of production and question whether enough financial support and direct action is going into UEA’s own environmental work and research”. Meg also places great emphasis on the concepts of climate justice and equity. She is quick to note that while they can sound very complicated, “an understanding of how climate change affects us differently as a result of existing privilege and oppression is vital. Without acknowledging the sociopolitical aspects of climate change, we won’t be able to effectively combat global warming on a local or global scale”.
“Climate change affects us differently as a result of existing privilege and oppression”
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gets to know COP26 Festival On this basis, she is delighted to be fundraising for Global Justice Now and World Land Trust. Combining the festival with her long-standing association as the director of the climate writing and art competition, ‘Any Last Words’, Meg is overseeing a variety of events which use interdisciplinar y collaboration. Alongside this, she emphasises that “effective, emotive environmental communication are key parts of solving this crisis”. In this vein, she details the open mic Creative Writing Society and ‘Any Last Words’ are running along the theme of environmental and nature writing, and the intersectional creative climate writing workshop she is personally leading. Meg also planned the route for the green tour of the Golden Triangle with Sustainability Society and says she will most definitely be attending many of the other events in the festival, including the climate vigil in the square and the Radical Restart and WTF WFF workshops. Meg hopes the festival will help elevate the student voice in “protesting against environmentally damaging developments within our university community, locally and globally”. She aims to empower those taking part, so they may feel “a little more educated, a little more capable, and a little hopeful”. As President of UEA Kayak Club, third year English Literature with Creative Writing student Charlie Bench has combined her passion for climate activism and water sports to contribute some unique events to the climate festival. Having grown up in the Hundred Acre Wood, she emphasises
that climate-related issues near to her heart as they affecting us day-to-day.
are are
“climate-related issues are... affecting us day-to-day” She is keen on bringing attention to our local climate, particularly the waterways, and has done this by organising a community-based litter picking event by the river. This river clean is being carried out in collaboration between the water sports clubs and Sustainability Society. The litter collected from this event will be effectively recycled and Art Society will be using some of these materials to create recycled artworks. As part of the ‘Sustainability in Sport’ working group, Charlie is also co-ordinating a social media campaign which will help to raise awareness while promoting sustainability. Water sports clubs
will be hosting sessions throughout the festival, including Kayak, Rowing, Sub Aqua, Swimming, Water Polo, Sailing, and Surf clubs. It is clear from speaking to Ekaterina, Meg, and Charlie that an enormous amount of work has gone into the preparation of UEA’s COP26 Festival. Alongside Meg and Charlie, Ekaterina also wishes to thank Roux Beasley, Victoria Coleman, Sophie Ciurlik-Rittenbaum, Mackenzie Malcom, and Gemma Polley for their contributions to the organisation of the festival. Having been part of the UEA COP26 Festival working group chat since June, I have been able to witness first-hand the complexities of organising a university-wide festival. To put it simply, it is awe-inspiring to see the level of commitment, passion, and dedication, given by these students. It leaves me hopeful for the climate, hopeful for the university, and hopeful for the future. You can find a full copy of the festival schedule on the right-hand side of this page. To follow the festival throughout the week of 25th31st October, you can visit @cop26fest_uea on Instagram for updates and announcements.
the
faces
25 - 31 October
M on
October
Open Mic, 7-10pm Film Screening, 7-9pm
COP26 Themed Debate, 2-4pm Direct Action & The Artist Workshop 4-6pm De-Schooling Workshop, 6-8pm Another World Is Possible Workshop, 7-9pm
Weds
Litter Pick, 1-4pm Golden Triangle Green Tour, 2-4pm Climate Writing Workshop, 3-5pm WTF WFF Workshop, 4-6pm Heading For Extinction Talk, 6-7:30pm
Green Tour of the city, 1-3pm Making Sustainable DIY T-Shirts, 2-5pm ‘What to Expect from COP26 and What Comes After? Lecture, 4-5pm COP26: Stand Up for Climate Change, 7-9pm
Fri
Sun
Th u r s
Climate Change Vigil, 4-6pm Dramarathon Showcase, 7-9pm
Swap Shop, 10am-3pm Voices from The Reeds Performance, 4-6pm Rothschilds Walk Lecture-Performance, 7-8:10pm
Charlie Bench
Tues
S at
Mindful Yoga Session, 2-4pm We Demand People’s Vaccine Workshop, 5-7pm
26th October 2021
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HOME OF THE WONDERFUL
Say
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Here at UEA Water Polo we pride ourselves on being an open, fun, inclusive and friendly club to all, with anyone and everyone welcome to join! The majority of our members have never played before so don’t worry if you like the look of something but know nothing about it - that’s what we are here for! Through the help of our experienced coach Joel who has now been with us for three years, you will learn ball handling skills, undergo defending, and shooting drills and play games. Both our men’s and women’s teams compete in British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) competitions in which we play other universities across the East of England - our last win was collected by the Women’s team in a match against Warwick in 2019! We also hold regular socials to boost team morale, working this around training sessions and our studies. We hold both drinking and non-drinking socials, at UEA and in town, and have even hosted joint socials in the past with other clubs, like
Conversation Ross Gower
Home of the Wonderful Writer
Like many organisations, UEA UCU has had to adjust and change how it carries out its work as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. To learn about how Covid-19 has affected their work, I spoke to UEA UCU committee member Pierre Bocquillon.It is safe to say the Covid pandemic has had a big effect on public life. Many people and organisations have had to adjust in a variety of different ways in order to follow Covid measures, and UEA UCU was no exception. “We had to move everything online”, he explains. Like with many organisations, this shift to working online was difficult at first but was something people got used to over time. While many organisations have made the same shift to online work, some have found this more difficult than others because of the nature of their work. I was keen to ask whether he felt this online adjustment has been particularly difficult for them as an organisation. Pierre believes this online adjustment has made it particularly difficult for the UCU to mobilize its members- especially for strike action. “Usually for mobilizing members you have the possibility of chatting to colleagues in the corridor and knocking at doors in preparation for a vote.” While the UCU has been sending more emails in order to mobilize people, he notes this isn’t as effective since it doesn’t have the sort of personal contact which “is often important to talk through issues and also to convince people to vote, for instance, in favour of strike actions.” The last two years have seen a number of Covid related disputes between companies and employees. I asked
big
hello
swimming. As well as your classic themed nights such as Noah’s ark, in which you are paired up and dressed as animals, going to the LCR two by two! We had a pair of starfish appear last year! Anything but cups social - first place has been given to a potty in past years as your ‘cup’ for the evening is anything but. Or the traditional mid-week event joining all the other UEA Sports club members together for the night. You are always guaranteed a great night out with water polo! The previous year has been a very tough one for all sports clubs and societies, but it has been especially difficult for Water Polo. Not only did the Covid-19 restrictions force the Sportspark facilities to close but the pool also continued to remain closed for a considerable amount of time after the Sportspark re-opened to undergo renovations. The last time we were in the pool was well over a year ago, leaving land training via zoom as our only option. But the start of another academic year brings new opportunities
with
UCU
whether some of UEA UCU’s work over the pandemic has been related to disputes over Covid safety measures. “Covid safety measures have been a contentious issue in the sector in general, and at UEA in particular”, Pierre argues. For the academic year following summer 2020, the UCU told him to teach online for the year and “return to the classroom as soon as it’s safe to do so in a year or so, and with proper measures.” This conflicted with UEA’s position of wanting to get students “back in the classroom as soon as possible.” In the end not much conflict over this arose since government regulation meant inperson teaching was not possible for most students across the academic year. For the coming academic year, with a large part of the population having been vaccinated, I am told “the Union is not fighting nationally for us to stay online.” UEA UCU is however stressing caution and has been pushing the university to “be more precise about their plans to limit infections.” The Covid-19 pandemic has brought with it a lot of job insecurity. I was curious to see whether Pierre felt this has led to an increase in staff at UEA being interested in joining the Union. “Yes and no.” Although Union membership has risen, it has not done so rapidly. “People are worried… There were a number of universities in which some departments have been closed or there were redundancy programmes or there were redundancy programmes.” While this hasn’t happened at UEA, people at the university are worried about seeing redundancies in other places as well as being worried about increased workloads and stress. As a result of this, more people “are looking towards the union to
to
and a chance to get back to what we know and love, and we cannot wait to welcome all the freshers and
Water
encourage them to have an incredible year at UEA. So try out that new sport you’ve
Polo! always wanted to, or join the society you have been thinking about for a while and come to a water polo session!
Photo: Evie Drennan
committee
member
provide support and defend them.” However, Pierre argues the number of factors which often push up membership have not been possible during Covid-19. “Strike action has often driven up membership” because it brings people together and facilitates certain conversations to happen which increases interest in the Union. But since such factors have not been possible over the pandemic, membership has not increased rapidly. A large part of UEA UCU’s work before the pandemic was fighting the changes to the USS pensions scheme. I asked whether he felt the pandemic and its related issues had distracted them from their work combatting the USS pensions change. The issue of USS pension change
Image: Wikimedia Commons
Pierre
“was put a little bit on the back-burner over 2020,” Pierre says. “People were focusing on dealing with the fallout of the pandemic.” It is “an ongoing issue so it has never disappeared” and has recently “come back really at the forefront”. He says most in the Union agree the changes to the pension scheme are “unacceptable”, and they “want a long-term, sustainable solution” rather than “fighting over USS every single year”, but since a workable deal has not yet been made between the UCU, the employers, and the USS boards, there could be “potential strike action in the near future.” Curious to see whether my interviewee thinks there is a bright path ahead, I asked Pierre whether he was optimistic for the future. He describes himself as a “fairly optimistic person” who enjoys his job and
Bocquillon
interacting with students and colleagues, something which will happen more as vaccinations increase. He also believes “there is plenty of good work that is being done across the universities that is to be celebrated.” This being said, he is “less optimistic” about the future of higher education in the UK. Working conditions at Universities have gotten worse; “we are working more, we are being paid less,” and Pierre predicts this could be bad for the future of Universities. One thing is for sure though, Pierre definitely won’t allow these changes to happen unopposed. The interview concluded with him stressing he will “be fighting in the Union and hoping also for some wider political change to reverse this trend.”
26th October 2021
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GOT SOMETHING TO SAY ABOUT YOUR SOCIETY OR SPORTS CLUB? WANT TO TELL US ABOUT ACHIEVEMENTS OR SHARE UPCOMING EVENTS? EMAIL CONCRETE.EDITOR@UEA.AC.UK Voices of Black history: Womanist and Decolonise open mic evening Jim Gell
Home of the Wonderful Editor
Greeted by the soothing sounds of Ella Fitzergerald, I joined the scores of students sat in anticipation for the ‘Voices of Black history’ evening, where the work of Black writers who have shaped our history were read aloud, hosted by the Womanist and Decolonise HUM/LDC societies. Krysta-Jo McKenzie, the president of Womanist society, led us through the history of prominent Black literary organizations dedicated to amplifying Black voices in their struggle against racial discrimination and oppression. The Black Panther Party newspaper, I learned, became the most widely read Black newspaper in the United States, with a weekly circulation of more than 300,000 from 1968 to 1971, requiring all Party members to read it thoroughly before it could be sold. 25 cents were all they asked for, with half of the revenue spent on printing costs and the other half spent campaigning, selling it on street corners while enduring racial abuse, only to be reduced to a terrorist organization and imprisoned innocently for aligning themselves with it. As Krysta said, “there was more to the Black Panthers than guns and violence.”
“There was more to the Black Panthers than guns and violence.”
She moved on to speak about the Harlem Renaissance ignited by early 20th century migration, a creative explosion which revived previously whitewashed African American art forms, and the Noname Book Club set up in 2020, where books written by Black authors can be sent to loved ones in prison. Speakers took it in turns to read their favourite excerpts of Black literature, ranging from prose to poetry, classic to contemporary, visceral to vehement. I asked the Womanist society committee to expand on the pieces they chose. Mariam Jallow read For the Girl Who Died By Dancing by Kei Miller, and choose the following stanza for how it related to traditional religious attitudes at home: “She will be surprised soon enough to find you on a wide marble tile in front of Jesus. She will be surprised that the saviour has given unto you a tall speakerbox, filled to its brim with music & that you continue your peculiar art – dancing dutty wine with a clean heart.” “It’s my favourite because, back home, women are always admonished doing ‘dancing with dutty wine’ seeing people get concerned like it’s indecent. It’s difficult being in the eyes of religion, which usually does the opposite of what it is.” Her advice to those who wish to dance how they want? “Duttify to your heart’s content!” How We Fight For Our Lives by Saeed Jones was read by Ben Cook, his favourite excerpt being: “Well into high school in all these dreams, I had the body of a girl. The kind of girl I thought these guys would sleep with; the construction worker’s wife, the football player’s girlfriend, and the woman framed in the fridge above the wall on his office. Any woman would do, any body but my own.” What is so stark, Ben said, was that “he has to minimize himself to fit another person’s perception of him, he doesn’t want to exist as himself, he wants to exist as someone desired, and that’s especially relevant when you consider his intersectionality as a Black gay man.”
Ben went on to share a starker insight, relatable to all walks of life. “We talk about our first time a lot as a first kiss, a first sexual experience, but there’s something to be said about the first time we were discriminated against, the first slur that was thrown at us, which can be a more impactful experience as sad as that is.” Speech, in its production and reception, as a tool for creation or destruction, resonated with Krysta’s selected quote from Audre Lorde’s Your Silence Will Not Protect You: “The machine will try to grind you into dust anyway, whether or not we speak. We sit in our corners, mute forever, while our sisters and ourselves are wasted, while our children are exploited and destroyed.”
“The machine will try to grind you into dust anyway, whether or not we speak.” Krysta told me she first read the book in first year, when she often “used to struggle to say what [she] needed to say.” Looking at literature as a form of self-therapy, I wondered how this text shaped Krysta’s approach to speech. “It reminds me how essential it is to speak, and how impactful it can be for yourself, and also for the people around you whether or not you see it. It’s changed the way I think about speaking. Now, I think about it more in terms of what needs to be said.” Keep up to date with more events like these by following them at: @ueawomanistsoc, @ decolonisehum and @decoloniseldc.
Photo: Jim Gell
Photo: Jim Gell
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COMMENT
26th October 2021
The dangers of ‘Voluntourism’: why wanting to “make a difference” is not enough Jamie Boosey-Still Comment Writer
“Do you love to travel? Are you passionate about making a difference?” You’ve probably seen a similar slogan before. This time, an organisation called Play Action International is advertising an opportunity to build a playground in Uganda. Upon closer inspection, this turns out to be a ‘voluntourism’ trip, where volunteering is combined with travel opportunities such as safaris. These programs are often expensive and unsustainable, where well-intentioned volunteers seeking to ‘make a difference’ usually do more harm than good. I attended Play Action International’s introductory talk. For the ‘bargain’ price of £1100 (flight excluded), you could go on a two-week trip to Uganda to build and open a playground where “it will be Christmas and birthday at the same
time” for the children. The (white) fundraising team walked us through the “journey to Africa”, where the children will dance for you upon your arrival. ‘High adrenaline’ weekend travel bundles involving quad biking and kayaking were mentioned. We soon learned that ‘building’ the playground essentially involved digging holes and painting walls, which would be mixed with ‘play-based sessions’ with schoolchildren. Suddenly, this didn’t feel as life-changing or unique as it first seemed. This volunteering scheme is certainly far from unique. Pre-pandemic, approximately 10m people worldwide volunteered abroad annually. Far too often, these are short-term placements in vulnerable communities where the wishes of volunteers are prioritised over the needs of the local population.
Misogyny Thomas Gymer Comment Writer
In recent weeks the issue of misogyny has been ever more present in the public eye, with the Sarah Everard case in particular garnering much media attention. Yet, the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, continues to oppose the idea of misogyny being made a hate crime. I think it is important to note how treating other aspects of society as hate crimes, such as hate crimes against sex workers, has absolutely shown an increase in how serious the crimes are now taken and treated. Not only that, but
is
the trust victims have in the police to actually investigate and deal with criminals also rises when the situation is dealt with as a hate crime. So it is an effective distinction to make, and would certainly, I believe, help with misogyny as well. This alone would not be enough to truly address misogyny, obviously, with the police already being over-utilised while also having their own problems with misogyny. Consequently, they are not really the best tool to deal with these issues at the moment. However, it would be a step in the right direction, and ensures these issues are not disregarded, belittled, or swept under the rug.
They are extremely inefficient, and the short-term fixes they offer can perpetuate poverty. Voluntourism can undercut local labour, harm child psychological development, and reinforce negative stereotypes. Put simply, flying halfway around the world to paint a wall won’t solve the world’s problems. Sadly, these ethically challenged schemes are unlikely to disappear.
“Sadly, these ethically changed schemes are unlikely to disappear ” There is an increased desire to travel post-lockdown and a void to fill after the closure of the Government’s more responsible
a Too often women’s complaints, issues, and the very real threat of physical violence towards women are undermined, underappreciated, and untreated. Women are dismissed as lying, exaggerating, emotional, hysterical, and otherwise ignored. These systemic problems cannot be fixed by one change, but it would certainly be a start. Women suffer in silence across the country, because they have learned speaking out does not lead to results, and often only increases the dangers for them. Women who do speak out are often harassed, and even targeted for more violence. Yet this government ignores
International Citizen Service volunteering program in February. If you are desperate to volunteer overseas, there are multiple ways in which you can do that. Firstly, don’t volunteer on a trip that offers tourist opportunities. If you want a holiday, do that instead. Likewise, don’t support orphanage volunteering. Institutionalising children can have devastating effects on their development, only exacerbated by frequent short-term visits by volunteers. You need to think twice about projects involving direct access to children, such as working in schools or youth groups. Also, don’t sign up if you don’t have the professional skill a project requires. If you can’t teach or construct anything in the UK, you won’t be of any use doing so in another country Think about your intentions and your potential impact. Are you volunteering for the right reasons, or is it more
hate these issues. Dominic Raab doesn’t even seem sure of what misogyny is, claiming it is wrong “whether it’s a man against a woman, or a woman against a man”. I should hardly need point out misogyny is only against women, not against men, so this statement is simply nonsense, and even if it wasn’t, it would be an inappropriate response to the issue. This is misinformation at its finest and it is wrong for Raab to respond as such, this also proves how women’s issues and suffering of misogyny goes unheard. And the eventual reason for not classifying misogyny as a hate crime? This law would mean police
about the memories and experiences you think you’ll take away from it? It is also so important to research the organisation. Do they work with local partners? Do they have a long-term plan for the communities they support? Do they tell you where the money goes? Do they conduct safeguarding checks? However, it may be better not to volunteer overseas at all. Short-term fixes serve only to pave over the cracks of the underlying, structural causes of poverty and inequality. Perhaps your energy would be better spent advocating for increases to foreign aid or changes on foreign policy issues in your home country. Perhaps you’d gain as many skills in fundraising and volunteering for a local charity as you would from an overseas volunteering program. To really ‘make a difference’, the best thing to do may be to think globally but act locally.
crime resources would be overstretched and they could not possibly deal with every instance this change would require them to investigate. It would simply be too much. This is ridiculous and insulting. Is the violence women face every day so much less important than a host of other things that have been over criminalised? Perhaps if we made sure homelessness and poverty weren’t so liable to lead to police action, police would have more time to spend on the severe and endemic ways in which women are made unsafe in our society. Including of course, by the police.
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26th October 2021
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COP26: A comfy, convenient throne for the capitalist elite Jamie Bryson Comment Writer
At the COP26 conference commencing this Sunday, world leaders will once again meet to discuss what they will describe as “transformative” and “innovative” climate policies designed to put “people and planet first”. Sadly, the all-too-common political mistrust we now see across most leading democracies means the majority of us are likely to dismiss this event as yet another political vanity fair. One in which world elites will seek only to tick a few boxes, pen their name to a couple of “aspirational” agreements, and orate a punditgrabbing speech or two.
“Orate a punditgrabbing speech or two ”
Advisors will be probing their bosses to offer modest smiles and sharp waves in a bid to reassure the rest of us “all will be well”. And it is with great frustration I must wholeheartedly agree with this pessimistic analysis. I do so through the simple philosophical recognition that at the very centre of our current environmental efforts, lies not a principled aspiration to save our natural world, but instead, a self-centred and, I would go so far as to say, ultimately evil attempt to merely prolong the survival of the very man-made concept which is responsible for its destruction. Globalised free-market capitalism. Let’s just pause and remind ourselves of the very foundations this relatively new ideology is built upon: continuous resource expansion over environmental preservation, competitive productivity over equal economic reward, and private profit in the interest of the shareholder, over fair and equal resource distribution in the interest of all. There can be no private profiteering over our environment- the
two are incompatible. But the almighty top-down structure of capitalism simply cannot survive without maintaining these core principles.
“The almighty topdown structure of capitalism simply cannot survive ” Plain and simple. So why then, do we continually fool ourselves into believing it is our saving grace from the climate crisis? Because in simply discussing future financial investment into renewable energy and electric cars and eating a bit less meat, our world leaders are simply sticking comfy green plasters onto an economic system that keeps them and their monied backers afloat. This fundamental hypocrisy and lack of integrity can be
witnessed in our government’s latest post-Brexit trade deal with Australia, in which it has agreed to import highly environmentally unfriendly lamb onto our supermarket shelves from the other side of the globe. The “innovative ideas” and unrealistic “agreements’’ that come out of these conferences are no more than vain PR stunts designed to manipulate a toxic consumer-based desire for “new alternatives’’. Boris Johnson continually stresses how the UK is now the greenest economy in Europe. And indeed, via the way in which capitalist societies measure this, he is right. But I ask simply, what is the point in having a league table of the greenest capitalist economies in the world when its very form of measurement is completely incompatible with the scales it is to be weighed upon? Even when standing by these measurements, only 7 out of the 32 states who signed up to the supposedly “historic” Paris
Climate Agreement in 2015, have met their “legally binding” targets, and the UK, nor any other G7 member, is not one of them. The swish, colourful affair we will undoubtedly see on our screens next week, will provide merely another comfy and convenient throne from which the capitalist elite will seek only to prolong their economic and political dominance. A throne from which, as Greta Thunberg so accurately put it earlier this month, we will hear yet more “Blah, blah, blah” in the form of “meaningless and empty words”.
“Blah, blah, blah in the form of meaningless and empty words ”
26th October 2021
SCIENCE
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Anthropocene: the age of humanity Becca Patchett Science Writer
The Anthropocene is an idea most of us have heard of, but the concept is largely varied and involves so much its understanding can often get lost. The literal meaning of the Anthropocene is: the current epoch we are living in after the Holocene within the Quaternary Period is within the Cenozoic Era. The basic idea of the
Anthropocene is the physical, social, political and ecological systems of the earth have been heavily impacted by people, we now have an epoch named after us. This concept is one I first heard of and only vaguely learned about in my GCSEs and A-level studies but is now the sole focus of a third-year module in Environmental Science at UEA. After only one week of this class, two things became clear to me: for one, I was more passionate about this
subject than I realised, and everyone in my class had different opinions and ideas about the Anthropocene. It was not until this module and reading John Green’s book, ‘The Anthropocene Reviewed,’ I found how easily the Anthropocene could be portrayed as negative. It could include topics as significant as people causing living things to become extinct and how we are hugely contributing to climate change. On the other hand, it could also include things as insignificant as how teddy
bears were invented and why I am absolutely petrified of snakes. However, as I looked deeper into the idea of the Anthropocene, I found it imperative to find some positives in the deep sea of negatives. Otherwise, I would get lost in the “bad vibes” and it is likely my depression would worsen. For example, yes, we are causing the extinction of many organisms, but we are also conserving, bringing back and finding new species of living things as conservation zoos acquire critically endangered
species and encourage them to breed to save themselves. As selfish and negative as the Anthropocene seems, the fact of this new epoch made just for us humans, could be incredible for the Earth as we realise we need to change our habits and ways of thinking as a species to ensure the future and sustainability of our home. I know this may come across as naïve, but I like to think that big positive changes are coming in this Anthropocene.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Climate Change Corner: Are we heading for extinction? Humanity and the climate crisis Melody Chan Science Writer
As I walked through the hallway of limestone and pillars, I felt a sense of excitement in attending the panel: Are We Heading for Extinction? Humanity and the Climate Crisis. The panel was held on the 12th of October in the Norwich Cathedral. I refused to let my eyes drop from the illuminated interiors of the church on my way to the venue. The lights shone on the architecture and made it magnificent at night. This grandeur was carried forward into the panel space, where I sat by the structure of Dippy the dinosaur and rising cathedral walls. It was as if I was wrapped in multiple time dimensions, experiencing the merge of different historical periods - the modern Diplodocus cast of Dippy, the medieval cathedral, and contemporary me. The panel was a space where the past and the present coexisted. I was put into a test to reconnect with history, then reflect and act upon
the climate change challenge. Professor Jeff Price opened the panel by introducing the 5 previous mass extinctions and the loss of genetic diversity. He stressed the negative effects of rising temperatures, stating this would lead to a higher percentage of biodiversity loss. He urged us to live with nature and exercise stewardship.
“He urged us to live with nature and exercise stewardship. ”
Professor Robert J. Nicholls, a researcher on flood and erosion management, introduced the audience to another factor of climate change: rising sea levels. On average, sea levels
rise by a centimetre every year and predictions suggest deep uncertainty in the future. Here, Robert reminded us of a 1953 flood in Sheerness, Thames Estuary, and expressed the need to mitigate coastal hazards. Dr Rachel Carmenta carried on the panel by raising the importance of distinguishing between good and bad fire. As an environmental social scientist and ecologist, she specialised in the Amazon burning crisis and believed marginalised populations’ needs were as significant as stakeholders. We need to acknowledge fire can bring benefits to agricultural farming, yet some people misuse fire for profit. On the last note, Dr Rupert Read ended the list of presentations with philosophy. He encouraged the audience to practice cathedral thinkingto think about long-term sustainability for the future’s sake. We need to act collectively and look beyond the
obsessions placed on ourselves. We need to take the initiative to gaze at these challenges, face them, and be woke.
“We need to act collectively and look beyond the obsessions placed on ourselves. ” The panel provoked me to think about the intimacy between civilisation and nature. The two intertwined more than I thought they would. I believe by writing about this I can be part of the “we” who can evoke change. Writing could be a creative and didactical practice to probe climate thinking, and further, provoke questions on our inevitable future.
Photo: Rebecca Patchett
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26th October 2021
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Black History Month: Representation in STEM Mariam Jallow Science Editor
A report commissioned by the Royal Society earlier this year outlines alarming figures on the number of Black academic staff in STEM-related fields. This development is part of an ongoing discussion regarding the lack of ethnic diversity in STEM within the UK at all stages of career progression. Using diversity statistics from the years spanning 2007/08 to 2018/19, the report found just 3.5% of Black STEM academic staff held a professor post compared to 6.6% of Asian staff and 11.9% of white staff. Additionally, although 7.1% of postgraduate entrants identified as Black, only 1.7% progressed into becoming STEM academic
staff, proving the existence of career stagnating barriers. The low numbers bleed into previous education stages, with Black STEM students showing higher non-completion rates within their degree programmes in comparison to white and Asian peers. The large variations between Black people and other ethnic minorities with regards to representation in these fields point toward specific issues affecting specific demographics, which is to say, the addressing of diversity in STEM cannot be solved by lumping all non-white persons into the Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic (BAME) banner. The reasons behind the overwhelmingly invisible presence of Black people within STEM are largely systemic, with elements of bias and racism factoring into their
underrepresentation. This may come as a hard pill to swallow for a field operating under the elimination of bias to provide accurate science, however, it is time to acknowledge STEM, particularly in the UK, has been a contributor to racial inequality since the colonial era. Sir Ronald Ross, a British medical doctor awarded the Nobel prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1902 for his work on malarial research commented, “in the coming century, the success of imperialism will depend largely upon success with the microscope”. Despite the disease affecting those living in tropical regions, the research was tailored toward preserving the safety of British troops in order to preserve the British Empire. This is just one example of how the researchers and science we
Science Senior Writer
The 2021 Nobel Prizes for science have been awarded in the fields of Medicine, Chemistry and Physics. The prizes, founded in accordance with the will of Sir Alfred Nobel in 1895, are some of the most prestigious prizes available in the aforementioned fields. The Nobel prize for Medicine this year has been awarded to two scientists for their work on identifying receptors for understanding touch and temperature in humans.
“Identifying receptors for understanding touch and temperature in humans ” David Julius and Ardem Patapoutiam worked on the gene TRPV1, which respond to heat, and the discovery of two ion channels in the skin responding to touch, respectively. Their discoveries in explaining how humans have the urge to pull a hand from a hot flame and distinguish between textures have been hailed by
of colonialism and racism, is just one way science educators can begin to help Black students interested in STEM reach equitable levels of representation. Addressing and overcoming barriers such as accessibility, and institutional racism and bias, through direct funding are ongoing tasks the Royal Society has undertaken to provide opportunities for Black academics. As we often say, the numbers don’t lie. The data collected confirms it is time for the STEM community to step up.
“It is time for the STEM community to step up”
B i z a r r e Science: Why do we watch horror films?
2021 Nobel Prizes awarded for Science George Barsted
historically have looked towards for guidance and education are impacted by bias within the context of a colonial framework. Research today operates on a similar basis, with the standard for scientific academia largely set by the Global West, despite a large amount of data collection occurring in other nations poorly represented in terms of academic representation. This then reflects in what students are taught, who they are taught about, and ergo where they see elements of their identity represented. In simple terms, when the science created for the people does not reflect the people, groups within society become isolated and engagement with STEM-related education and careers drops. Decolonisation, deconstructing the way we teach and speak about science through inclusion and acknowledging the impacts
members of the Nobel committee as “profoundly changing our view of how we sense the world”. In Chemistry, the Nobel committee awarded Benjamin List and David W.C MacMillan with the prize for their research into asymmetric organocatalysis. These new catalysts can help in the production of pharmaceuticals and solar cells and are often cheaper and more environmentally friendly than other types of catalysts. They are able to produce more specific molecules than other types of metal and enzyme-based catalysts. The Physics prize was awarded in two parts to Syukuro Manabe and Klauss Hasselman for their work on physical modelling and research on the earth’s climate, and another to Giorgio Parisi for his work on disordered complex systems and being able to understand them in a mathematical sense. Manabe’s and Hasselmans’ work on 3-dimensional models and atmospheric markers has been instrumental in helping understand rising carbon dioxide levels. Parisi’s work on hidden patterns in complex systems of gas molecules has enabled new discoveries in fields as far-reaching as biology and machine learning.
George Barsted
Science Senior Writer
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
As Halloween approaches and the nights get darker, lots of people will be settling down to watch a horror film. What is it about these movies that make horror-lovers obsessed with them and keeps them coming back for more jumpscares and gore? What makes someone sign up for a dose of “media-induced masochism”? Science may have the answer. About 10 per cent of the population enjoys watching horror films regularly. Psychologists think it may be down to the release of emotions after witnessing a frightening situation from the safety of the cinema. In the brain, registering the threat from the silver screen can result in a fight or flight response from the hypothalamus, heightening levels of adrenaline in the body. When the viewers finally calm down they experience intense relief as the brain is flooded with “feelgood” chemicals like endorphins and dopamine. Horror fans can chase this buzz by watching scarier and scarier films, all while knowing they’re safe at home or in the cinema. Don’t be put off if horror films aren’t your thing, there may also be some benefits to disliking them as scientists have shown a strong link between highly empathetic people and those who hate horror. Maybe being crouched behind the sofa and watching through your fingers might not be such a bad thing after all …
TRAVEL & LIFESTYLE
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How help Jess Trowbridge Travel & Lifestyle Writer
As we approach Winter it can be useful to acknowledge the importance of nature to positive mental health. With temperatures dropping and days shortening, it becomes easier to stay inside. However, when you are outside amongst nature it is an all-consuming experience, not only providing your body with Vitamin D and reducing stress but acting as a distraction from any aspects of life that can feel unshakeable. The environment can be split into two different categories: green and blue spaces. These groupings are rather self-explanatory, with green space being anything filled with greenery, although as the leaves begin to brown it is important to remember that these spaces, although not green, are still capable of improving mental health. Areas of greenery often encourage us to be more active, walking or cycling to see more of the surroundings. Blue space, on the other hand,
getting outside can you on the inside refers to areas of water somewhere where one is more introspective, watching the slow but ceaseless movement around them. It can be beneficial to recognise your preferred area, as knowing if you respond better to green or blue spaces can help during bad mental health days. The seaside is an example most thought of when reflecting upon the healing powers of the environment on mental health and falls into the category of a blue space. In the Victorian era, a trip to the beach was often recommended for melancholy, a type of depression that is categorized by persistent helplessness and sadness, with patients seeing differences after a few weeks in the salty air. When thinking of why the seaside has such a healing effect, it can be useful to think of the all-consuming experience of being at the beach. The rhythmic sound of the waves acts as a white noise with its continuous repetition, ebb and flow with the tides, and the experience is the same for every beach, meaning no matter where you go along the coast a seaside haven can be found. When looking out at the blue of the
sea, like the effect of a lake or stream, it can have a calming and positive effect on mental health. A walk through a field is one of my preferred examples of green space. Although this experience is much less repetitive than the seaside, finding new footpaths to explore and discovering different flora and fauna is an equally absorbing task. Activities like picnics or reading in parks can help mental health by taking inside activities outside and encouraging us to engage with our world more. The healing power of nature is simply harnessed by stepping outside, rain or shine to enjoy fresh air. Its power lies in its ability to remind us that the world is much bigger than the problems locked away in rooms of artificial light and dust.
“the world is much bigger than the problems locked away in rooms" Image: Pixabay
Top places to walk in Norwich: you won't regret it André Hughes
Travel & Lifestyle Writer
Having been born and brought up in south Devon and having a Dad who’s an Environmental Consultant, I have naturally walked and been dragged around many green spaces for bird watching, plant spotting, and view seeking. Therefore, it has always been an upside for me to live and study in a green campus and a green city. After more than three years at UEA I have had the chance to walk around almost every part of Norwich, for bird watching, plant spotting, meeting friends, getting lost and chasing a calmer mind. These are my favourite five green walks in Norwich, I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Eaton Park, Waterloo Park, Catton Park. Not necessarily needing to be walked all in one go, these parks run south west-to-north
Norwich, each one with distinct architectural buildings and progressively less pruned grasslands. They are great local parks that are big enough to walk around but not too big to be a trek, beautiful with and without flowers and foliage, and have many benches. Eaton park includes outdoor sport facilities, Waterloo park layered beds and overhead trellises, and Catton park the open country feeling. They also each have a café, what more could you want? Yare Valley River Footpath Loved by after-work walkers, early runners, and wet dogs alike, the Yare Valley River Footpath goes from Marston Marsh to Southern Park, running alongside the south-to-south west stretch of the Yare river. Along the way, the path connects to UEA broad and woodland before heading up Earlham Park, across to Millennium Green, and into Bowthorpe Marsh. An easily accessible footpath when taking a break on campus, or going on a reading walk (walking
to a bench, reading, then repeating, can’t be just me!) and is in close proximity to the golden triangle. Mousehold Heath, Kett’s Heights and The Viewpoint. In close proximity to the centre of town, Mousehold Heath is a great area of heathland and woodland that has a myriad of histories, from an area of extraction, sand and gravel, to a US army air force base. I particular enjoy walking through the silver birch which are ghostly and haunting, and stomping through leaves in Autumn. If Mousehold Heath isn’t a great place for a Halloween party I don’t know what is! Kett’s Heights is aptly named after Robert Kett, who in 1549 lead the Kett’s Rebellion against the enclosure of land by wealthy landowners, camping more than 10,000 on Mousehold Heath (and crucially the south side of Kett’s Heights) before taking the city. It is home to the remnants of a Norman chapel, an orchard, and a sloping grass area.
A particularly relaxing spot after shopping in town and great for history enthusiasts, or just for having a nap. The Viewpoint just beneath Norwich prison commands a beautiful view of central Norwich including Norwich Cathedral, city hall and Norwich castle. Though it can be busy at sunset, so it is well worth picking a weekday or even better, to go at sunrise. Whitlingham Country Park A large area with two big broads, woodlands, and The Flint Barn café, Whitlingham Country Park is south east of Norwich near the village of Trowse. It perhaps pushes the ‘in Norwich’ definition, but is well worth the long walk or bus to get to. I particularly like how broad the main path is, especially considering Covid, allowing for path wandering caused by distracted lake viewing and swan sightings. It’s a big open space to which
the nearby train passing, only adds to the feeling of escape from the bustle of Norwich. The Marriott’s Way A 26-mile footpath following old railway lines running from Alysham to Norwich, it is by far the longest route on this list and highly unlikely to be walked all at once. Luckily for us all, there are a couple of circler scenic routes that jut off from the Marriott’s way. Sadly, the Drayton to Costessey section is closed for resurfacing and Ash dieback felling, with the latter due to end on December 14th. I have yet to fully explore this route, but it won’t be too long until I’m able to, though I’ll definitely bring a thermos. Norwich is a city of abundant green spaces, and inevitably I have not included many good parks in this list. It should, like any article, be the starting point. I can only hope this helps you explore further the fine green city that is Norwich. Happy Adventures.
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26th October 2021
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Ecotourism: the rise in greener travel, and why it matters Sam Gordon Webb Deputy Editor
Pina Coladas on a sandy beach, palm trees, and the smell of fabulous food. These are a few of our favourite things. But what if the holidays you craved were the exact source of climate change, a reality credibly accepted as the cause of human action?Would the cocktails on the beach suddenly become rather more sour? And if they did, how can we adapt our travel plans in order to adequately reduce the environmental impact of climate change? We all know the answers. Riding electric, not diesel. Eating less meat. Reusing, not merely recycling. Ahead of the UN’s Climate Change Conference (COP26) later next month, in a world still reeling from the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic, ecotourism has become a more popular form of travel. People understand the environmental cost of long-haul flying, and many are willing to adjust their travel plans accordingly. Some of the largest US airports will soon be using new software, developed by the US space agency NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), that calculates when an airplane must leave the boarding gate to reduce runway idling. Given the aviation industry accounts for three percent of all greenhouse gas emissions, the
move has been greeted kindly by environment experts and scientists alike. The aim is to opt for greener travel solutions. Ecotourism is a form of responsible travelling, including pursuits of natural areas as well as conserving the environment, all whilst limiting the impact of the excursions and benefiting the lives of local people. The idea of ecologically sensitive travel was granted its own definition in the Oxford Dictionary in 1982, but its roots are deeper. In 1901, the annual expedition, known as the Sierra Club’s Outing program, allowed travellers to explore the natural wonders of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. During this time, many developing countries started sustainable tourism programs, including the Mexican Agency, Ecotours, founded by renowned environmentalist, Héctor CeballosLascuráin. In 2002, The United Nations General Assembly designated 2002 as the International Year of Ecotourism. According to a recent report by the IMARC Group, the ecotourism market is set to grow by 14.4% in the next five years. Furthermore, a study by the international firm, Bloom Consulting, found that most digital searches about ecotourism around the world were directed towards the Latin American country of Costa
Rica. And environmentally conscious travelling has profound benefits for not only our planet but also its people. By focusing profits on small local communities, local people are able to control prices without the pressure of larger tourism corporations, making the experience much cheaper. Questions remain, however, about the supposed Eurocentricity of the Ecotourism market. How might a local community benefit if they themselves can’t afford the same experience? Costa Rica’s widely growing publicity and reputation have caused a new wave of visitors that have wreaked havoc for the country's rainforests, reefs, and beaches. Excessive tourism, in any form, can prove to be a destructive force.
“Excessive tourism... can prove to be a destructive force"
And yet, hope pervades the air. The hospitality sector is fighting back after a long period of reduced business, and many providers are keener than ever to tap into the growing trend for sustainable travel When push comes to shove, the greatest cost of all is our planet.
Image: Unsplash
Swapping UEA for UAE: What's it like to travel during Covid-19?
Image: Pixabay
Juliette Rebold-Stead Travel & Lifestyle Writer
Going abroad: something that many people are very wary about doing at
the moment due to the many constant and confusing changes in restrictions, hesitation about whether it is safe to or not. Since the beginning of October, new simplified travel rules have come into
place in the UK, with the traffic light system replaced by a single red list. As long as you are not coming from a red list country and are fully vaccinated you will not need to take a PCR test before leaving wherever
you are coming from to return to the UK. However, many countries are still weary of businesses and holidaymakers coming from the UK, so will still require you to take a PCR test before departing, which can be quite costly (upwards of £2,000). I recently travelled to Dubai at the beginning of September. At this point the traffic light system was still in place, meaning that as Dubai was on te amber list, we had to get PCR’s done. Finding a centre that offered ‘fit to fly’ tests that were approved by airlines proved more than difficult. Luckily we were able to find a centre that gave us results within 48hours, but the wait was more than stressful...we didn’t know whether to start packing or not and waited in anticipation for the results. Many people can find long haul flights intimidating, and often are put off visiting different countries as a result of this. I usually love flying but the thought of having to wear a mask for 7 consecutive hours made me dread the flight - but my desire to go abroad drowned out this feeling. Once on board I was pleasantly surprised by Emirates.
They had made sure that the flight was not packed so everyone was not crammed together like sardines. Hand sanitizers and wipes were given out as soon as everyone was in their seat and cabin crew were excellent in making sure that all precautions were met. As soon as we stepped off the plane and walked through the airport, we noticed that Dubai still had some restrictions in place. Mask wearing was not forced but very heavily encouraged and we were told to download an app almost identical to the NHS-COVID 19 one we have in the UK, however it gave daily updates on which places in the UAE had the worst cases and how the restrictions were slowly being weakened each week. To some this may appear intimidating, however many people we spoke to felt at ease with this constant information. Overall, it is clear to see that the public’s confidence in travelling is gradually increasing and I would definitely recommend taking the leap and embracing the fact that we can travel once again!
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Tyson Fury: Heavyweight champion who has defeated more than just his opponents Metin Yilmaz & Oscar Ress
Sport Editor & Sport Senior Writer
Tyson Fury marked another step on his sensational redemption story by beating Denotary Wilder to defend his world heavyweight title. The ‘Gypsy King’ won the trilogy against his American opponent in a fight that lived up to the hype. It wasn’t always the glamour of the Las Vegas stage for Fury. In 2015, he defeated heavyweight legend Wladimir Klitschko to become world champion. However, Fury fell into depression, testing positive for cocaine and growing to an unhealthy 400lbs at his heaviest, a long way from the elite athlete that he was meant to be. This resulted in a two and a half year absence from boxing, the belts that he won in Germany on that famous night were stripped from him. The four belts are now with Oleksandr Usyk following his recent victory over Anthony Joshua. Fury dropped an impressive 10 stones to return to the ring. He worked his way back to fight knockout
artist Wilder, who had 41 career knockouts and was heavyweight champion. Despite dominating the fight, Fury was caught and knocked down in the 12th and final round, true to his vindication story he rose up to finish the fight. This was the culmination of his years of recovery and was a poignant moment in Fury’s journey. He has since won the next two fights, cementing his place as the top heavyweight boxer in the world. Fury speaks often about mental health and has become an inspiration to many struggling around the world. The third bout itself between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder marked an end to what several are calling a ‘trilogy for the ages’. It was the Gypsy King, after knockingout Wilder with a right hook in the eleventh-round, who left the ring victorious on the night to retain his WBC heavyweight title in Las Vegas. The first two rounds saw Wilder dictating the fight with an impressive series of jabs to Fury’s body, edging the lead on the judges’ score card. And despite being knocked down by Fury in the third round, Wilder’s straight right hand sent Fury to the canvas
in the fourth, suggesting to many that perhaps an upset was on the cards. But they should have known better. Tyson Fury never fails to inspire, and after recovering from Wilder’s blow to the temple, the Gypsy King never looked in doubt. From the sixth round onwards, Fury, as was the case in the first two bouts, outboxed Wilder in every aspect. Come the penultimate round, the Bronze Bomber looked fatigued and out on his feet, perhaps owed, in part, to coming into this fight at a career-high weight of 238lb. Wilder ate a telling right hook from the Briton shortly thereafter and that was all she wrote. “Me and Wilder’s saga is done now, done for good” asserted Fury after the fight. Yet, this begs the question: what, or rather, who next for the Gypsy King? Had Anthony Joshua retained his WBA, WBO and IBF heavyweight belts against Oleksandr Usyk two weeks prior, then naturally he would’ve been the next in line. But he didn’t, and so he isn’t. AJ will have a chance to redeem himself against Usyk come the rematch in spring of 2022, but if Usyk is to reign victorious once more, talk of a clash between the Ukrainian and Fury will surely be soon to follow.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Comment: Is the Newcastle takeover good for football? Metin Yilmaz Senior Sport Writer
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
To the jubilation of its supporters, Newcastle United Football Club is no longer under the gruelling ownership of the infamous Mike Ashley. Rather, the new majority shareholders of the club, owning an 80% stake and with assets totalling an estimated £350 billion, are Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). Newcastle United’s supporters may well have to pinch themselves to believe it, but the Magpies are now by far and away the richest club in the land. However, in true Newcastle United fashion, PIF don’t half bring their own share of controversy to Tyneside. Regarding the takeover, the Premier League said that it has “now received legally binding assurances that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will not control Newcastle United Football Club”, insinuating that rather, PIF will act as a separate legal entity. The objective is clear: to reassure football fans that the chequered political and ethical past of Saudi Arabia is not to be shared by PIF nor Newcastle United.
However, with PIF being formed in 1971 with the sole intention of investing funds on behalf of the Saudi Arabian government, and with six of the seven members of the PIF board being Saudi government ministers, not to mention its chairman being none other than the Crown Prince himself, Mohammad bin Salman Al-Saud, the Premier League’s statement doesn’t exactly reassure as much as it does raise doubt. Newcastle United, whether its supporters like it or not, is now directly tied and in partnership with a nation whose past and present is contentious to say the least. LGBTQ+ rights in the nation are to this day nonexistent, with homosexuality being punishable by death, and the state’s views towards women, despite recent improvements, have long been rooted in institutionalised sexism. Moreover, it was only three years ago when the CIA concluded that it was the very same Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman Al-Saud, who ordered for the assassination and dismemberment of critical Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, within the Saudi Arabian consulate in
Istanbul. Whilst the likes of Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City also have direct ties to nations with similarly controversial viewpoints (Qatar and the UAE, respectively), Saudi Arabia, it must be said, is a level above in terms of their anti-humanitarianism. For the city of Newcastle, its football club and their supporters, this takeover is, in strictly footballing terms, undoubtedly a ‘good’ thing. Newcastle United will be crowned Premier League champions, and will be regularly competing for the Champions League in the next decade or so; I feel very confident about that. But at what cost? Every title, every goal and every victory, bloodstained by the unethical and inexcusable acts of its owners and their blatant ill-intentions of ‘sportswashing’. This takeover marks a considerable step backwards in the progress that English football was and has been making in the past decade, from the increased coverage and continuous development of the women’s game, to the greater representation of the LGBTQ+ community in the sport. It is a harrowing reminder of how money is, and will continue to be, placed above all else in football.
26th October 2021
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Comment: Sports Night returns bigger, but is it better? Ella Fairchild Sports Writer
Sports night returned successfully for the first time since the pandemic on Wednesday, following the first set of BUCS fixtures of the year. The event is now ticketed and hosted in the LCR on campus after the controversial cancellation the week before. Although the events that meant the SU were forced to make changes to sports night were far from ideal, it is surely a positive to see such an upsurge in people buying their SAM’s and wanting to go out with their sports clubs. I was apprehensive to see what the new sports night would look like and whether it would be as good as it had been pre-pandemic, and I was pleasantly surprised. Even though we were in the LCR instead of Blue bar it definitely still felt like a sports
night. The larger venue meant it was much less cramped than before, although I’m not sure why some people were still unable to get their tickets despite the bigger capacity. My personal favourite addition to the night was the fact that the big screens over the stage in the LCR were displaying that day’s sports results on a loop. A definite improvement from the old sports night where the tiny screens never really managed to catch anyone’s attention. This created a real sense of celebration and meant lots of cheering, especially when you got to see your team’s result being shown on the screen. Although I’m sure there were doubts the sports night charm would be negatively impacted, I think it is safe to say that it was a thoroughly enjoyable night. The most
important thing is that we get to play and celebrate with our teams again in a way that we have not been able to in such a long time. Sports night does look a bit different now, but rest assured it is still a great night and one which we will continue to enjoy. Photo: Freyja Elwood
Photo: UEA SU
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Sport Editor Oscar Ress in conversation with Ryan Shoniwa - Sport Rep for African Caribbean Society and Vice President of UEA Basketball
Photo: Ryan Shoniwa
For this issue of Concrete, I had the opportunity to speak to Ryan Shoniwa, who is the Sport Rep of the African Caribbean Society (ACS) and Vice President of UEA Basketball. We discussed topics ranging from his aims for the year in his role in ACS and UEA Basketball, his experience as a Black person in sport and diversity in UEA Sport. In describing his role and plans for this year on the ACS committee he said: “creating sporting events for the ACS… this week we started our 6-a-side men’s team and had our trial game for a league that will take place every Sunday. Right now, I’m in the middle of doing a survey for women’s teams for Netball, Football, Basketball, Swimming and Tennis.” When asked what he was most looking forward to this year, he replied: “Achieving the targets we had set at the start of this year, creating more inclusion within the ACS and allowing more people from different backgrounds, who may normally not feel confident, coming to the ACS for support from their peers.’ He stressed that he is excited for the society to be less cliquey and be “one big group and a very community, family-based society.” I then asked him how being a black person has shaped his experience, in sport, he believes that he has been “lucky that it has not altered his experience so much, based on growing up in an area that was pretty diverse anyway, so I didn’t
have to face those barriers even in the form of microaggressions to a high level.” He continued: “in sixth form from ages 16-18 I did feel that I have to be a bit more outspoken to get my voice across but other than that it has been okay. In terms of a leadership point of view or from a position of power it has been even better, where there have been initiatives to increase diversity, they have worked in my case...I do feel 100% included and my voice is heard. I don’t feel like I’ve had any outstanding barriers.” Whether his experience at UEA has differed to the rest of his life, he said: “yes, it is different but it’s also the same as well. As an example, growing up I was football based and playing at a high-level where there was a lot of pressure put on myself and other players in the team. Coming to UEA, there was of course no competition because of the pandemic so there was only training and then exhibition games within the university which didn’t have that level of pressure but our first game on Wednesday against Loughborough felt like an immense amount of pressure which is different to growing up, mainly because we are now adults and are held to the level of highly skilled basketball players.” “Do you think there would be any sports clubs at UEA that Black people would be hesitant to join or avoid because of their bad reputation?” “There may be a few but not because of any bad rep, more as a person of colour you don’t know how many other people of colour you’ll be able to participate with. Being alone is very hard and not a lot of people can do that and be comfortable in themselves...in terms of bad rep it would only be maybe initiations getting out of hand but nothing that I k n o w about t h a t would m a k e people of colour turn away from a sport.” On whether there are any sports that are focussed on more by members of ACS, he replied: “yes, although it can be disappointing to say yes, off the top of my head in the new freshers there are more boys than girls and those guys tend to be more focused on sport. I do feel confident that there are more than most years of
girls interested in sport. For the guys, there is more on football which is understandable... there is only so much you can push other sports and as a committee member you must know your audience. I am still waiting for the results of my survey but in the girls there seems to be more of a spread.” Ryan holds multiple co m m i t te e positions and when asked if there is a relationship between his role in ACS and as Vice -President of Basketball, he commented: “yes, there is, initially we had spoken about potential collaborations between the two, but I don’t think that will be possible administratively or logistically. The main similarities are staying on top of everything, and the WhatsApp group chats can really pile up.” Asked who his sporting hero is and why, he said: “I would probably say Didier Drogba, mainly what puts him over the edge was the Champions League win in 2012.” When asked if he feels that UEA Sport is inclusive to the Black community, he hesitated before declaring: “Now this is a question that is kind of a negative, but I can’t not touch on it. I have recently thought, and this is the Sportspark in general, sometimes there is an air of distaste where there is a high concentration of Black students across the basketball club, sometimes I feel when they are bringing out nets for our training sessions...there are sometimes a few more issues or roadblocks than necessary and this is something that has popped in my head and that’s only me as someone is quite forthcoming when it comes to issues of race. I don’t want to bash anyone but there are a few too many roadblocks and maybe that is because of individual members of UEA sport and the Sportspark subconsciously. I love to give the benefit of the doubt but some subconsciously place roadblocks that don’t need to be there.” He did continue: “Other than that it has been great because they have been very cooperative with the admin and rescheduling...they have been more than cooperative”. Furthermore, I asked whether he believed that there was enough done by UEA sport to promote Black History Month, in response Rayan said: “Quite
Photo: Ryan Shoniwa frankly no, there hasn’t been enough to the point where if you hadn’t mentioned it now, I wouldn’t have even of thought that UEA sport had an obligation to do something like that so maybe that’s even more disappointing. Again, I would love to give the benefit of the doubt, these guys do a tremendous amount of work, not just for basketball but a lot of clubs and sometimes they would be side-tracked and focus on other things, as well as for the Norwich community. I would love to say they’ve been busy, and they haven’t found the time. It may be a logistic issue because they can’t put out posts without backing it up with events etc. Yes, there has not been enough, even recognition, but again that’s not a criticism, if they do read this they would understand and learn from it.” He follows up on this: “on diversity, I had a President/Vice-President meeting about two weeks ago and the President couldn’t come so it was just me there. I did find it interesting that I was the only Black President or Vice-President of all the sports clubs there. Now, again, that could be down to not more diversity in the application process because they might not have enough applications but going back to UEA sport maybe there could be a suggestion where they look for more people of colour, allowing people of colour to have more CV experience and show off their leadership skills.”
“I was the only Black President or VicePresident of all of the Sports clubs there”
“So, you were the only Black person there?” “Yes, I was.” More specifically I asked whether there is enough representation in UEA Sport, he replied: “Within our committee, it is very well rounded and it is not just people of colour, the way we communicate all from different backgrounds. Our boxes have been ticked. That’s an excellent job by our last year’s President Nick. And Claire, who does everything, including coaching both the men’s and women’s first team. But yes, I remember that meeting and I felt it was something to note. And on top of that, all the new UEA sport and Sportspark staff, and again, it is already bad that I can’t think of any person of colour off the top of my head. To go further than that, I don’t remember seeing any person of colour on the spreadsheet of members of staff we were given. I could be wrong, but I can’t remember and me being the type of person that I am, I do look out for that so the fact I didn’t see it is yeah.” Finally, I asked what his experiences of sports night or any club night at UEA had been, “I can say...there have been individuals I’ve heard in first year of flatmates that have gone to sports trainings at UEA and there has been a microaggression here or there or a not too friendly face. You can tell it is subtle but not enough to disregard it as something that is not to do with race. I wouldn’t go too far as to say it’s an issue [at UEA] but as individuals they can have their own view on Black people. Within themselves it’s an issue and hopefully they get the consequences they deserve but as a whole I’d say it is not an issue”.