2021 UMSU Election Guide by Farrago Magazine

WHAT IS UMSU? The purposes of UMSU are: 1. To advance the welfare and interests of Students; 2. To represent Students of the University within the University and to the community; 3. To provide amenities and services, principally for Students and other members of the University community, and incidentally to the public, but in all cases not inconsistent with agreements made with the University, as the case may be, from time to time; 4. To provide an independent framework for Student social and political activity; 5. To develop, maintain and support Student clubs, societies and associational life generally; 6. To promote and defend the rights of Students to education on the basis of equality, without regard to race, colour, sex, sexuality, gender identity, age, physical disability, mental illness, economic circumstances, political religious or ideological conviction, or national or social origin; 7. To oppose violence and/or hatred through militarism, nationalism, or discrimination on the basis of race, colour, sex, sexuality, gender identity, age, physical disability, mental illness, economic circumstances, religion, or national or social origin. 8. To provide a democratic and transparent forum in which Students’ affairs and interests can be governed in an effective and accountable manner; and 9. To promote free and accessible government-funded education. In order to achieve these purposes, but for no other purpose and subject always to the terms of any agreements with the University, as the case may be, the Association has all the powers of a natural person.

The Media Office would like to acknowledge the True Custodians of the land on which we work, the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin nations. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present. We extend our acknowledgements to the First Nations and staff members in the University of Melbourne Community. The land we are on is stolen and sovereighty was never ceded.

CONTENTS PAGE

Officer Bearers

Committees

02 President 05 General Secretary 08 Education (Academic Affairs) Officer 11 Education (Public Affairs) Officer 13 Welfare Officer 16 Women’s Officer 18 Creative Arts Officer 20 Activities Officer 22 Queer Officer 24 Environment Officer 27 Media Officers 28 Clubs & Socities Officer 30 Indigenous Officer 31 Disabilities Officer 32 People of Colour Officer 34 Southbank Campus Co-ordinator 35 Southbank Education Officer 36 Southbank Activities Officer 37 Burnley Campus Co-ordinator

47 Activities 49 Creative Arts 50 Disabilities 52 Education 55 Environment 57 Indigenous 58 People of Colour 59 Queer 61 Welfare 63 Women’s 63 Southbank

Students’ Council 38 Graduate Students Representative 38 Indigenous Students Representative 39 International Students Representative 39 Queer Students Representative 40 Students of Colour Representative 40 Students with Disabilities Representative 41 Southbank Students Representative 41 General Members

National Union of Students (NUS) 66 NUS Delegates By-elections 69 Burnley Committee 69 Southbank Campus Co-ordinator 69 Environment Officer 70 General Secretary 72 Indigenous Committee Ticket Information 73 Community for UMSU 75 Fightback for UMSU 76 Independents for Student Democracy 77 Independent Media 78 Left Action 80 Liberals Off Campus – Stop The Menzies Institute 81 Stand Up! 82 The People’s Press 83 VVholesome

NOTE FROM THE EDITORS: According to the Constitution of the University of Melbourne Student Union, Farrago is required to publish an election supplement containing the names of all candidates and their submitted speeches and photographs. These statements were submitted by candidates to the Returning Officer. Any candidate who missed the deadline will have no speech in this supplement. The word limit for candidate statements was 300 words for Office Bearer positions and 100 words for Students’ Council, Committies and other positions. If a statement ends abruptly, it is because it was over the word limit and was cut in accordance with the Student Union’s Electoral Regulations. There were some tickets that submitted the same speech for different positions and individuals. Where this has occured we have printed the speech once, listing all of the candidates under the one heading. Other than this, with the exception of text formatting, we have not edited any of the following speeches in any way, including spelling and grammar.

PRESIDENT Archit Agrawal — Community for UMSU UMSU is meant to represent all students at the University of Melbourne. However, it has not done enough to represent marginalised communities. I am an international student who came to Melbourne in 2018. For the past 4 years, I have volunteered for many student organisations. I served as UMSU International President in 2019-20. During my time with UMSU International, I campaigned for long-term fee reform for international students, I fought for a better mental health support system for students and engaged in extensive policy work around course quality, consistently working to hold the University accountable. My passion for activism and change led me to be able to do these things. I feel that over the past year, student conditions have gotten worse in many areas. I am running with Community for UMSU as I believe that every student has a right to be involved in UMSU. By having students from different backgrounds in leadership positions, UMSU will be able to better represent our diverse student community. Our student union should be a place where everyone is welcome, where students regardless of their background, can grow and learn from each other. Differences should be celebrated, inclusion should be a priority and above all, we should strive for a representative body that actually reflects its students. There have been many times where I’ve felt frustrated and hurt by UMSU’s complex bureaucratic systems excluding those who don’t fit the mould. UMSU has so much potential but has crucially fallen short of being the representation students need. I vow to bring the passion and activism to UMSU. If you’re after an UMSU that better represents you and reflects the realities of UniMelb today, take this chance to vote [1] for Community, your community! For more details on Community and our policies, visit communityforumsu.com

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hey! I’m Daisy and I am excited to be a candidate for President. I am studying a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient World Studies and am interested in critiquing the role of ancient history in our society today, including looking at the misuse of history to legitimise the West and also advocating for the repatriation of artefacts. My experience includes being President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society; editor for the undergraduate history journal Chariot; various teaching roles for history subjects in the VCESS volunteer program; and I also work as a casual field archaeologist in Victoria. I am passionate about feminist discourse and can get deeply saddened by the issues women face, but am uplifted when I see small, positive steps like that of the Respect Taskforce emails. I am highly interested in the Australian political climate, and get very frustrated with the current Federal government, certain policies and bills, and in response have made Senate inquiry submissions, sent emails to politicians, and attended protests. I am particularly disheartened with the diminishing social value placed on the Arts, and was involved in campaigning against the unfortunate Job-Ready Graduate package that saw the price of an Arts degree skyrocket. However, I think it is important to try to not be disenfranchised with politics, and continue to read, think, and talk about it in everyday life and celebrate the small wins where you can. I am excited to be a candidate for President and represent the student community!

PRESIDENT CONT. Emma Dynes — Left Action Hi, I’m Emma and I’m running for UMSU President with Left Action! Higher education faces unprecedented attacks. The new IPCC report has declared the climate crisis could bring about “hell on earth” if emissions aren’t halted. Around the corner from campus, over 50 refugees face their ninth year in indefinite detention. What we need is a radical student fightback. We need to stop education cuts, fight the Liberals, demand climate action and protest to free the refugees. That’s why I’m running for President with Left Action. Community, a right wing group hostile to activism, currently dominates the student union. We want to kick out the right and rebuild the radical, activist traditions of student unionism. Left Action candidates campaign around left wing issues every single day, despite not having any paid positions in the student union. Left Action is leading the campaign to stop the Menzies Institute, a right wing think tank headed by SkyNews culture warrior Peta Credlin and Trump-supporting Liberal party candidate Georgina Downer. While funding for education is being gutted, the Liberal government is giving VC Duncan Maskell $7 million to help promote their conservative agenda on our campus. I’ve organised multiple climate national days of action through Uni Students for Climate Justice. We mobilised hundreds of students to demand Melbourne University divest from fossil fuels and immediate climate action from the government. I have spent all year organising weekly protests to free refugees locked up at Park Hotel. At every turn, Community blocked attempts to promote this campaign including scheduling council meetings at the same time as demonstrations. A vote for Left Action is a vote for a fighting left wing activist union - not one that exists just to build the CVs of anti-activist bureaucrats or future Labor politicians.

Sophie Nguyen — Stand Up! I’m Sophie Nguyen (she/her) and I’m running for UMSU 2022 President with Stand Up!. I’m in my third year at university with a passion for student unionism. Now more than ever, we need an UMSU that has a strong presence in student support, activism, and social life. This year, I’ve been disappointed to see the cuts to staff and the decreased quality of teaching content due to the lack of support and funding in higher education. The university is not lacking in funds, but it is reprioritising and rebranding online learning to save costs, and hence, impacting the learning experience for students. Our degrees should not be minimised to a paper. Especially with dual-delivery/online learning, the University should not and cannot create loopholes and justify the lack of support for both students and teaching staff. This is why UMSU is important. Students’ voices matter because without us, the University cannot survive. This is why I am running with Stand Up!. We have a long and proud history of delivering services for students. We’ve done incredible things such as fight for lecture recordings, the safety on campus campaign, and deliver 2020 WAMnesty. My vision next year is to pressure the University to do better for students, acknowledge that the quality of education does not add up to the fees, and that online learning has severely impacted the way policies work. I want to continue the working relationship with the Women’s department on the University’s policy on SA/SH. In particular, I want to fight for increased training and support for tutors and lecturers to understand how intersectionalities within our student body can affect learning and engagement. I’ve seen what good student unionism looks like and it’s what we need in 2022.

PRESIDENT CONT. Ezra Bangun — VVholesome UMSU election is crazy and sometimes I feel like, hmmm “Has the world gone mad, or have I? I need to get out and go inside myself, to search my chasm for meanings.” VVholesome is back, and better than ever! So, what exactly is VVholesome? On one side, it’s a fun ticket with a lot of memes (check out our Facebook!). I also made the 2020 Bachelor of Magic! (https://bit. ly/3xHxeYM). We have everything here! We have Noot Noot, which is my very cute little penguin son (a bit naughty tho). We also have influencers! Who is it? Keep reading the statements and you will find out! On the other side, we just want to have fun and make sure that Unimelb students get the best that they can get! We don’t offer any false hopes on promises that will not be achieved or is literally impossible to be achieved. We will just be flexible and do our best to support students! Although, at the end of the day, we want you, to vote! UMSU election usually only gets about 10% turnout rate, so it’s very important to raise awareness that you can, and you should vote! Now! Obviously, you don’t have to vote for us but make sure you research the candidates and vote for the one that you like the most and believe will be the best fit for UMSU (but come on, we have memes, influencers, and Noot Noot, what’s not to like?). Enjoy election week everyone! I’ll be here hanging out with Noot Noot! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

GENERAL SECRETARY Hannah Lewis — Independents for Student Democracy My name is Hannah, and I am a second-year arts student studying classics and ancient history. While studying at Melbourne, I have been an active participant in student life despite the difficulties COVID-19 has presented. In particular, I have been an enthusiastic member of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society since 2020, and currently I serve on the executive committee, fulfilling the role of Consul (President). Although I began my experience at Melbourne at a difficult time during COVID, I have been lucky to stay involved and overall enjoy a positive student experience. I would love to ensure all students at Melbourne also enjoy a similar positive experience, where they feel connected to others and encouraged to foster curiosity and engagement in their studies. Outside of university, my hobbies include reading, playing field hockey with a local club, and enjoying relaxing video games such as Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. As someone passionate about democracy and exchanging ideas with others, I am excited to participate in this election as a member of Independents for Student Democracy. I strongly believe in encouraging student participation in university life, such as promoting participation in clubs and societies, and maintaining a positive University experience for students both on campus and during online delivery. To ensure this, I believe in increasing financial support for clubs, maintaining student wellbeing support and being a vocal representative of students’ expectations for education quality, especially during periods of online classes.

Jennisha Arnata — Community for UMSU Student life is about more than studying. It’s the friendships, relationships, and memories one makes through the journey. The student union should be responsible for providing the avenue for these experiences to blossom. But the current system doesn’t work. UMSU is inaccessible and to this day, many students do not know about UMSU. It is unfortunate that most students only know about UMSU’s orientation events, whereas we’re more than that. It is impossible for the student union to work if students, the key stakeholders, are not in the picture. The complex bureaucratic system of UMSU has made it impossible for student representatives to fully utilise their potential of creating real change for student’s lives. Running with Community last year and serving as Education Academic Officer has allowed me to see how things can be different. This year, we succeeded in securing reduced study load for international students, an extension of library hours, the opening of study spaces during the pandemic and the University’s commitment to improving their mental health support system. With transparency, effective communication and coordination, student representatives have enormous weightage to be heard by the University. Working with other departments also showed me that there can be so much more done for students. Change doesn’t happen overnight and there is still work to be done. The knowledge and skills I have gained the past year will help me coordinate UMSU campaigns, reform policies for the betterment of the organisation and its people, and ensure effective flow of communication within the system for better management of the union. I cannot sit by and allow an institution with so much potential to continue to waste its promise to students. That is why I’m running for General Secretary. Vote [1] Community for all positions, for UMSU can do better.

GENERAL SECRETARY CONT. Max Dowell — Stand Up! UMSU is a multi-million-dollar organisation that should provide essential services, advocacy, and a voice for students in these dark times; good governance is the backbone that ensures the delivery of these obligations. We feel the union has failed to meet its duties this year, and I think it is a lack of transparency and oversight that is to blame. I am Max Dowell (he/him) and I am extraordinarily proud to be running as your General Secretary with Stand Up! Stand Up! has been there when students needed us most; it was an understanding of processes and procedures that led to our biggest achievements like Wamnesty and compulsory lecture recordings -. I would be honoured to continue this legacy. Rather than make empty promises or deride the processes of good governance, I instead want to assure students that their union will be run for the good of all, in a genuinely accessible and accountable manner. Having witnessed the collapse of the Arts Faculty Board as a student representative, I know what happens when the university is allowed to pursue its agenda without scrutiny. Having served on several committees from food to faculty clubs, I know what truly matters to students and how hard it is without adequate support. Being a representative for students with Disabilities, I would like to see UMSU fully embrace accessibility, rather than treating it as a buzzword. I want to reorient the union to once more take an active role in lobbying for our rights and organising students to take back control of their university. But more importantly, I want a union that actually communicates with students, a union that is open and accountable, a union that focuses on clubs and student life. If you, like me, feel that Community has not provided this, I will.

Srishti Sharma No statement submitted.

Xavier Dupe — Left Action Hi, I’m Xavier Dupe and I’m running for UMSU General Secretary with Left Action! Most Melbourne Uni students probably don’t know there are more than 50 refugees locked up on Swanston St. Or that the Uni has $70 million invested in fossil fuels. Or that it’s going to host the Menzies Institute, set up by Liberal Party hacks like Peta Credlin. Or that there are student campaigns against all of these. And you wouldn’t know because the current UMSU leadership doesn’t tell students about it. I’m running with Left Action because we need a union that organises students to fight for their rights. As your representative on council this year, I pushed for the union to support the weekly protests for the refugees locked up in the Park Hotel, which is practically on campus. The current union leadership wouldn’t even promote the rallies on Facebook. While Left Action members protested week-in, weekout, the current leadership were sitting in budget meetings. The student union should be slamming the university and the government for letting this happen, and organising students to protest against this crime committed in our name. This year I helped lead a rally on campus demanding that Melbourne Uni cut its ties with fossil fuels and that the government take urgent action on the climate. We mobilised over a hundred students for climate justice. The majority on Students’ Council (called “Community”) refused to promote this rally! What we need right now is an UMSU that tries to organise students to fight for their rights. One that is not just advertising the next Bevs and BBQs, but the next protest against course cuts. One that stands up against every injustice, both on and off campus. Vote Left Action for UMSU.

GENERAL SECRETARY CONT. Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” (Hi, Ezra here. Unfortunately, due to the high demand from the fans, Britney Bichh is unable to provide any statement. However, let’s be honest, who needs a statement? It’s Britney Bichh! The best influencer in town.) Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

EDUCATION (ACADEMDIC AFFAIRS) OFFICER Joshua Davis & Bridget Bracken — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m running with Bridget to be your 2022 Education (Academic) Officers. I’m a first year Bachelor of Arts student who has been through the neglectful and unfair experience of online learning - while students at Monash and RMIT were able to return to campus - unnecessarily and unfairly impacting the educational experience of domestic students. Further, the winding back of WAMnesty has failed to support students during the ongoing pandemic, disproportionately affecting international students in locations where COVID has made study difficult and dangerous. As Education Officer, I will fight for the reintroduction of WAMnesty for COVID-affected students, while also advocating to streamline and expand the Special Consideration process, ensuring all students have access to an education that respects and fosters their mental health and wellbeing. Finally, as Education Officer, I will pressure the university to conduct a COVID-safe return to on-campus learning at the earliest opportunity that restrictions allow, ensuring that our education does not fall behind our peers.

Kevin Mao & Kalyana Vania — Community for UMSU We are Kevin Mao (he/him) and Kalyana Vania (she/her), your Education Academic Officers with Community for UMSU! Education is arguably the most important aspect of University life for the majority of students. We aim to always prioritise transparency to all students and actively discuss concerns and ideas that guide the development of academic policies. Your voice and opinions are our best motivation. The past two years of the pandemic have shed light on the importance of Education and its quality and accessibility has never been more crucial. We have heard your cries over the urgent need of academic support and the difficulty of maintaining academic and social commitments during periods of isolation. We endeavour to focus on: 1. Enforcing accessible student friendly learning structures and content (either delivered: online, in person, hybrid) to be applied throughout faculties. 2. The optimisation of the special consideration process. 3. A circular feedback platform that allows suggestions from all student, faculty leadership and academic coordinators. This aims to put everyone’s inputs on the forefront of the provision of academic curriculum and assessment as well as key university decision making and policy. 4. Enhancing existing employability programs such as the Graduate Student program and establishing new initiatives for both domestic and offshore students. 5. Championing academic equality, accessible study spaces, transparent policies and most importantly, prioritizing students first. If elected, we will ensure that there is a voice in the meetings that reflects what your concerns are, what you have to say and what you wish to see changed for the better. We will suggest unpopular opinions that may challenge the arcane status quo for you and work together with each and every one of you to improve this place we call University.

EDUCATION (ACADEMDIC AFFAIRS) OFFICER CONT. Ethan Georgeou & Moira Negline — Stand Up! Hi there! We are Moira (she/her), a Third Year Arts student, and Ethan (they/them), Second Year Arts student. We are passionate about students rights and wellbeing and will be honoured to represent your interests as the Education Academic Officers. The University’s response to the pandemic has exposed huge inadequacies in its policies and attitudes towards students’ wellbeing and safety. With students becoming increasingly vulnerable, the need for a strong and passionate representation of students’ voices in our union is more important than ever. Despite promises for improved transparency and reforms to fee relief and special consideration, students have been left empty-handed and this lack of accountability has not been acknowledged. Intersectionality as a basis for collaboration will be a key emphasis of our policies and action. Collaborating with other departments within UMSU will ensure a diversity of opinions and voices are consulted prior to important decisions. Greater student engagement through clear communication of important decisions will be crucial in providing the transparency and accountability that students deserve. This includes providing correspondence around access to facilities and campus resources, COVID19-related WAM adjustment, and updating the Student Conduct Policy to reflect the realities of online classes. Importantly, pressuring the University for clarification and action on fee reduction will improve transparency, and support students confined to online learning. Updating the University’s Special Consideration Policy is necessary to alleviate the stresses of the application process. Introducing a provisional application review can facilitate extended deadlines for the submission of supporting documents. Direct student-subject coordinator communication will improve the efficiency of processing by Stop 1 and prevent backlog of applications. We will stand up for your rights to accessible education, your rights to know about decision-making, and your rights to be heard!

Julian Petito & Penelope Scacciante — Left Action Hi, we’re Julian and Penelope, and we’re running for the Education (Academic Affairs) Office with Left Action! The Liberal government and university management are in collaboration, savagely attacking students and undermining higher education across the country. Last year saw Education Minister Dan Tehan push through a massive fee hikes, leaving students with mountains of future debt to pay off. Unimelb’s very own Duncan Maskell sits comfortably as the state’s highest paid Vice Chancellor, taking home $1.5 million last year while slashing 450 casual staff jobs and cutting subjects and courses across the board. But the offensive is not over for university bosses, with continued demands for further restructures and job cuts across the state. Left Action is a fightback ticket, with candidates having built and led ongoing campaigns against University management. On campus we have been protesting against the brutal staff cuts and attacks on students. Earlier this year we marched to the doors of the VC’s fortress, demonstrating that these attacks are only ever in the interests of the bosses. But the fight isn’t over. If we are elected, the Education Academic Office will be dedicated to the fightback. We will demand the university scrap any further job cuts. We will run campaigns by mobilising students to fight for their rights in solidarity with staff, ensuring no more cuts are pushed through. All without having illusions in the government to come to our aid. Instead we will demand they reverse the fee hikes, and fight for fully funded, free education for all students.

EDUCATION (ACADEMDIC AFFAIRS) OFFICER CONT. Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “This material is made available to you by or on behalf of [REDACTED] under section 113P of the Copyright Act 1968. It may be subject to copyright. For more information, visit the [REDACTED] copyright website” One thing for sure, we need an influencer course. On Monday, we learn how to take Selfie. On Tuesday, we learn how to post controversial things on Twitter. On Wednesday, we vlog. On Thursday, we make Tiktok dances. On Friday we learn to make an apology video. Yay! Oh, don’t forget, It’s Britney Bichh Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

EDUCATION (PUBLIC AFFAIRS) OFFICER Daisy Norfolk & Lachlan Mutimer — Independents for Student Democracy G’day, I’m Lachie! I am currently in my third year studying Arts, majoring in History and Ancient World Studies. I work as a delivery driver for an outdoor furniture company and spend my spare time snorkelling, training for triathlons, head-banging to music, and taking care of my rescue dog (Honey) and cactus (Jonathan). I have also previously volunteered in my community – maintaining public gardens with a local group, planting trees, coaching a kids basketball team, and giving a hand at an Op-shop. I am passionate about getting involved, trying new things (like this!), making progressive change, and helping others in the process. I am especially passionate about maintaining pressure on the state and federal governments to make tertiary education financially accessible so students can study hassle-free and don’t have to fear their future. Furthermore, we would listen to your grievances and act on them as best we can. I’m Daisy and I am excited to be one of the Education candidates for the ISD. I care a lot about what we learn and why we learn it, and my experience includes being a tutor and subject coordinator for various VCESS subjects, being the President for the Classics and Archaeology Students Society (including running study sessions and subject review events), and as an UMSU Host volunteer, taking new students around campus. I have also been involved in advocacy with making parliamentary inquiry submissions and campaigning, including against the Job-Ready Graduate Bill (which raised the costs for many student’s degrees). I am passionate about supporting student learning and being engaged with political issues that effect students and their education.

Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome To make sure that we go public, we need to go big on social media! And I mean HUGE! We need to start our own Tiktok, Youtube, Instagram, Twitter, everything. So please don’t forget to SMASH that like button, subscribe and hit the bell icon to get notified. And also comment about your favorite classes and classes to avoid. Oh and also, we have Britney Bichh! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Ruby Craven & Benjamin Jarick — Stand Up! Hi! We’re Ben (he/him) and Ruby (she/her), and we’re running to be your Education (Public Affairs) officers for 2022. Students’ rights and education are under attack, so it’s never been more important to have a staunch, progressive Education department. This year, the EdPub office has stood up for your rights. When the university planned to accept $7.5 million from the government to open a partisan, far-right think tank on campus through the Menzies Institute, EdPub launched a campaign to fight against it. Our money should go to making students’ education better, not into the pockets of Vice-Chancellors. We will continue this staunch activism by combating misinformation from the Menzies Institute and fighting against Unimelb’s cuts to staff and subjects. A key focus for next year will be working to make rallies and protests as open and accessible as possible. We will prioritise autonomous collaboration, working to centre the voices and perspectives of POC and Indigenous students, ensuring that activism we undertake remains staunchly anti-racist. This also means continuing our awesome collectives, where you can begin your activist journey in a diverse and non-judgemental environment. Universities should not be businesses. We know that our quality of education has been impacted by neoliberal funding and teaching cuts, and it’s unacceptable that profit comes before people, when this translates to larger classes, less time with tutors, and recycled subject content. We’ll fight against government policies that see increased student fees and subject cuts, and collaborate with the NUS and NTEU to ensure that the educational concerns of both students and staff are represented at a federal level. If you’re ready to build a staunch, progressive union with us, vote [1] Stand Up!

EDUCATION (PUBLIC AFFAIRS) OFFICER CONT. Carlos Julian Lagos Martin & Anastasia Adiwijaya — Community for UMSU We are running for the two Education (Public Affairs) positions for UMSU 2022. Our names are Carlos Lagos (he/him), and Catherine Adiwijaya (she/her). These past few years have forced us all to seek out strategies to cope with the ever-changing dynamic of the COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, we are seeing that the government continues to disregard their responsibilities to all students: be it those who live overseas and interstate or those in Melbourne, either pursuing tertiary or vocational education. In our tertiary context, this absence of government has robbed us all of the experiences we hoped for from university. For instance, 1. the return to campus plan which has been delayed because of the botched vaccine rollout 2. defunding important faculties – causing the cost of some degrees to raise by 130% 3. failing to give effective goals to reach our ‘new normal’- which has indefinitely delayed the return of our international student community, and 4. the cherry on top of it all - their lack of funding and awareness of mental health programs for all of the diverse, equally important groups, as we, the student community, continue to traverse this difficult journey. Yet, the only government intervention we see in tertiary institutions is focused on funding far right institutes composed of animated characters, such as Sky News’ very own Peta Credlin - who has peddled conspiracy theories. Yes, we are talking about the Menzies institute - an ‘institute’ which threatens our University’s reputation as a university that champions reason, multiculturalism, and embracing the globalised world. If we are elected, we will guarantee to you all we’ll be the first to protest this government incompetence and university failures with the goal of championing the aspirations of both domestic and international students: to attain a well rounded form of tertiary education. Vote [1] for Community!

James Gallagher & Sam Rathnaweera — Left Action Hi, we’re James and Sam, and we’re running for the Education (Public Affairs) Office with Left Action! Across Australia our education is under attack. For decades, successive Liberal and Labor governments have underfunded universities and furthered their neoliberalisation. This was continued last year with the Federal governments’ ‘Job Ready Graduates package’, which moved some degrees towards a user-pays model and decreased overall funding. The lack of a fighting student movement meant there was little resistance to this. We also face an enemy on our campus. At the University of Melbourne, our millionaire Vice Chancellor Duncan Maskell has spent the past few years using the excuse of inflated projected losses to sack hundreds of staff and slash subjects, all the while continuing to profit off of international students stuck overseas. We are proud to have been leading activists in the fight against these attacks. When Duncan Maskell attempted to impose an Enterprise Agreement variation that would have decreased staff pay and conditions, we organised students and staff to defeat this major attack. Through our involvement in the No Cuts campaign we have organised multiple protests against education attacks - confronting the Vice Chancellor at management summits at RMIT and the RACV club, occupying Duncan Maskell’s lobby, and showing solidarity with grounds staff who defeated sackings by fighting back. We have also been involved in organising the campaign against the Menzies Institute, an alarming imposition on our campus. Unfortunately, UMSU has not done all it could to fight against these historic attacks on our education. It hasn’t even done the bare minimum of mobilising its forces and influence as a representative body to raise consciousness about the cuts. As UMSU Education (Public) Officers, We will use the department and its resources to (continue to) build a fightback against attacks on our education.

WELFARE OFFICER Lachlan Mutimer — Independents for Student Democracy G’day, I’m Lachie! I am currently in my third year studying Arts, majoring in History and Ancient World Studies. I work as a delivery driver for an outdoor furniture company and spend my spare time snorkelling, training for triathlons, head-banging to music, and taking care of my rescue dog (Honey) and cactus (Jonathan). I have also previously volunteered in my community – maintaining public gardens with a local group, planting trees, coaching a kids basketball team, and giving a hand at an Op-shop. I am passionate about getting involved, trying new things (like this!), making progressive change, and helping others in the process. I am especially passionate about maintaining pressure on the state and federal governments to make tertiary education financially accessible so students can study hassle-free and don’t have to fear their future. Furthermore, we would listen to your grievances and act on them as best we can. I’m Daisy and I am excited to be one of the Education candidates for the ISD. I care a lot about what we learn and why we learn it, and my experience includes being a tutor and subject coordinator for various VCESS subjects, being the President for the Classics and Archaeology Students Society (including running study sessions and subject review events), and as an UMSU Host volunteer, taking new students around campus. I have also been involved in advocacy with making parliamentary inquiry submissions and campaigning, including against the Job-Ready Graduate Bill (which raised the costs for many student’s degrees). I am passionate about supporting student learning and being engaged with political issues that effect students and their education.

Shuyan (Lynne) Bian and Yuvhashni (Yuvha) Sugunan Pillai — Community for UMSU Hi peeps, we are Yuvhashni (Yuvha) Sugunan Pillai and Shuyan (Lynne) Bian, and together we are running for office bearer positions for the Welfare department. Under the attack of COVID-19, the past year has significantly impacted everyone’s university life. Students’ day-to-day routines and wellbeing are negatively affected by the crisis. Without appropriate support, students would continue to struggle, especially those from more disadvantaged and marginalised backgrounds. If we are to be elected as the welfare office bearers, we would continue with the union market which can continue to provide students who are struggling financially with basic needs and food. We would elaborate on the program in the goal of increasing the number of accessible aids provided to students by bringing in a variety of food vouchers that can lessen the cost of everyday meals. We would also improve our mental health support in the university. The mental well-being of the students is crucial. Events and group sessions can be organised to raise awareness regarding student wellbeing and help them to connect with their peers. We are also aware some of our students are outside of Australia. Therefore, a dual delivery of the events is essential to involve even those overseas. We will also make CAPS more accessible for students in need. We have noticed that many students are unaware of the services we have and resources they can utilise. We would make sure that the events get promoted weekly through emails and social media. Student volunteers are a great way to involve the student in a program that would not only benefit them but also other people. We would also focus on building a volunteer base of people who are passionate about contributing, to create a community where students can take care of each other’s welfare.

WELFARE OFFICER CONT. Jaan Schild & Claire McKeown – Left Action Hi, we’re Claire and Jaan, and we’re running for Welfare Officer with Left Action! The past year has seen an attack on the welfare of students by the government and by universities. Those who lost their jobs in the pandemic were inadequately subsidized, while workers who were deemed ‘essential’ were forced to work without adequate PPE and put at disproportionate risk of contracting the virus. Now that JobSeeker and other welfare payments have been halved, the living standards of working class people are severely under attack. Students are on the front lines of this crisis. We’re more likely to be in casual, essential jobs. That means we’re the ones who have to choose between taking a shift and risking our health, or refusing it and not being able to pay the bills. As Welfare Officers for UMSU, we will campaign for JobSeeker to be raised to the minimum wage, and mutual obligations abolished. For international students, the situation is even worse, with work a visa requirement and no welfare at all. We will campaign for welfare to be extended in full to international students, and the abolition of requirements and limits to how much international students can work. The mental health services provided by the university are inadequate. The transition to learning being entirely online during the pandemic combined with the recent restructuring of the university making it harder to contact tutors has created a university environment that’s disconnected and stressful. Pandemic special considerations should be granted automatically to students and attendance requirements should be scrapped. Mental health services also need to be massively increased in the face of these problems. These are things the union should be fighting for!

Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome Well, Corona is not very good. That’s why Welfare is more important than ever. There are three things that you should do, sleep, eat, and drink! Sleep: Sleeping is good! If you don’t have enough time to sleep at night because you are playing an idle game and waiting for that energy to fill up, just turn off your zoom camera in class and sleep. It seems like most people are already doing it! Eat: Make sure to get enough food. Go to KFC or MACCAS now! Drink: GET BUBBLE TEA! NOW! IT’S GOOD!!! Oh my god, almost forgot. We can’t forget, It’s Britney Bichh! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Harry Syson and Nada (Nadja) Tordorovic — Stand Up! Hey everyone! We’re Harry and Nadja, and we’re campaigning together to be your 2021 Welfare officers. Nadja (she/her) is a second year politics/french major, and Harry (he/him) is a third year philosophy/linguistics major. We both have a strong passion about student wellbeing, and understand the complexity behind welfare needs. We have heaps of experience and involvement in student activism; Harry was on the environment and welfare committees this year, and Nadja has held many leadership roles in student clubs, and a current role in student services. Our initiatives for next year include the reintroduction of Welfare Breakfasts: a service that helps students by providing free daily meals. The UMSU Food Bank will come back and be expanded to stock a wide range of essential items: household supplies, sanitary products, and groceries. We also will focus on improving Counselling and Legal Services provided by the university, key resources that should provide worthwhile support. Lastly we want to offer a range of exercise classes to tackle an overlooked aspect of wellbeing: Physical health. We’re quick problem solvers, dedicated, energetic, but most importantly, empathy is at the core of who we are. Within the welfare collective, we will listen to your wants and your needs, in order to introduce initiatives that are an honest reflection of the student body, catering to the diverse range of wellbeing requirements. Welfare needs to be at the forefront of activism, and our services must be beneficial to all students, whether you are in Melbourne or elsewhere on the planet. In these times of uncertainty, we hope to bring everyone closer and provide necessary services for all of you to feel connected in the community, have the opportunity to work on physical and mental health, and be heard by your student union.

WELFARE OFFICER CONT. Srishti Sharma No statement submitted.

WOMEN’S OFFICER* *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Phoebe Leggett & Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hey! I’m Daisy and I am keen to be one of the Women’s candidates for the ISD. I am studying a major in Ancient World Studies and am passionate about women in the ancient world and like to take an approach to history that considers how women thought and felt. I feel strongly that more women should be present in political and leadership roles, and am always encouraging other young women to be involved in these opportunities. One of my favourite books, Gillard and Okonjo-Iweala’s Women and Leadership, outlines the need for women “in all their diversity and in record numbers, to aim to be leaders in every field.” I believe it is essential we tackle both the visible and invisible issues women face, and make conditions where women can thrive in any aspect of life they choose. Hello, I am Phoebe. I am a third-year Arts student studying linguistics and ancient history. I am involved with various clubs, including serving as Secretary and President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society. I also play the Bassoon. I firmly believe that all students should be able to access and have a say over their education without fear of discrimination. As the Greek philosopher, Plato said: ὁ δὲ ἀνεξέταστος βίος οὐ βιωτὸς ἀνθρώπῳ “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Independents for Student Democracy is a group of students passionate about democracy and promoting student wellbeing and community/clubs experience on campus.

Bella Henry & Emily Kaji — Stand Up! We’re Emily (she/her) and Bella (she/her) and we are running with Stand Up! for the Women’s department this year. This has been a landmark year for feminism in Australia - in parliament, we saw women being dismissed and protesters being told they should be thankful for not being shot. These same patriarchal structures still exist at the University of Melbourne - this is why we want to loudly challenge the sexism we experience every day on campus by envisioning a women’s department that is staunch, intersectional and anticolonial. As a part of our vision we will continue the work of the women’s department in establishing a health and wellbeing centre for survivors of sexual assault. It is appalling that the university has yet to develop a comprehensive, stand alone sexual assault and harassment policy that is trauma informed and survivor centric - and we plan on changing that. As a part of this campaign we would also take serious action on the findings of the NSSS-Survey regarding the epidemic of sexual assault and harassment on university campuses. A stand up! Womens department will hold intersectional feminist perspectives at the core of everything we do, platforming the voices of all women and non-binary people and ensuring that they always have a place to turn to for support. We hope to work in collaboration with other departments at UMSU such as Queer, POC and Indigenous to ensure our policies are informed by and inclusive of the diverse experiences of women and nonbinary people. Alongside our activism, we would celebrate our existence and resilience by creating spaces and events for us to build support networks and relationships, and to make up for the lost time during online learning!!

WOMEN’S OFFICER* CONT. *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Jasika Verma A third-year math and statistics student, interested in serving as your women’s officer Without the incredible women I have known here at University of Melbourne, my time here would not have been the same, and while celebrating women is important, it is not always easy for women to live up to their potential. Thus, it is an honor to represent all women at University of Melbourne. I am motivated by my experience as a woman, when people still have stereotypes about women and what they can and cannot achieve and making the university campus a safe place for women and their individual growth as a person in this male dominated society. Discussions on these issues and finding concrete ways to get rid of them are vital. If elected to the post, I will ensure • A policy that makes reporting sexual misconduct easier It is only recently that students have been included in the reporting mechanism for sexual misconduct and harassment, and I wish to make it both more accessible and less intimidating for them. • Free sanitary products across ALL the Unimelb campus I will ensure that this is available free of cost in case of an emergency in the female toilets. This should not be treated as a luxury but as a right. • Continuing the strong women programme and other female centered events Women will be empowered to get involved in previously deemed male-dominated activities • Focus on Sexual Health I will introduce Unimelb based sexual health clinic with free or very affordable STI testing, pregnancy testing, and contraceptives • Assemble all female students and non-binary students together with LGBT and disabled student organizations.

Aashi Agarwal & Lauren Scott — Community for UMSU Our names are Lauren Scott (she/they) and Aashi (Kraanti) Agarwal (she/her), and we hope to bring our ideas and experiences to the Women’s Department in 2022. With our positioning to this institution and country as an Arabana and Southern Aranda person and an Indian international student respectively, we see the department’s infinite potential for intersectional activism and representation. We will centre BIPOC, queer, and gender-diverse women and non-binary people in our department, ensuring that diverse lived experiences are fully incorporated in the work we do. Particularly, decolonising the feminism movement and broader activism we do would be a core tenet of our term. No social change can come without decolonisation on stolen land. Student-led workshops and speakers to platform lived experiences of marginalised backgrounds will be run throughout the year. We will introduce feminist reading groups centring these voices, redefining what feminism and activism mean. The University Health Service is inaccessible for BIPOC, queer and gender-diverse women and people. We will work to reform health services and consultations to ensure cultural sensitivity in these practices, to provide diverse specialists that understand intuitively the realities of their patients. Access to services that make women and non-binary people from all walks of life feel safe and heard is imperative. We will continue the fight against transphobia by supporting UMSU Queer in the No TERFs on Campus campaign. All students should feel safe and respected in their university, and transphobia is completely unacceptable both in our department and at the University of Melbourne. We intend to continue work to combat sexual harassment and assault on campus, with focus on implementing a reporting and investigate body seperate from general university administration and centred on trauma-informed and victim-centred response. We will continue to campaign for further action from the university.

CREATIVE ARTS OFFICER

Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome Mate, we have an influencer. That’s the most creative we can get. Say it with me. It’s Britney Bichh! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Edith Bush & Atticus Corr — Stand Up! Hey everyone! We’re Atticus (he/him) and Edie (she/her) and we will be running for the Creative Arts Office Bearers in the 2021 University of Melbourne Student Elections! Both of us have a passion for all forms of the creative arts from drawing, painting and visual art to all forms of theatre within the performing arts. We are so excited to have the opportunity to strengthen the amazing and diverse student arts community here at the University of Melbourne that we’ve come to know through both of us being members of the Creative Arts Committee this year, to being apart of the fantastic Mudfest Student Art festival to being involved in other performing arts project with fellow students. The ongoing coronavirus Pandemic has brought to light how important the Creative Arts are and how much extra support they require without the ability have in person shows, exhibitions or performances. Both of us will be campaigning for further financial support by the university in the form of grants to support the creative arts while making sure to maintain the vibrant and inclusive nature of our amazing creative arts community here at the University. We believe it’s so important that, while we are still in lockdown, that the creative arts can still be supported while both domestic and international students are stuck at home. We would be honoured to have your vote to help continue to support the Creative Arts at the University of Melbourne.

Alice Wallis & Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hi, I’m Alice, and I love making stuff. Ever since I started studying ancient history, I’ve fuelled my passion for art and art history. I’ve built up an online portfolio and have been selling my art for some time. I’m running for the creative arts office and committee because creating is what I love. Hi, I’m Daisy, I did 2 years of a design degree before changing to arts and I enjoy making the social media graphics for the FB pages I manage. I also enjoyed oil painting during my high school years. That is why I’m interested in running for the creative arts office bearer/committee

CREATIVE ARTS OFFICER CONT. Marcie Di Bartolomeo & Prerna Aggarwal — Community for UMSU Art is a powerful form of human expression. As Creative Arts office bearers, we aim to foster an artistic environment at the University whilst providing everybody with a vibrant Creative Arts experience no matter where they are. We shall strive to achieve newer heights whilst continuing the legacy of our predecessors. Our major focus will be: •

• • •

Empowerment – We will establish more collectives with autonomous departments particularly Queer, PoC, and Women’s. A Southbank collective will also be established to strengthen the relationship between Parkville and Southbank. This will provide more safe spaces for creative expression and empower the marginalised members of the University with a platform to raise their voice against social issues through art. An inclusive creative space will be established at the new student precinct to support enhancement of your creative art skills and act as an outlet for creative expression. Accessibility – Events will be organised in a dual-delivery format for the accessibility of students based overseas. The films screened will have closed captioning and live captioning will be available at collectives. Skill-development – We will conduct skill-development workshops for creative writing, experimental theatre, AUSLAN, magazine making and graphic designing, in dual-delivery mode. This will develop skills critical for the Creative Arts and increase the employability of students. Mental Wellbeing – Burn-out is a common experience in the Creative Arts, and we want to ensure the good welfare of those involved in the Creative Arts community. We will raise awareness about art therapies and expand its services across both Parkville and Southbank campuses. A series of stress buster fun events and art-supply giveaways will be organised for the mental wellbeing of our peers.

Overall, we want to provide a fun and welcoming environment for creative expression and empower students to be more involved in the Creative Arts.

ACTIVITIES OFFICER Sami Zehir & Anisha Bunsee — Stand Up! Hello!! It’s Sami and Anisha and we’d love to be your 2022 Activities Office Bearers! Activities are such a special part of university and we are super passionate about providing a fun and positive experience for students in a way that facilitates everyone’s diverse interests and personalities. We have a genuine interest in making activities accessible and enjoyable, because it’s not always easy to meet people and get involved! Coming off an uncertain year, we understand the necessity of running activities that are planned and managed effectively with flexible contingency plans to ensure the best experience possible regardless of changing conditions. This includes transparent and reliable event planning at a smaller and larger scale that is safe, inclusive and advertised to the wider community for maximum engagement. Obviously, we’re super keen to reinstate some of the events that were largely inaccessible this year due to COVID, including Bevs and Bands and Oktoberfest! However, it’s also a super exciting time to reimagine the role and what we can provide for on/off campus vibes! Whether you’re an early starter or late nighter we want to foster an environment that caters to both, regardless of your location or campus. Further to this, providing opportunities for interstate and international events is something we’d like to pursue given how important it’s become to find friends local to one’s home! Evidently, university is not just an on campus experience and we are all vastly different in our understandings of fun and uni life. We strongly believe everyone deserves to have fun at uni in their own way, and we are here to facilitate a diversity of experiences. We hope you believe in this as much as we do, and put your trust in us as your 2022 Office Bearers for Activities!!

Victoria Streeton-Cook & Jake Krohn — Community for UMSU Hey! We’re Victoria and Jake and we’re running as your Activities OB Candidates for 2022! Jake is a second year Commerce student who has spent a year on the Activities Committee and Victoria is a second year Science student who has experience in the physics society, history society and political interest society running events. After what has been two years of stress, uncertainty, turmoil and upheaval we believe that there has never been a more important time to create fun experiences for the student body. The pandemic has posed a significant challenge to the social lives of students. First years and second years alike have lacked the chances to meet people and make friends that would normally come from time spent on the campus. As such, our foremost priority is fostering social connections amongst students. Due to the unavoidable presence of covid, both of us have experience running events online. Consequently, we will be adaptable in our plans for the office, running both online and in-person events and being prepared to change the delivery depending on the (currently uncertain) demands of the future. We understand in-person events are still a priority but we also want to offer online flexibility, especially so that international students are not left out, and so that activities can continue to provide a little bit of light even in the darker moments of lockdown. Coming out of a second year of covid disruptions should give us all cause to celebrate and as such, we look forward to working with our committee and other members of the student body to come up with new and exciting events. If you have an idea that can benefit our community, we want to hear it! So make sure to vote [1] Community in all positions- your community fighting with you!

Melody Xu Hi, my name is Melody Xu, and I am running to be your Activities Officer in 2021. I am a second-year BA student studying Media Communication and Sociology. Having spent most of my freshman year in lockdown, I understand the difficulties students may encounter due to the ongoing global pandemic. Being virtual has posed a massive challenge for us to enjoy college life; therefore, my goal is to enrich all aspects of campus experience by introducing a variety of activities that reflect academic freedom and cultural diversity. I plan on listening to all your thoughts and perspectives through open, honest, and respectful dialogues, in which each of us is empowered by sharing diverse views. From CV workshops to movie nights and Lunar New Year Gala, etc., I am now excited to offer all the university experience we have envisioned. Your voice should be heard. Vote for me now so we can make this happen!

ACTIVITIES OFFICER CONT. Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome For the second year in a row, my main policy for the Activities department is called the DAB policy. However, some of the policy has been changed. D is for Delicious. Covid has been going for a while. And all I want is to go to a buffet. Since we can’t have in-person BBQ, we will bring the buffet to you! Home-in buffet! (Wait’s isn’t that just…. Cooking?) A is for Abacus. Abacus is “a simple device for calculating, consisting of a frame with rows of wires or grooves along which beads are slid.” (Google, 2021). B will stay the same and it stands for Boba. But instead of just having Booze Boba and having them all during all events, we can have them together with Britney Bichh. Finally, the DAB policy will require individuals to dab at least once every event. And most importantly, B is for Britney Bichh. That’s good enough for us. Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m running for Activities Officer in 2022 to restore UniMelb to the vibrant center of student social life it was before, well, you know. Ongoing pandemic restrictions have forced the university experience into the virtual sphere, and while our various clubs and societies have done an amazing job at continuing to provide fun and exciting events to help us get through our studies, the loss of on-campus events has been felt severely by all students studying in-person. Similarly, the early struggles in delivering these online events have highlighted the disparities in the experience provided to international and remote students. The UMSU of the future needs to revitalise the on-campus social atmosphere - one of the greatest parts of attending university - while making sure that international and remote students enjoy an equally amazing collection of social events. Using my experience running events for YMCA Youth Parliament and the City of Casey, I want to help UMSU achieve the following in 2022: •

•

A return of in-person events in 2022 around our Parkville, Southbank, and Burnley campuses, conducted in a safe and inclusive manner in-line with all government restrictions and recommendations to remain COVID-safe. UMSU needs to be proactive and ready to launch these activities as soon as is safe and possible. An increased focus on, and quota for, online and virtually accessible events, ensuring that a quality experience is provided to international and remote students. This would guarantee that online events would continue to receive the support and attention they deserve, well after the pandemic ends.

An inclusive social environment is key to the health and wellbeing of all students, and your Activities Officers will do everything they can to ensure that your 2022 experience makes up for all the lost time, and then some!

QUEER OFFICER* *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Emily Pennington & Marko Younan — Stand Up! Hi! We are Emily (she/her) and Marko (he/him). Our aim for the queer department is to make sure that nobody feels left behind, and that everybody has a voice. We have seen the faults and broken promises when it comes to queer related issues. We are ready to make change! Our goal is to have equal representation. We aim to finally amend UMSU’s AA requirements so that non-binary students can have the opportunity to represent students without restrictions. We will provide a platform where artists can showcase their work and abilities, opening up an art supply fund for queer artists. We will continue the fight against transphobia, pushing the university to change policy on enabling TERFs and transphobic content in tutorials. There is no room for hate at our university and it’s about time that university policies align with this. We wish to push the University to provide training to Unimelb health staff regarding queer related health issues to be more affirming and less discriminatory towards LGBTQ+ students and their experiences. We would love to see resources extended to CAPS and the mental health crisis hotline, making it easily accessible to students overseas, ensuring that health providers are wellequipped to support queer and gender diverse students in safe and non-judgmental environments. We can’t wait to continue the hype for our favourite queer events, including G&T’s with the LGBT’s, Queer Lunch and Queer Ball as well as introduce more events such as picnics and a queer art showcase! Working with other departments, we hope to see a more diverse queer space, aiming to make everyone feel safe, secure and welcome. We would love to see this through the introduction of self-defence programmes, queer international luncheons, and the creation of an inclusive intersectional community. Stand up so that nobody is left behind!

Benjamin Fok & Isabella Beiraghi — Left Action Hi, we’re Ben and Bella, and we’re running for Queer Officer with Left Action! Queer rights have come a long way in the last 60 years. From the Gay Liberation movement of the 1970s to the marriage equality victory in 2017, activists across the country have fought back against the constraints of homophobia and transphobia to secure several momentous wins that have helped push back against reactionary ideas. But there’s still a lot to fight for. As long as we live under the deeply sexist and homophobic capitalist system, everything we win can only ever be temporary. Right now, we’re seeing a backlash from the most revolting elements of the political class, desperate to claw back their ability to openly discriminate against anyone who challenges their rigid gender and sexual norms. At a federal level, Scott Morrison’s religious freedoms bill is a direct attack on the rights of gay and trans people, and now Mark Latham is pushing a similar piece of legislation in NSW. This legislation must be fought. Big campaigns in NSW are doing just that, and we want to bring that kind of energy and activist spirit to the UMSU Queer Office. But we don’t just want to fend off attacks on what we’ve already won - we want to fight for more. We can’t resign ourselves to simply carving out safe spaces within the university, and finding ways to manage the experience of oppression. We want nothing less than liberation. Looking to the rich history of LGBT activism can point us in the right direction - we need to build a mass movement that isn’t afraid to take to the streets and take on the forces of the state to win. These are the kinds of bold campaigns that the Queer Office should throw itself into.

QUEER OFFICER* CONT. *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Rook Davis & Rose Power — Community for UMSU Hi! We’re Rook and Rose and we’re hoping to be your new Queer Officers in 2022. The LGBTQIA+ community is so vital to the life of the university and we want to do our best to ensure that it gets every opportunity to grow and flourish! A little about us - Rook (he/they) is a second-year Bachelor of Science student majoring in Animal Disease whilst Rose (she/they) is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student. We’ve been involved in the community from volunteering at UMSU Queer-run events to facilitating the Queer and Questioning Support Group, to fighting discrimination as members of the Queer Political Action Collective. There’s so much we want to address - we will continue the work of our predecessors in developing and enacting the Gender Affirmation Policy (intended to help our trans and gender diverse students and staff in coming out in a positive and safe manner), as well as continue to apply pressure to the university to review subjects identified by students to be transphobic and racist. Additionally, we will improve our outreach to campuses outside of Parkville through increased visibility and more online events, making the community more accessible to those who are otherwise left isolated. Finally, we will work on making the queer space more accessible and safer to all LGBTQIA+ students through the development of a safe space policy and more avenues through which students can report discriminatory or exclusionary behaviour. There is more we’d love to talk about but we only have so many words! We’re running with Community this year since inclusion and diversity is such a big part of how they function, something that’s ideal for a community that thrives on the diversity of its wonderful members. So Vote [1] for Community – we can’t wait to support you!

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER Benjamin Cronshaw & Elizabeth Riley — Independents for Student Democracy Benjamin and Elizabeth are excited to be the Environment Office-Bearer candidates for the ISD. Elizabeth is studying a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient World Studies. She is keenly involved in the Unimelb student community, including being a member of various clubs and societies. Benjamin is studying a Masters in Public Policy and Management. He is keen about learning about various challenges we see in society and the environment and looking at policy and community solutions that can address them. His study on the environment includes the subjects Environmental Policy (Masters) and Environmental Rights and Responsibilities (Undergrad). Benjamin is also a keen reader on climate change and environmental issues, including reading and writing book reviews of the latest books (available on LinkedIn for anyone interested in finding a good environmental book). He has also advocated for the environment writing letters to MPs or making submissions to various parliamentary inquiries, highlighting climate change and environmental issues - including inquiries into the 2019- 2020 Black Summer bushfire season among others. Benjamin is also a member of various community environmental organisations such as TreeProject, Greening Australia, Yarra Riverkeepers among others. It is clear we are facing dire challenges in the world today, that are threatening the environment and human society. This calls for a new paradigm. We are particularly inspired by the Doughnut Economics model of ensuring that we meet all human needs (equitably) while living within planetary boundaries (sustainably). Many of us want to do more, but are unsure about what we can do. University is a good place to connect with likeminded people to learn more about the environment, how we can be more sustainable, and how we can advocate for business and government to enact better policies. There are many small things that – done collectively – can make a difference.

Zachary Matthews & Chelsea Daniel — Stand Up! Hi, we’re Zach (he/they) and Chels (she/they) and we are your Stand Up! Environment OB candidates this year. We’re both second year Arts students and have a passion for radical environmental activism. It is no secret that we are in a climate crisis, and this past year has highlighted this more than ever. In response, the uni has continued their ties with fossil fuel corporations such as Rio Tinto and Exxonmobil, and limited their climate action to Unimelb branded keepcups. We need to hold the university accountable for their green washing and complicity. If elected, we’ll take the climate crisis seriously and foster direct, systemic action against environmental degradation within the university. We will do this by establishing an environmental justice collective - an activist collective centred on pressuring the university to divest from the fossil fuel industry, and hold them to account for their extensive relationships with this sector. We will ensure all forms of protests and actions we take are inclusive and accessible for everyone to get involved with. We will commit to reestablishing the food co-op and continuing sustainable events such as the bike collective and clothing drives, providing opportunities for all students to get involved within the department. And finally, with intersectional environmentalism being the core of climate justice, we’ll prioritise workshops and events discussing the intersectionality of the climate movement. We will do this by fostering relationships and collaborating further with other UMSU departments such as the POC and Indigenous departments. This department has the potential to make systemic change within the university in regards to environmental justice. A vote for Stand Up! Will ensure that years of climate discussion will turn into long-lasting climate action. If you’re ready to build a staunch, progressive union with us, vote [1] Stand Up!

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER CONT. Disha Zutshi & Jett Wickes — Community for UMSU Hi, we are Disha and Jett. We are climate activists running this year for the Environment Office. We are facing a climate emergency. Anthropogenic climate change threatens our planet - the sixth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes that clear. There are some things that we can’t change. There will be impacts such as sea level rises, the melting of Arctic ice, and the acidification of our oceans that are now inevitable. But what we can’t change now will invariably get worse unless urgent action is taken. Without drastically reducing greenhouse gas emissions, we will rapidly approach tipping points of irreversible environmental damage caused by unprecedented global heating. Over the past year, the UMSU Environment Collective ran a campaign to commit the university to take action on climate change that reflects the gravity and immediacy of the current environmental catastrophe. This meant campaigning for the university to adopt sustainable alternatives to their investments and partnerships in companies that profit from killing the planet such as Exxon Mobil, Lockheed Martin and Saudi Aramco. Most importantly, we will commit to centring Indigenous voices and knowledges in all that we do, as climate justice can only be achieved through challenging ongoing dispossession of Indigenous people. As your candidates for 2022, we want to make the Environment Collective an open, inclusive and welcoming place that engages a diverse body of students in climate justice. By working alongside UMSU International, allied clubs and societies and other UMSU departments, we want to deliver accessible campaigns, educational programs and events that work towards a just transition for an ecologically sustainable future. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Shirley Killen & Sophia Graley — Left Action We’re Sophie and Shirley, and we’re radical climate activists running for the Environment Office next year. We’re active in Uni Students for Climate Justice and have helped organise protests on campus against climate criminals and their ties with the university as well as Unimelb student contingents to the school strikes. With each passing year, massive natural disasters; cold snaps, hurricanes, flooding, and wildfire infernos, are becoming the ‘new normal’ globally. The IPCC recently released a dire warning that we are looking at reaching irreversible tipping points by 2030, in less than a decade. We need an activist student union to fight for climate justice. We can’t rely on politicians when support for coal, gas and oil is bipartisan politics in Australia. The Liberal government supports a gas-driven economic recovery, and the Albanese has recommitted the ALP to coal. Fossil fuels are at the heart of Australian capitalism. Real resistance will only come from below. Student unions, as democratic representative bodies for young people, should lead this fight. Instead the Environment Office in UMSU has been focused this year on offering small, individual consumerbased solutions to students when we know that isn’t nearly enough to stop climate change. What we need is real opposition to the climate criminals running society. If elected we will dedicate the Environment Office to fighting for climate justice. We will demand that the University divest from fossil fuels, that the government put an immediate end to coal and gas extraction, and for a just transition to 100% renewable energy. We will fight in solidarity with Indigenous struggles and for the millions of refugees displaced by environmental destruction. Most importantly we will dedicate the resources of the Environment Office to building a movement that could, one day, actually win these things.

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER CONT. Ezra Bangun – VVholesome I run out of fun plant facts. Although, I have a Lily in my house, and I do need advice on how to make sure it grows nicely. Anyone has any advice? Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

MEDIA OFFICERS Joanna Guelas, Charlotte Waters, Nishtha Banavalikar & Jasmine Pierce — Independent Media Howdy! We’re Charlotte, Joanna, Nishtha, and Jasmine, and we’re running to be your 2022 Media Office Bearers (OBs). Between the four of us, we’ve been extensively involved across all departments of the Media Office over many years, bringing with us a diverse skill set. Jasmine (she/her) is a fourthyear Arts student majoring in Creative Writing/English Literature but her true passion lies in visual arts and design. She is committed to fostering a collaborative space of positivity, passion, support, and fun. Charlotte (she/her) is doing her Honours in English and is dedicated to building a community that’s accessible to a range of creatives with different backgrounds and skill sets. Nishtha (she/her) is a third-year Finance and Economics student who is passionate about demystifying, decolonising, and dematerialising barriers of entry to media. Joanna (she/her) is a second-year Arts (Media Comms/ Politics) student who is committed to creating an inclusive and intersectional newsroom that tells the facts as it is. In 2022, we’re committed to ensuring all students feel encouraged to create, consume, and get around Media. We want to strengthen our online presence, promote multilingual writing, and ensure a diverse range of communities is represented across our volunteer and manager teams. We’ll also make space for all works, from unconventional hybrid writing to avant-garde visual arts. Moreover, the Media Office is not just Farrago. We want to spread its focus beyond the physical magazine, and encourage an active publication cycle online as well as support the further development of Radio Fodder. Ultimately, we aim to facilitate more communication and collaboration within the Media Collective. Independent Media has held the Media Office for over a decade for a reason — we have the commitment, the experience, and the passion to maintain a transparent, inclusive, and accessible Media Office.

Elmira Cheung, Tereza Ljubicic, Vivian Li & Caitlin Chiam — The People’s Press Vivian Li (she/her), for the past 2 years, has contributed to the Media Collective as one of the most proactive illustrators in Farrago history! Viv’s work is on the cover of Farrago Edition 1 this year, she is also a co-Illustration Manager of Farrago 2021. Viv has been on the university’s Disability Support Team to increase equity at unimelb for a few years now. She is also a small creative business owner, and a mum of two bunnies :3 Tereza Ljubičić (she/her) is almost trilingual and a migrant from Croatia. Tereza is studying a Bachelor of Arts with aspirations to complete the Juris Doctor so that she can help create equitable systems. She has been a proactive member of the Media Collective in 2021. In her creative life, Tereza is passionate about multimedia art, film producing, fashion and genuine student representation in unimelb media. Elmira Cheung (she/they) has worked with the Debaters Association of Victoria, as an Executive Member for the past 3 years (the same amount of time she’s been in the Media Collective), and an adjudicator and trainer for the past 4 years. They have travelled all over Victoria working at rural and lower SES postcodes to equip young adults with tools to communicate and express themselves. Elmira would like to tangibly bring her experiences in creating equity and accessibility to the media office. Elmira is also a co-illustration Manager of Farrago 2021. Caitlin Chiam (she/her) is studying a Bachelor of Arts majoring in History and French with a burning passion for journalism. Caitlin writes for in-house Unimelb clubs, has had letters published in newspapers, maintains a self-run blog and has always seen media as a productive avenue for expression. In 2022, Caitlin would like to help create the most proactive and successful student journalism team Unimelb has ever seen!

CLUBS & SOCIETIES OFFICER Caitlin Ramsay & Muskaan Hakhu — Community for UMSU Hi hiii! We are Caitlin and Muskaan. We both identify as women of colour, so representation and diversity mean a lot to us. Clubs and Societies also mean a lot to us. Without clubs and societies, we would not have met, and become the great friends that we are today! Both of us have been involved with clubs, and we have even each started a club! Muskaan has started and headed the desi Bollywood club, and Caitlin has started and headed UniMelb Love Letters Society, inspired by the famous UniMelb Love Letters Facebook page! Therefore we know first hand what it is like to manage a club. We have been lucky enough to experience how rewarding it is, while also witnessing how challenging running a club can be. So that is why we want to be your next clubs and societies office bearers. We want to make running a club and participating in club activities as rewarding of an experience as possible for everyone involved, while also making it as smooth of an experience as possible. We want to support all clubs, regardless of size, interests, or cultural background. We strongly believe that clubs play an important role in helping all students feel more connected with university life, especially during a time when this is extremely difficult for many. We are passionate about promoting student involvement in all clubs, and want students to embrace and immerse themselves in everything clubs and societies have to offer! Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Joshua Davis & Phoebe Leggett — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m running with Phoebe to be your Clubs and Societies Officers for 2021. The ongoing nature of pandemic restrictions and the uncertainty surrounding the return to on-campus teaching has made life difficult for the amazing Clubs and Societies we have at UniMelb. While they have done what they can to provide fun and inclusive social experiences for students of all interests, we want to help revitalise the Clubs and Societies experience for 2022, streamlining communication and administration between UMSU and its affiliated clubs while providing new opportunities to engage students and encourage club membership and creation. A diverse and inclusive range of student-run clubs is paramount to the university experience, and as Independent candidates, we can help ensure that Clubs and Societies are protected from factional and partisan battles between the major tickets, delivering an enriching and quality experience for every student, in every club! Hey, I am Phoebe. I have really enjoyed being part of the clubs and societies community at Unimelb. I have been involved with various clubs, including being the Secretary and President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society. I also play the Bassoon and am the concert manager for my orchestra. I believe students should have a fun and positive experience on campus, of which clubs and societies can play a great part. This is particularly true during the challenges of lockdowns and being online. Properly supported, clubs can play a supportive role for students to stay connected and enjoy the Unimelb experience.

CLUBS & SOCIETIES OFFICER CONT. Ezra Bangun & Beau Annoptham — VVholesome Oh yeahhh, let’s go to a club!!! (after Covid, obviously) Oh wait, this is about the department? Well, it’s an amazing department and you should join more clubs! You should also run clubs and even make new clubs! It could be hard and there are many regulations and tough love, but it’s required to ensure that all clubs are amazing! So yes, join a club NOW! I know things are online, but it’s better to be online with a friend xo And remember, It’s Britney Bichh! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Benito Di Battista & Eleanor Cooney Hunt — Stand Up! Hey everyone! We’re Benito (he/him) and Ellie (she/her), and we hope to be the next Clubs and Societies Officers for 2022! We have a combined 6 year involvement with many different clubs and societies on campus - from sports, arts, exchange events and academics to the occasional pirates cruise. We recognize that clubs have always played a vital role in student life at University. Melbourne’s thousand lockdowns have made it particularly difficult to get involved in university life and connect with other students. That is why our main priority will be ensuring that ALL students particularly those who have barely been on campus, or have been stuck overseas - can get the most out of their university experience. This comes in two parts. Firstly, redesigning the current clubs and societies platform to provide easier access and communication between students and clubs. And secondly, encouraging more in-person and engaging online events through a more transparent and effective allocation of funding and resources to clubs. This will include extra support for maximising safe & fun events in the COVID era. There really is a club (or 5!) for everyone and it’s our job to make sure you can enjoy them. Ultimately, we want to create an inclusive environment where students located anywhere can connect with others and better immerse themselves in university life.

INDIGENOUS OFFICER* *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Brittney Henderson & Harley Lewis Hi, we’re Brittney Henderson (she/they/him) and Harley Lewis (he/him) and we are your next UMSU Indigenous Office Bearers. Harley is still on a journey to discover his mob but grew up on Wurundjeri and Wadawurrung land and came to the university in 2020. Brittney is Wiradjuri and Boon Wurrung mob and grew up around Naarm and came to the university in 2019. We are the first openly queer-identifying joint officers to hold the position and look forward to amplifying the importance of intersectional representation in leadership positions. We are keen to represent the mob at the University of Melbourne, as well as fostering a safe and welcoming environment for Indigenous students to interact with UMSU and the university. Our main goal is to ensure all Indigenous students, especially new arrivals to the university, feel as though they have a place in our community and feel connected to the Indigenous community on campus and at Murrup Barak. In our efforts to create a supportive environment, we hope to hold a number of events for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students to feel welcome and create relationships at the University of Melbourne. We both understand the importance for Indigenous students to feel comfortable and be with mob when at the University and want to hold events that allow all these interactions to take place. In addition to supporting Indigenous students, we endeavour to increase activism at the university in ongoing efforts to decolonise the institution and shed light on the University’s history of eugenics and racism. We understand the responsibility this position holds and are motivated to make real change with the power bestowed upon us by the student union. Provisionally elected unopposed.

DISABILITIES OFFICER* *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Betty Zhang & Prachi Uppal — Community for UMSU Hi there! We are Prachi and Betty, your candidates for Disabilities Officers! Prachi is studying a Masters of Management and Betty is pursuing a Bachelors of Science. We hope to bring our creativity, collaborative spirit and communication skills to fight for education that is accessible and inclusive for all. We share a passion for overturning stigma and creating positive change for individuals living with or experiencing disability. In the wake of COVID-19, it is more important than ever to improve disability policies and initiatives through advocacy, engagement, and collaboration. Disability support services are disjointed and scattered across campus, we know first-hand the difficulties in finding relevant information and contacts for help. We will be proactive in working with UMSU departments and university services to build personalised support networks for each student. When breaking down barriers to accessibility, we will ensure that students with disabilities will play active roles at every step. Our goals for 2021 include: • A reformed CAPS program, increasing availability of counselling services and mental health support for onshore and offshore students. • Create resources that clarify applications for Special Consideration and Ongoing Support and advocate for more inclusive criteria. • Increase awareness and engagement of Disabilities collectives, creating a safe and welcoming space for all participants. • Advocate for accessible course materials, adaptive assessments, and closed captioning for lectures. • Create accessible learning and study spaces for students with disabilities across campus. • Provide feedback mechanisms for students with disabilities to ensure that concerns are adequately addressed in a timely manner. • Centralise and adapt existing resources for mental health support and disability rights advocacy for young people. We will strive to increase awareness, inclusion and acceptance of students with disabilities on campus. We will do our best to remove barriers for students that prevent them from accessing the full student experience.

Leon Di Natalie and Ashleigh Brooks — Stand Up! The stigmatisation of having a disability (including mental illnesses) is inherently isolating, without the burden of a system that doesn’t fully support your needs and provide equitable opportunities. As a duo campaigning for Disabilities office bearers we, Leon Di Natale and Ashleigh Brooks, pledge to make your experience at UniMelb as burdenless as possible. Leon is in his first year, and Ashleigh is in her third - we both study a Bachelor of Arts and are passionate about ensuring our community is supported in all facets of our university experience. There is so much we want to do - here’s what we can say in 300 words or less! We will propose immediate action to make learning easier. The inconsistency of closed captioning for lectures, especially in the online model, is unacceptable. It underscores a structural disregard for students with disabilities. This will be a priority for our term. Likewise, we support greater access to audio recordings of required readings in order to provide a fair academic playing field. The process of seeking academic adjustments should not be tumultuous, or invoke a sense of discomfort. There should be transparency about the adjustments available and their parameters, and academic staff should be adequately trained to meet the needs of students with disabilities. We hope to foster a community that celebrates adversity and difference, and ultimately break the stigma we face every day. Inclusivity and accessibility are key pillars of our campaign. Whether it be online or in person, all UMSU events must make this a priority. Intersectionality will be at the heart of our department. We will work collaboratively with all departments to break down barriers, and fight for your rights - because disability rights are students rights, and students rights are human rights.

PEOPLE OF COLOUR OFFICER* *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Terence Taylor & Chinakila Makwaza — Left Action Hi, we’re Chinakila and Terence, and we’re running for UMSU POC Officer with Left Action! Australia is a racist country to its core, founded upon genocide and guilty still of state sanctioned violence, dispossession and oppression of racial minorities. First Nations people are routinely abused and murdered by police officers, and their land is plundered for mining projects. Refugees face indefinite detention and systematic torture from the Australian Government. In fact, right next to the Unimelb Parkville campus, in the Park Hotel there are more than 50 refugees who have been imprisoned by our government for almost 9 years. Despite this, people heroically fight back against racist oppression every day. Last year this was seen in the Black Lives Matter movement that spread from America to the whole world as masses of ordinary people took to the streets confronted the brutal system of racist policing. In Australia, mass rallies were called to confront this same system. This year saw some of the biggest Palestine rallies in Australian history. We need to continue to build an anti-racist fight back on university campuses and the streets. We have been involved in the campaign to free the refugees locked up in Park Hotel, which led to the release of 43 men at the beginning of the year. We have also been actively involved in Students for Palestine on Campus. And we still have so much more to fight for. The student union should be a hub for this fightback. As POC Officers, we intend to use our position for activism and to lead struggles. We want to be a part of a militant, left-wing current at Unimelb alongside other dedicated activists who want to fight against racism, and all forms of oppression.

Hiba Adam & Kyi Phyu Moe Htet — Community for UMSU Hey everyone! We are Hiba and Kyi Phyu Moe, and this year we are running for People of Colour Officers with Community! Hiba is a Bla(c)k Muslim woman from a refugee background. They are a first year Juris Doctor student. Kyi Phyu Moe, is an international student from Myanmar. She is in her third year of Bachelor of Design, majoring in urban design. Safe, welcoming and empowering spaces simply don’t exist as much as they should at this university. We understand the importance of having your voice heard and your being affirmed. If elected we promise to deliver the following policies and improve the department: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Continue to support and celebrate the Bla(c)k community at unimelb through working with the Indigenous department Stand for the rights of refugees and asylum seekers through advocacy and the condemnation of their treatment in Australia Continue and build upon the department’s radical anti-racism training campaign for all staff and students. Improve access to mental health services for BIPOC students on and off-shore Establish Affirmative Action for BIPOC students on department committees through working with the Indigenous department Continue hosting cultural celebrations and expand on those in collaboration with the activities department. Increase opportunities for students to get involved in the department Invest in cultural clubs and societies by increasing their involvement in the department’s activities.

Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

PEOPLE OF COLOUR OFFICER* CONT *THIS IS AN AUTONOMOUS POSITION

Samash Abdeljaleel & Allegra Weeden — Stand Up! Hi! We’re Allegra (she/her) and Samah (she/her) and we’re running with Stand Up! for the People of Color office. Allegra is a first-year Master of Public Policy and Management student and Samah is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student. In our time at the university, we have come to appreciate strong and diverse spaces like the POC department. POC students deserve to feel included, advocated for and secure in the university. A large part of our campaign is proactive solidarity. For one, we will respond to injustices and crises whether on a campus, local or global scale. We will support, organize, and facilitate conversations on issues affecting POC students; importantly, we will encourage you to be vocal in our spaces and beyond. It is frustrating when our staff and peers are oblivious to their casual racism. Therefore, we will lobby for the introduction of effective and all-encompassing cultural and religious sensitivity training for staff members and students alike. Furthermore, as Jewish and Muslim students, we find the issues around anti-Semitism and Islamophobia prevalent on our campus. We aim to launch a campaign that tackles the undertones of xenophobic behaviours. Our education matters. It is necessary to lobby for the continual decolonization of our studies and the inclusion of POC, particularly indigenous, researchers and content. Additionally, we will request an investigation of an attainment gap between POC and white students to uncover how deeply racism is enmeshed into our education. Lastly, we hope to include a multitude of intercultural events through collaboration with different societies, and we will continue investing heavily into the activist collectives, POC collectives, and Bla(c)k collectives. 300 words do not cover all we aim to do for you, but the gist is: we will fight for you, and it would be an honour if you let us.

SOUTHBANK CAMPUS CO-ORDINATOR Enya Hu — Community for UMSU I’m Enya, and I’m running for Southbank Campus Coordinator this year. I understand the importance of having a comfortable campus which is facilitated to my needs as an artist; as well as having that campus well represented in the community. As Southbank Campus Coordinator, I would like to take on that responsibility to represent the students of the Southbank campus as best as possible. My main objectives in this position would be to: •

Identify issues, concerns and interests raised from the Southbank student body and represent them as best as possible in communication with University authorities. This could be done through a variety of research, surveys and other ways of obtaining feedback from the student body.

It would also be my goal to collaborate with the rest of the Southbank Committee to: • • •

Provide and maintain a culturally diverse and social environment on campus through various activities and events. These could include picnics/BBQ’s, festivals and events that celebrate diversity. Provide the necessary needs and services specific to fine arts and music students in order to ensure comfortable and appropriate campus life. These could include events that would provide chances for students to demonstrate their practices etc. Provide students with appropriate services in order to assist them through struggles in relation to finance and physical and mental health amongst other things.These could include grocery vouchers, mental health and well-being workshops etc.

I will aim to work with the rest of the Southbank Committee team in an organised and responsible fashion, in order to represent and provide for the students of Southbank throughout all of their stages of studying. I hope to create an environment that is both fun and exciting but professional within the committee! Vote [1] Community, your Southbank community fighting with you!

Nina Mountford & Alex Birch — Stand Up! Hi! We’re Alex and Nina and we’re running to be your Southbank Campus Coordinators with Stand Up! Southbank has great potential to be a hive of student activity and collective action - we plan to see that realized. Southbank is packed to the seams with emerging artists and fantastic performance and studio spaces that we want to utilise in order to grow a better campus culture. We, as the Southbank candidates, are committed to fundamentally improving the student union in the ways that are most pertinent to Southbank students. We will have frequent, accessible events that employ VCA/MCM students and encourage artististic interdisciplinary collaboration and socializing both online and in person. We will hold the University accountable for its actions and advocate for better student support, fair course structuring, fee relief, subject grading and egalitarian access to equipment and resources. Southbank students deserve agency over their university experience and Stand Up! is committed to building student voices through outreach and developing student collectives and welfare programs. We as candidates are always open to hearing feedback from students about what they want to see the union improve on, so please don’t hesitate to contact us and we look forward to seeing you all back on campus.

SOUTHBANK EDUCATION OFFICER Xiaole Zhan — Community for UMSU The Southbank campus is home to some of the most wonderful people at the University of Melbourne, from visual artists, musicians, actors, filmmakers, dancers and more. Art is being made every day at the highest level. However, these past two years have seen a myriad of challenges in a time of Zoom performances and tuition, yet there has been a shocking lack of accountability on the part of the university in acknowledging and communicating its shortcomings. As a Southbank Education Office Bearer, I will fight for our voices to be heard. I will continue to advocate on behalf of students in our battle for fee relief. I will also advocate for accessibility of class content and degree pathways—examples that current Southbank Campus office bearers are in the process of making happen include having transcripts available for recorded lectures, as well as reconsidering the 100% worth examination valuation for practical music/ performance students so that the future of a student’s course does not depend on how they perform on days of their degree. I am also passionate about advocating for mental health and want to increase support and advice networks specifically aimed at the unique course requirements of a creative degree by running workshops and producing handouts that provide information (e.g., what an AAP tailored to a creative degree looks like). I will ensure that such issues and more brought up by all you Southbank creatives throughout the year will always be heard and acted upon. We will also continue current initiatives, such as our classic Southbank Free BBQ events and welfare food supplies via the “Bread Bin” project. With the global arts community still recovering from the COVID-19, I think it is more important than ever that we have more opportunities to do what we love, together.

Sarah Onn — Stand Up! Education shouldn’t be a matter of politics, which is why I, Sarah Onn, am running for the role of Education Officer at Southbank. Universities have an obligation to ensure students feel safe, empowered and supported on campus so that we can focus our attentions on finishing our degrees. As a Muslim, Malaysian born woman raised in a low socio-economic home in Melbourne’s western suburbs studying Fine Arts at the Southbank Campus, I understand how isolating and confusing the University experience can often be. The Southbank Campus has close to no cultural specific support for students from non-white backgrounds and from under-represented communities. We all know that the VCA is highly elitist and for years, has catered to mostly white, “artistically cultured” folk who already have a background in the Arts. If I get elected, I will push for a BIPoC Collective in the Southbank campus. I will campaign for compulsory training in Cultural Competency, Sensitivity and Safety for all Southbank teaching staff. I will engage more creative and cultural collaboration between BIPoC students between all the Fine Arts degrees. I will get our voices heard, because every aspect - from studio based learning to living under the poverty line - affects us too.

SOUTHBANK ACTIVITIES OFFICER Jack Doughty — Stand Up! Hello everyone, my name is Jack (he/him), I’m a jazz pianist/composer currently studying a Bachelor of Music and I’m super excited to be your Stand Up! Southbank Campus Activities Officer Candidate. Whilst my experience so far at the Southbank campus has been wonderful, I almost immediately noticed a disparity between UMSU’s presence at the Parkville and Southbank campuses. I think it’s safe to say that the student events and atmosphere at our campus has been lacklustre this year and with a campus filled with emerging artists and performing artists, I feel that we have a massively underutilized resource in our own student body. As your Southbank Campus Activities Officer, I promise to enact change in this area, planning and creating new and more events for the Southbank campus community. This would include: • An expansion of welfare Breakfasts • Student led events with free food, live music, and opportunities to meet more of your fellow students • Cross disciplinary collaborative performances • More opportunities for students to perform, and present their art • Paid gigging opportunities for students Beyond advocating for a better atmosphere for Southbank students, I will also act as a voice for the campus, and your student body, and will aim to represent each student group and their needs. This will be realised through gaining university funding and creating policy to benefit and improve your experience at our campus by talking to students across all degrees about their issues, needs, and ideas as members of the Southbank community. It would be an honour to represent such a diverse, creative and incredible group of students and artists as your Southbank Campus Activities Officer, and I can’t wait to meet and interact with more of the amazing people on our campus. Vote [1] Stand Up!

Jungwoo (Jamie) Kim — Community for UMSU Southbank Campus is a home for the majority of the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music students. As a Southbank Campus Activities Officer, I would like to “break the wall” between Parkville Campus and Southbank Campus, for students to enhance their university experiences, as I believe that being a university student is not only about studying. Therefore, along with Southbank Campus Co– ordinators, Southbank Campus Education Officer, and Southbank Campus committee members, my goals as a Southbank Campus Activities Officer are the following: 1. 2. 3. The 1. 2. 3. 4.

Organizing, preparing and/or conducting activities and events that can assist Southbank students to strengthen their social network, as well as improving their well–being Representing and supporting the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music students to resolve concerns, complaints, or issues within the faculty and/or Southbank Campus Liaising with several Parkville Campus Office Bearers to collaborate a few activities and events with them from time to time, to enhance university experiences of Southbank students

plans to achieve the goals above include the following: Planning and/or delivering workshops for Southbank students (e.g., mental health workshops) Holding Free BBQ Lunch events throughout the upcoming semesters Organizing and facilitating UMSU Southbank Campus Committee meetings from time to time Liaising with the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music staff and students, Parkville Campus Office Bearers, and UMSU staff to improve students services for Southbank students 5. Continuing the “Bread Bin” project to provide free food and drinks to Southbank students 6. Collaborating with Parkville Campus Office Bearers to organize collectives with Southbank Campus Committee members 7. Participating in 2022 Summerfest and Winterfest events and activities with clubs and societies that are based at the Southbank campus to welcome the prospective Faculty of Fine Arts and Music students.

BURNLEY CAMPUS CO-ORDINATOR Kaitlyn Hammond Provisionally elected unopposed/

GRADUATE STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Jordan Di Natale— Stand Up!

Julian Petito — Left Action

What’s up SUPERSTARS, I’m Jordan Di Natale, a Doctor of Physiotherapy student running for Graduate Students Representative on Council. My experiences with UMSU are vast. I have been UMSU’s Clubs Office Bearer and member of many UMSU committees. I’ve also been a leader of numerous clubs like UniMelb Love Letters and Italian. These experiences have shaped me into a compassionate superstar who will always support the superstar students of UniMelb. Vote-1 for me and Stand Up for Change! This has been the Italian Stallion, signing off, once again and as always, keep being superstars!!! Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Graduate students are under the pump. The ‘Melbourne model’ allows the university to charge us exorbitant fees to finish our degrees, while every year we are given less access to resources, and financial support. Many of us are also casual tutors, insecure in our jobs severely underpaid for teaching and marking. We need to turn the tide and fight for better conditions for students and staff at Unimelb. Vote for me for an activist representative for graduate students on council.

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Fun fact, I am a graduate students. Omg I’m so old. What am I doing still here. Goodbye. Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Allen Xiao — Community for UMSU

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy My study began with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) majoring in Ancient World Studies and International Politics, with an honours thesis on Roman slavery and humanitarian ideas. I am now studying a Masters of Public Policy and Management. I believe university should be a safe and positive community for learning and the exchange of ideas and making new friends. My hobbies include reading and playing Age of Empires. I have been keenly involved with many clubs and societies, including being in the leadership of the Classics Society, History Society, Chocolate Lover’s Society and Biological Society.

Hi! I’m Allen, a first-year Doctor of Medicine student. Having served as Welfare Officer and General Secretary of UMSU under Community this year, I’m incredibly excited to continue our vision of grassroots student representation in 2022.

Srishti Sharma No statetment submitted.

Postgraduate students deserve better. Our education, placements, and prospects have been left deeply uncertain. UMSU can do so much more in advocating for the graduate community, recognising its diverse needs across different faculties, and challenging the University when our education is threatened. None of this is possible without a strong, independent-minded voice at the highest level of UMSU - so remember to Vote [1] Community!

INDIGENOUS STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Jessica Alderton Provisionallty elected, unopposed.

INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Melody Xu

Jasika Verma

Hi, my name is Melody, a second-year BA student studying Media Communication and Sociology. My specific experience as an international student has motivated me to be the voice for our international cohort.

An Indian third-year math and statistics student interested in serving as your international student representative.

With the recognition that our international students face the unique challenge posed by COVID-19, I come to this role striving to support all of us. I particularly focus on the well-being aspect of being an international student and the uncertainties due to the ongoing pandemic. We should have a voice! Vote for me so we can action our concerns and build a cohesive community now!

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Fun fact, I am an international student! That’s all, thank you! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Hann Jie Teo — Stand Up! Studying at the University of Melbourne as an international student has always been a challenging experience. However, the COVID pandemic has only exacerbated this issue. International students who are in Australia are cut off from our family and have to endure the isolation of lockdowns, often alone. Those who are overseas have sub-standard teaching and a student union unable to adapt to a post pandemic model. Despite taking classes from different time-zones and pandemic conditions, we are all assessed in the same way. I am running with Stand Up, because I want to ensure we get WAMnesty to every student.

My role as a representative involves a lot of interaction with international students and listening to concerns, they have. My goal is to ensure that student feedback is shared effectively with UMSU so that international students will receive the best experience possible. I want to improve the employment prospects for the students and organise events that help international students focus on global employability skills. I am also standing for the post of national union of student’s delegate and General secretary for by election.

Aakash Chandak — Community for UMSU To better represent and support students, we must view their struggles and issues from their perspectives without judgment. There are people who come from different cultural backgrounds, with different levels of learning, who face many issues including disabilities others have not faced. I will work to provide a safe space for all students to share their struggles and ensure every student, domestic and international, are treated and prioritised in terms of care and support. There is no reason one particular group should be favoured over the other. And there is absolutely no excuse for discrimination and exclusion. Vote [1] Community!

Srishti Sharma No statetment submitted.

QUEER STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Amelia Bright — Community for UMSU I’ve spent 2021 working as one of the Queer OBs. I’ve been behind the scenes negotiating big policies like the Gender Affirmation Policy and the Feminism Subject Review, and have passed safe protest guidelines at council. We’ve hosted two massive rallies demanding the University take TGD struggles seriously, but the Feminism subject continues unchanged and there’s still no final agreement on the Gender Affirmation Policy. As Queer Representative, I will work to fix UMSU’s currently flawed affirmative action rules to properly reflect queer people, and mentor the new Queer OBs to ensure a continued campaign against this infuriatingly resistant Chancellery.

Alexandra Griffiths — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Alex and I am running for Queer Council Representative. If elected I will fight to ensure the safety and inclusion of queer people on campus and our right to education free from homophobia and transphobia. I would bring passion and hard work to the role and work hard to pursue the creation of a university culture where everyone can be unequivocally themselves without fear of hate or mistreatment. I will represent my community and work hard to ensure all voices are heard and taken into account. Vote [1] Stand Up! For Change!

STUDENTS OF COLOUR REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Nicole Nabbout — Stand Up!

Sam Rathnaweera — Left Action

Hi, I’m Nicole (she/her), I’m a third year arts student. I’m passionate about fighting against discrimination and the many barriers POC face in everyday life. Racial inequality remains prevalent throughout this university and affects students mental well-being and study. It’s something I am hoping to help rectify. I’ve previously been the UMSU POC officer and am looking to be your POC rep on council to ensure UMSU is a space that represents POC interests and can be a safe and diverse space for all...Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

I have been involved in the campaign to free the refugees locked up in Park Hotel, which led to the release of 43 men at the beginning of the year. I have also been actively involved in ‘Students for Palestine’ on Campus. We still have so much more to fight for. The student union should be a hub for this fight-back. I want to be a part of a militant, left-wing current at Unimelb alongside other dedicated activists who want to fight against racism, and all forms of oppression.

Mohamed Hadi — Community for UMSU It has been an honor being your people of Colour officer this year, I ran for office because I recognized the need and importance of representation for students of Colour and the massive role the department has in doing so, I did a lot during my time but sadly, one can do only so much in one year. Some promises have not been fulfilled and I take my election promises seriously, my role on council would help me support the incoming PoC officers in implementing constitutional and organizational change to be a more inclusive union for all.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Jaryd Clifford — Community for UMSU My name is Jaryd Clifford and I am running for disability representative on Student Council. I have low-vision and have proudly competed at the Paralympic Games. As a kid, I used to hide this part of my identity out of the fear of being seen as ‘different’. Now, it is the part of me I’m most proud as it is our adversity that makes us stronger. I am passionate to hear the stories of my community and to bring disability activism to the forefront of our thinking. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Mara Wearmouth — Stand Up! Hello! I’m Mara (she/her), I’m a second year Bachelor of Arts student double majoring in Psychology and Sociology. Invisible disabilities often go ignored, and when they’re not they’re often negated by those around them. It shouldn’t be this way. The lack of education and information available to students affected by disabilities - invisible and visible alike - has made it difficult for all students with disabilities to navigate university life. If elected, I aim to raise awareness through information being readily available to those who seek it - and push the university to educate tutors on these matters.

Nimrat Kaur No statement submitted.

SOUTHBANK STUDENTS REPRESENTATIVE ON COUNCIL Ikshvak Sobti — Stand Up! Statement.

Zodie Bolic — Community for UMSU I’m Zodie, a 1st year BFA Dance student! I believe that student unions are the best tools available to create change within universities, and I’m excited to offer my skills, experience, and passion to the Southbank cause. While I 100% believe the interdisciplinary aspect of our campus should be treasured; more can, and should, be done to facilitate it. It’s also deeply important to me that our student union pursues issues that matter to both Parkville and Southbank students, rather than either/or. As the Southbank Rep on Council, I’d ensure that changes are made – and that they last.

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL Marco Sy — The People’s Press

Shirley Killen — Left Action

Marco Sy (he/him) has moved from the outskirts of Dja Dja Wurrung land (3hrs away from Naarm/Melbourne CBD) to Wurundjeri land for tertiary education. He is a Bachelor of Commerce student majoring in Marketing and Management writing. This year he is running for student council with The People’s Press.

The world is in total crisis - we’re already seeing the devastating impacts of climate change, a pandemic has killed hundreds of thousands already and shows no sign of stopping, and the injustices and atrocities of capitalism mount every day. I’ve been involved in student activism for two years now, and I know what students can achieve when we fight back, and the enormous social power we can wield to challenge the injustices of the system we live in. If elected, I’m going to make sure that our student union does everything it can to build that fight back.

When Marco thinks of media, images of inclusivity, creativity and representation come to mind. As a graphic designer for Farrago magazine, Marco understands the impact media has on the university experience. Media creates a sense of community and belonging. Coming from a regional Victorian and immigrant background, student media has helped... [STATEMENT CUT DUE TO EXCEEDING WORD COUNT]

Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

James Gallagher — Left Action I’m running for council with Left Action because we need experienced and dedicated education activists in our union, who are willing to stand up to attacks from both the Liberal government and our Vice Chancellor. I’ve been involved in student protests confronting the Vice Chancellor at management summits, occupied the lobby of his office, and showed solidarity with grounds staff who defeated sackings by fighting back. If we are going to stop further attempts to make us pay more for a lower quality education, UMSU needs to be run by serious activists, not aspiring politicians.

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Okay, let me be honest (and serious) here! UMSU needs changes to ensure its relevance. We need UMSU to help and represent regular students. I will be the option for students who want changes that are progressive, reasonable, responsible, and transparent accompanied with discussion with all stakeholders (that’s academics, University and YOU!). Student unions are good, but they use your SSAF, so it has to be used wisely. Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Xavier Dupe — Left Action I’m running with Left Action because we need a union that organises students to fight for their rights. As your representative on council this year, I pushed for the union to support the weekly protests for the refugees locked up in the Park Hotel, which is practically on campus. I helped lead a rally on campus demanding that Melbourne Uni cut its ties with fossil fuels and that the government take urgent action on the climate. Students Council should give a lead to student activism, and that’s what I’ll keep pushing if elected.

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CONT. Jaan Schild — Left Action

Ngaire Bogemann — Stand Up!

I’m running with Left Action for Students’ Council because I believe that UMSU should be a union which fights for our rights. As a student activist I have helped to lead rallies against the University’s ties to fossil fuels and arms manufacturers, and campaigned around the cuts to education, Palestine, and refugee rights. I think the Students’ Council should lead the fight against the massive cuts to our education from the Vice Chancellor and Liberal Government, and give a strong voice for student activism on campus. This is the culture that I want to help build if elected.

Hey! I’m Ngaire (she/her), I’m a first year Arts student and I would love to represent you on Students Council in 2022! With current circumstances continuing to disadvantage students both locally and internationally, it’s essential that UMSU works to make changes that have real, positive impacts for all students. I’m committed to advocating for fair, progressive policies that respond to the needs and values of all, and encouraging transparency and accountability within the union. As a woman of colour, I understand the importance of representing marginalised voices throughout this process – that’s why you should vote [1] Stand Up!

Penelope Scacciante — Left Action

Georgia Burke — Stand Up!

Left Action is a fightback ticket, with candidates having built and led ongoing campaigns against University management. On campus we have been protesting against the brutal staff cuts and attacks on students. Earlier this year we marched to the doors of the VC’s fortress, demonstrating that these attacks are only ever in the interests of the bosses. But the fight isn’t over. Vote for me to ensure UMSU stands up against every attack on students in 2022.

Hi everyone, I’m Georgia (she/her) and I’m running for studen’s council because I believe we should have progressive representatives with the students’ values at heart. I have a strong interest in pushing for fair policies to enhance the accessibility and quality of our education, and providing greater support and resources for students struggling with their mental health. I would love the opportunity to advocate for you through a position on the Student’s Council next year. Vote [1] Stand Up!

Jasika Verma For the UMSU General Member position, I believe I am a suitable candidate since I have leadership and organizing skills, as well as communication and listening skills. My goal is to play a key role in the ongoing improvement of our University. I believe that being a General Member is a great way to help make the university campus a better place to study, not only for the current students, but for future students as well. Upon being elected, I will seek to increase support for the clubs and funding for club events and introduce many more clubs that represent the interests of the students.

Mietta Stephens — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Mietta (she/her), a first year Arts student majoring in History. I am running to represent you on council because I believe that UMSU needs progressive voices fighting for policies which embrace the diversity of identities and circumstances within the student body. With the effects of neoliberal education policies and student welfare issues being so apparent right now, there is so much to be fighting for, so I would absolutely love to advocate for you on council next year; vote [1] Stand Up! for progressive and meaningful activism within UMSU!

Nate Hollis — Stand Up! Hi everyone, my name is Nate and I’m a first year BCom student studying Finance and Economics. I am running for Student Council to ensure that student money is spent in a responsible way that benefits the student body and goes towards improving their lives on campus and their university experience more broadly. These tough times throughout the past year and a half have accentuated the need for a strong representative body that represents the interests of students and pushes the university to genuinely attempt to ensure that students’ experience at university is a positive and enjoyable one.

Alistair Shaw — Stand Up! Hi I’m Alistair and I’m running for Student’s council because I am passionate about good governance and ensuring our Students Council is transparent and accessible. As a first year student I understand that UMSU can be a confusing place, but I want to make sure that students are able to access and understand what is happening in their student union!

Jemilla Lister — Stand Up! Zac Kaplan — Stand Up! Hi, I’m Zachary and I would be honoured to serve as a representative on the student council. Over the last year, UMSU has stagnated and has made a subpar attempt in many of its campaigns. I want to help mould UMSU into an organisation that works for all students. As a proud Jew, I have seen first-hand the hate which has been perpetrated throughout recent years and I want to fight for all marginalized groups within the university.

Heya, my name is Jemilla and I’m running for General Representative on council because I’m concerned about the increasing corporatization and digitalization of our university and the impact this is having on students. I think all students have the right to get as much out of their time here as possible and I want to be a representative for helping make that easier for us! Increasing this university’s student services, academic support, and Vice Chancellor accountability are massively important to me and I’d love to be a voice for change within this years council.

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CONT. Toby Glover — Stand Up! Hi I’m Toby (he/him), I’m a second year Arts student and I’m so proud to be running with Stand Up! for General Representative on Council. Unfortunately, this year the Students Council has lacked transparency and accountability. And while words like good governance sound boring, they are actually vital to keep our union running and funding. That’s why I’m running with Stand Up! Because I believe in their ability to maintain good governance!

Matthew Harper-Gomm — Stand Up! Hey Superstars! I’m Matt (he/him) and I’m studying law. Having been around on campus for a while now, I’ve seen what a student union looks like when it’s working well, and what it looks like when it’s not working so well. The past year has been incredibly rough for all of us and it’s not getting better anytime soon, so it’s incredibly important that we’re represented by the people with a proven track record of getting wins for students – that’s why I’m proud to be running with Stand Up! Vote [1] Stand Up! for change.

Greta Torelli — Stand Up! Hi everyone! I’m Greta (she/her) and I am a third year student studying a Bachelor of Arts. I’m incredibly excited to be running for student council as I hope to bring a bold and outspoken femme queer voice to university life. I take joy and pride in studying at Melbourne University’s diverse campus, but I know this can only survive with an equally diverse student body. I believe in recognising the limits of where my personal experience and knowledge end and the time for listening and learning from others begins. As a student council member, I will work to deliver on what the title prescribes; representation. I look forward to making university life a place of belonging for all and fostering a vibrant student life that has suffered so much over the past 18 months.

Sneha Challa — Stand Up! Heyo! I’m Sneha (she/they) and I’m in my third year of my Arts degree. Having been at uni for a few years now, I’m continuing to run with StandUp! Because I believe that our student union should be representing progressive values and making a real impact on the lives and rights of students. Furthermore, our student union has to remain transparent and held accountable to the needs of students in all their campaigns and activities. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change!

Yuqi (Eve) Zhang — Stand Up! I’m Eve (She/Her) and since moving to Melbourne when I was 17, I have experienced the University of Melbourne from foundational studies to a Bachelor of Agriculture and all the way to Masters research in Wine. In that time, I have seen the need for cohesive and effective student representatives in delivering tangible student outcomes such as WAMnesty. In the face of continued lockdowns across the world, I will focus on keeping student’s council prioritised on student outcomes, instead of political point scoring. Vote [1] Stand Up! for change!

Jordan Bassilious — Stand Up! Hi, I’m Jordan (he/him) a second year studying an arts degree. I’m a proud progressive who wants to see a transparent UMSU making real change for students. I’m truly passionate about creating change and on Students Council I would always fight to make sure that Students Council is being as progressive as possible and creating meaningful change for students. I’ve seen the positive impacts that a good Students Council can achieve and I’d love the opportunity to ensure UMSU is doing this going forward....Vote 1 Stand Up! for change

Naomi Smith — Stand Up! Hi everyone I’m Naomi (she/her), your former UMSU Women’s Officer. As someone who has been around UMSU forever it is fitting that I put my hand up for the one position that I’ve never been elected to. As a students councillor I’d bring my wealth of knowledge about UMSU to make sure the Union is standing up for students rights...Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Felix Sharkey — Stand Up! Hi, I’m Felix (he/him) and I’m a third year arts student. I’m running for student council to be your strong progressive voice who always puts the interests of students first. I strongly believe in the power of the Student Union to run campaigns that create change to support and benefit students. As a representative on council I’ll ensure that I stand up for students rights...Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Liam Horrocks — Fightback for UMSU

A fighting union is a union that makes strong decisions that deliver for their members. Students are faced with far too many economic issues to have representatives who turn up to Council to practice speeches, or pass motions. Soaring living costs, lower real wages, unaffordable housing and deteriorating welfare. Students need real change, and real solutions to their issues. If elected, I’ll drive officebearers to achieve meaningful change with tangible outcomes, not just pay lip service to student radicalism. Students deserve representatives that’ll fight for them. I’ll put students first at Student’s Council. Vote [1] Fightback.

Anezka Fernandes — Fightback for UMSU Student’s Council exercises authority over UMSU’s department budgets, the stances it takes, and the overall direction of the union. Students need fierce voices that aren’t afraid to bat for radical answers to the problems we face, and councillors who will put students front and centre of everything they do. If elected, I pledge to fight back for your rights in every domain, and hold your elected office bearers to account - because at the end of the day, it’s students who give the student union its power. I’ll put students first at Student’s Council. Vote [1] Fightback.

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CONT. Annalyce Wiebenga — Independent Media Hi, I’m Annalyce Wiebenga! I am a blogger for Radio Fodder, a contributor to Farrago, and a 2020 Farrago columnist. I am a member of Southbank committee and have volunteered for the Queer, Disabilities and Women’s Departments and helped produce this year’s Mudfest with Creative Arts. I’m also a club executive! I’ve seen UMSU from many different angles, but my belief in the importance of student media remains constant. If elected to Council, I will fight to keep the Media Department properly funded, transparent, independent and inclusive, while defending students’ rights to diverse self-expression and keeping UMSU accountable.

Aeva Milos — Independent Media Howdy, I’m Aeva! As a reporter for Farrago this year, I have come to know the Media Department as an enriching place that fosters dedication and creativity. I want nothing more than to ensure our department is being adequately funded and supported within UMSU. Independent storytelling is necessary now more than ever to guarantee accountability and representation, and to facilitate an environment that uplifts the voices of our students. It is my biggest goal, if elected onto Students Council, to ensure media remains transparent and accessible for everyone. .

Melana Uceda — Independent Media Hey there! I’m Melana, a graphic design student with a love for anything bookish. I’ve been a Farrago reader since my first University of Melbourne Open Day in year 11: I thought it was the coolest thing, so much that I went on to become a Senior Text Editor and illustrator at my high school magazine. This year, I’m absolutely loving being on the illustration and creative subeditor teams, and would love to become councillor to give back—the Media Collective is such a vital part of our community, and we need to make sure it stays independent and funded!

Chelsea Rozario — Independent Media I’m Chelsea, a contributor, illustrator and creative sub-editor for Farrago Magazine (and resident succubus). I’m running for Students’ Council because of how life-changing student media can be. Being from a country whose media is informed by politics, I believe it is vital that student media remains independent, transparent and unbiased. An independent Media Department ensures an encouraging and welcoming space for student creatives of all backgrounds to unabashedly express themselves. I’m wholeheartedly dedicated to increasing the accessibility of student media to marginalised creatives, striving for adequate funding, emphasizing the importance of expression and fighting for a Media Department committed to creativity.

Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh. Having previously represented students at Gleneagles

Secondary College, YMCA Youth Parliament, and the City of Casey Youth Action Committee, I want to use my experience to provide an independent voice that represents all students at UniMelb, including those left behind by factionalism and politics. The last two years have had a severe impact on the university experience for all students, international and domestic alike, and I want to help UMSU work to revitalise student life, beginning the return to the vibrant, active, and inclusive university environment we were promised.

Hannah Lewis — Independents for Student Democracy I am a second-year arts student studying classics and ancient history. Despite beginning my experience of Melbourne during the difficulties of the COVID pandemic, I have enjoyed an involved and intellectually stimulating time at Melbourne. I attribute this to my enthusiastic participation with university life, particularly in being an active member with the Classics and Archaeology Students Society, where I now serve on the executive committee as President. My hobbies include reading, field hockey and playing Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. I am excited to promote student participation and ensure a positive learning environment that prioritises student wellbeing.

Lachlan Mutimer — Independents for Student Democracy G’day, I’m Lachie! I am currently in my third year studying Arts, majoring in History and Ancient World Studies. I work as a delivery driver for an outdoor furniture company and spend my spare time snorkelling, training for triathlons, head-banging to music, and taking care of my rescue dog (Honey) and cactus (Jonathan). I have also previously volunteered in my community – maintaining public gardens with a local group, planting trees, coaching a kids basketball team, and giving a hand at an Op-shop. I am passionate about getting involved, trying new things, making progressive change, and helping others in the process.

Elizabeth Riley — Independents for Student Democracy No statement submitted.

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CONT. Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hey! I’m Daisy and I am studying a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient World Studies. I am interested in critiquing the role of ancient history in our society today, including with classical reception studies and repatriation debates. I am passionate about feminist discourse and the issues women face, as well as the Australian political climate, and the status of the Arts and Humanities in contemporary Australia. My experience includes being President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society; editor for the undergraduate history journal Chariot; various tutor and subject coordinator roles for history subjects in the VCESS summer school program; and also work as a casual field archaeologist in Victoria. I am excited to be a candidate and represent the student community!

Phoebe Leggett – Independents for Student Democracy I am a third-year Arts student studying linguistics and ancient history. I am involved with various clubs, including serving as Secretary and President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society. I also play the Bassoon. I firmly believe that all students should be able to access and have a say over their education without fear of discrimination. As the Greek philosopher, Plato said: ὁ δὲ ἀνεξέταστος βίος οὐ βιωτὸς ἀνθρώπῳ “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Independents for Student Democracy is a group of students passionate about democracy and promoting student wellbeing and community/clubs experience on campus.

Terry Wang — Community for UMSU Hey everyone! It’s me, Terry! This year, I’ve had the privilege of being the Language Exchange Club president, a role that has made me friends from different cultural backgrounds. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting language learners of many backgrounds through our events, and it’s inspired me to run for Students Council with Community – to ensure the voices of all students, international or local, are properly represented in UMSU so that you can have the best university experience, even in these trying times. It’s very important that all students feel represented, and I will strive to make UMSU accessible.

Scarlett Padden — Community for UMSU Hey my name is Scarlett and I’m running for Student Council with Community. I am a second year student studying science and I’m choosing to run for council because I am passionate about improving students’ university experience. This has been a difficult year for us all, especially in terms of mental health and accessible support systems for all students. These tough times have shown us that we need a strong, fair and decisive union who will continue to fight and advocate on the behalf of all students - Vote [1] for Community.

Planning Jay Vynn Saw — Community for UMSU Hey students! I’m Planning, the current Education (Academic) officer.

Throughout this year, I have sought to fully represent our students in issues that have affected our students financially, socially, and emotionally. Online learning coupled with the series of lockdowns has meant that our student community is increasingly weary and requires support now more than ever. We need to support our students through these tough times and provide them with more sustainable support systems. Let me be one of those voices to represent your concerns and ensure that the decision-making in UMSU represents our students. Vote [1] for Community!

Nishank Ji-Sung Jain — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is Nishank Ji-Sung Jain and I’ll be running for Student’s Council. Throughout 2021, I have been a committee member on UMSU’s education committee, understanding initiatives such as the WAM amnesty campaign, the extended library hours campaign and no cuts campaign, and learning about the inner workings of the university administration. I aim to use my experience in the education committee to ensure that decisions made at Student’s Council will benefit students and that students are not left behind in the decision making at UMSU. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Yong Wen Hao — Community for UMSU Hi there! Yong Wen Hao here! or you can call me Daniel! This year, I’ll be running for the Student Council position in UMSU with Community for UMSU to ensure voices of students are being represented.There is so much more UMSU can do for students. As student council representative, I will make sure voices of students are heard and decisions are made for students, by students in an accessible and transparent manner. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Rebekah Kelly — Community for UMSU Hi I’m Rebekah Kelly and I am running for Student’s Council with Community in 2022. As a second year student who had most of her university experiences online, I deeply understand the direct impact on a student’s experience of having people who understand and can advocate for the unique issues that students face (especially to do with creating community and supporting mental health). I am passionate about making sure everyone is heard, but never afraid to call it how I see it, qualities which will serve me very well when I fight for what students need. Vote [1] Community!

Imogen Senior — Community for UMSU Hi! I’m Imogen, and I’m running for council in 2022! I’m a secondyear Politics and Criminology student from regional NSW. In 2020, I conducted global research into girls’ visions for a post-Covid society, as a youth activist with Plan International. This was presented to the UN! I’ve also been President of the Greens Club this year and have participated in a Greens Community Campaigning Fellowship, where

GENERAL MEMBERS ON COUNCIL CONT. I learnt all things social change and organising! I’m keen to continue work on advocating for a better sexual assault policy on campus and increasing the accessibility and contact of UMSU to students.

Vignesh Krishnan — Community for UMSU

Angela Wu — Community for UMSU

I’m Vignesh, a third-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Psychology and I’d love to be your general rep for the student council. In my year on the POC committee, I’ve learned quite a lot about UMSU as a whole and I feel like the general representative on council would be the position in which I could help the most. As a member of the council, I hope to be able to use my experience to assist in the variety of things that will come to the council and adapt appropriately.

After being in the University of Melbourne for almost three years, I want to take this opportunity to give back to the people who need it - our students. My name is Angela and I’m excited to be running for Student Council this year. I’ve met all different types of people, with different backgrounds, experiences and ambitions. I’ve heard their stories and their struggles. Running for Council means more to me than just another name on the paper. It means keeping UMSU accountable; ensuring the wellbeing of students and representing my community in honest leadership. This is what Community stands for.

Tenzin Cohen — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is Tenzin Cohen and I am running to represent you on the 2022 Student Council. After experiencing my first year of university online, I understand the importance of feeling supported at University. Student issues such as mental health and access to affordable university services are incredibly important and I would be honoured to advocate for these issues on your behalf. These past few years have shown the importance of having a unified voice so that we are heard. The great bunch of people I am standing with are committed to being your voice. Vote 1 for Community.

Nicola Widjaja — Community for UMSU Hey everybody! Nicole here! This year, I’m running for a position on Students Council with Community for UMSU. Through my involvement in student life as President of Internet of Things and lived experience as an international student, I believe there can be so much more done by UMSU to help students. I want to run for Student Council to make sure there is transparency within the system to ensure decisions are being made in a fair and accessible way. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Vidula Kedar Pande — Community for UMSU I am Vidula Kedar Pande and I am running to be a part of the Student Council body at The University of Melbourne. Values of integrity and accountability are at the core of my life, and identifying these values that guide the cultural arena, puts clarity in what a leader is seeking to achieve. My ability to inspire others while providing a purpose driven meaningful direction, with effective communication and feedback, allows achievement of team vision. If given the opportunity, I will abide by the rules and regulations of Unimelb, keeping its integrity at the highest priority.

Suzi Zhen — Community for UMSU Hi hi! Suzi here, glad to be running for Students Council position in UMSU with Community for UMSU this year. During my University life, I co-founded and was the president of Gleam Up club. Our club started with a group of students passionate about a cause and with hard work and dreams, within a year we managed to achieve many things we didn’t thought was possible before. That is why I want to run for this position this year. Because I believe that UMSU can make great change for students and if elected, I will make sure that will happen.

Briana Symonds-Manne — Liberals Off Campus - Stop the Menzies Institute Standing up for students means protesting against uni management. The Vice-Chancellor has sacked over 800 staff and is now hosting the Menzies Institute, a think-tank set up by Liberal Party members to reshape curricula and promote right-wing ideas. Our university should be free from corporate influence, which is why activists on our ticket initiated a campaign to mobilise students against this. Our councillor will use the union’s resources to reach out to every student, expose the supposedly “non-partisan” Menzies Institute for the racist, procapitalist cesspool that it is, and call on students to fight to kick the Liberals off campus.

ACTIVITIES COMMITTEE Darcy Dillon — Stand Up! Hi everyone, I’m Darcy (he/him)! I’m a 2nd year Arts Student and I’m running for the Activities Committee. I know how important events are to all of our uni lives and I’m super keen in getting involved so that we have both online and in person events. There are a lot of UMSU traditions that I missed out on (BABBA!!) and would love to bring it back. Vote 1 for Stand Up!

Cate Holland — Stand Up!

Patrick Bunney — Community for UMSU Hi my name is Pat, and I’m in Second Year Arts and standing for a position on the Activities Committee. 2022 will be a year of transition and there’s perhaps no more crucial UMSU department to get this transition right than the Activities Department. To get this right, we need candidates who put the community first, not be naive about the challenges of planning activities when plans must be ready to change, but also not needlessly discard good ideas from past years. If you think that UMSU deserves candidates who will handle the next year well, vote [1] Community.

Hi friends! I’m Cate (she/her) and I’ll be running for Activities Committee with Stand Up! I’ve missed so many of the things that make uni great: free meals on south lawn, Bands and Bevs and so many other fun activities. In 2022, I want to see these all brought back, ensuring that students can have tons of fun whilst remaining safe. If Stand Up! Are elected, we’ll bring BABBA back to campus! Now there’s no reason not to vote for us. Vote 1 Stand Up! for Change.

Ishita Ganeriwala — Community for UMSU

Mathilde Pinkey — Stand Up!

Focusing on learning outcomes of students through improving resilience, coping skills, personal engagement and a sense of belonging, has been my utmost priority. I have had experiences in volunteering till date in my University life.

Hello! My name is Mathilde Pinkney (she/her), I’m a first year studying arts and I am running for activities committee. I absolutely love the social aspects of university, particularly being able to create connections with other students. I would love to be a part of activities committee because I’d love to see more events on campus that can foster new friendships and engage students. As an active member of M-ASS I am passionate about involvement and trying to make everyones university experience as positive and memorable as possible, which I believe I could also achieve as a member of activities committee.

Jack Toce — Stand Up! Hi everyone, I’m Jack (he/him) and I’m a Bachelor of Design student majoring in Urban Planning. I’m running for the Activities Committee as I want to see the return of fun activities to campus. I really enjoyed going to Bands and Bevs every week in 2019 and at the start of 2020. I was quite disappointed when Bands and Bevs didn’t run in 2021 despite other activities happening on campus. I will also advocate for BABBA to return to campus!! Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Zisis Zak Tsiouklas — Stand Up! Activities are so much fun! My name is Zak (he/him) and I am very excited to be running for activities committee. I want more fun on campus! Community got rid of fun! Stand Up! will bring it back!! Vote 1 Stand Up! For Change.

Shubham Singh — Community for UMSU Hi, I’m Shubham Singh and I’m running for the Activities Committee as the social arena of Melbourne Uni has been integral to my University experience. Furthermore, I see it as an opportunity to ‘give back’ and engage with the wider community. I have ideas to augment UMSU Activities given the opportunity. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

I am Ishita Ganeriwala and I am running to be a part of the Activities Committee.

If given the opportunity to take up a post, I will abide by the rules and regulations of Unimelb, keeping its integrity at the highest priority. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Sanchi Sanchi — Community for UMSU Hey, I’m Sanchi. I consider myself an extrovert who loves engaging with people from different cultures. My leadership experience includes being a host during orientation week, cultural ambassador for the ICSS committee, and secretary for the Bollywood Club. However, there is always something new to learn and that is my vision for the committee. I want to continue to make UMSU a comfortable and fun space where we all support each other. Ultimately, my goal is to inspire people to be happy and live their best lives which I feel could be achieved by representing the UMSU community.

Fatima Ferdousi — Community for UMSU My name is Fatima, I am a third-year Bachelor of Science student majoring in Biotechnology. COVID and online learning has hit many of us very hard and as an international student overseas, I know how disengaging it can be to not have many events catered for us. In the past, events like Bands and Bevs allowed people to come together, socialise and share food. I want to help make this department adapt better to online events. I intend to help create events, workshops and online content that does not just engage students who are onshore, but those offshore as well.

Parth Parulekar — Community for UMSU My name is Parth Parulekar and I am running for Activities Committee. Being an international student myself, I know how stressful it is to not be able to participate in on-campus activities. But fret not, I am

ACTIVITIES COMMITTEE CONT. optimistic that with your support and confidence in me, the online experience of attending UMSU events will be a long-lasting memory of fun and engagement beyond academics. My goal is to ensure that all UMSU activities reach anyone and everyone to keep them motivated throughout hectic semesters and to promote inclusivity and openness, building a friendly University atmosphere.

City of Casey Youth Action Committee. I want to help deliver great events here, enriching our student experience with opportunities to connect, catch up, and cool off from the university workload. COVID-19 has meant that there are fewer on-campus activities than ever before; I want to help the Activities Committee fix that, and return to on-campus events in 2022.

Lachlan Mutimer — Independents for Student Democracy

Harinish Balavijayan — Community for UMSU I’m Harinish Balaviyayan, running for Activities Committee. I see the positions of the Committee Representative as a way to be part of making a positive contribution to the student community. I feel I am suited for the position as I am a highly motivated, results-oriented individual, willing to go the extra mile to reach goals and learn along the way. If elected I will respect your support and pledge to work for the issues that are critical to all students. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

G’day, I’m Lachie! I am currently in my third year studying Arts, majoring in History and Ancient World Studies. I work as a delivery driver for an outdoor furniture company and spend my spare time snorkelling, training for triathlons, head-banging to music, and taking care of my rescue dog (Honey) and cactus (Jonathan). I have also previously volunteered in my community – maintaining public gardens with a local group, planting trees, coaching a kids basketball team, and giving a hand at an Op-shop. I am passionate about getting involved, trying new things, making progressive change, and helping others in the process.

Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Let’s get physical, physical! And do some activities! And Dance! And now I’m too lazy and going to bed again! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Melody Xu I’m Melody Xu, a second-year Communication and Sociology.

student

studying

Media

I understand the difficulties students may encounter due to the ongoing global pandemic. Being virtual has posed a massive challenge for us to enjoy college life. Therefore, my goal is to enrich our campus experience by introducing a variety of activities that reflect academic freedom and cultural diversity. From CV workshops to movie nights and Lunar New Year Gala, etc., I am now excited to bring all the university experience we have envisioned. Your voice should be heard. Vote for me now so we can make this happen!

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy I have previously served on the Activities Committee in 2020. This was an interesting experience in learning about how UMSU works and being involved in event planning. I have been involved in many clubs in which I have learned how to organise events, such as trivia, film screenings and board game sessions. My trivia experience even includes being a contestant on the SBS show Mastermind Australia (with special topics US Presidents and the HMS Bounty). I would advocate for a range of events, including more trivia.

CREATIVE ARTS COMMITTEE Kavi Ramdas — Community for UMSU

Rohan Pokhriyal — Community for UMSU

Hi, my name is Kavi Ramdass (he/him) and I am a second year BCom student.

Hi, my name is Rohan Pokhriyal (he/him) and I’m a final semester Master of Management (Marketing) student. I’m passionate about creative writing and debating, and have won competitions at the district, state, and national level in India. I intend to use my experience to innovatively increase student engagement to harness our untapped student potential with a plethora of creative events, competitions, meet-ups, ideation sessions, and the like! I have always aspired to being in a role where a creative knack is valued, and this seems like just the right place!

Creativity has been integral in my life, from Visual Arts contests to the inception of my creative page on Instagram. Hence, I want to use my experience to build a more inclusive Arts community whilst representing your view and values. Noting how disengaged our student community is currently from creativity, I will work on various events to enhance your creative experience. Distance or lock-downs should not be a barrier to creativity! VOTE [1] FOR COMMUNITY FOR UMSU ! VOTE FOR CREATIVITY!

Nahean Tanisha Khan — Community for UMSU Hi there, Nahean here! Art, music and performance are indicators of culture, yet are often disregarded. I hope to encourage others to share my passion for artistry, planning events to showcase creative talent and delegating grants to enable students to pursue their passions. This should be a safe space since creativity is incredibly intimate and we all deserve an outlet for self-expression. By creating more opportunities for students to share their art, I believe we can encourage confidence in themselves, and as a member of the Committee, I wish to foster a greater appreciation for creativity in our community.

Leslie Ho — Community for UMSU If elected to the creative arts committee, I would endeavour to continue the work done by this department in supporting students with their art-making. My own experience with music, theatre, and creative writing would help me to support other artists in these fields, though I have a passion for creativity in all forms and would be eager to work with creators from any background. The best art is that which connects us, inspires us, and celebrates the diversity of our student body in an inclusive and sustainable manner. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Lan Phuong Nguyen — Community for UMSU Growing up, I have never ceased nourishing my spirit with the arts. I spent time drawing and got appraisals in creative writing in my early school years. Later, I also indulged in photography and graphic design. Now, as an international and Commerce student, I devote more to playing the piano and studying classical music. Through this role, I want to spread my passion for arts, as it is essential for students to be involved in arts besides their studies. Moreover, I want to call on the University to give students more access to art exploration, practice rooms with better facilities.

Chi Wing Wong — Community for UMSU My name is Chi Wing, and I’m studying a Bachelor of Arts in my second year, majoring in Linguistics. I want to enrich my campus life through serving fellow students. I became an UMSU International ISA last semester, and I want to support more international and local students. UMSU Creative Arts draws my attention and I would love the opportunity to engage and help peers through this. I’m passionate about arts, and hope to continue holding events like the Arty Party and Mudfest. I would also like to connect students online through the Creative Arts Collective Facebook group and Summerfest.

Alice Wallis — Independents for Student Democracy Hi, I’m Alice, and I love making stuff. Ever since I started studying ancient history, I’ve fuelled my passion for art and art history. I’ve built up an online portfolio and have been selling my art for some time. I’m running for the creative arts office and committee because creating is what I love.

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hi, I’m Daisy, I did 2 years of a design degree before changing to arts and I enjoy making the social media graphics for the FB pages I manage. I also enjoyed oil painting during my high school years. That is why I’m interested in running for the creative arts office bearer/ committee

Jemilla Lister — Stand Up! Hi! My name is Jemilla (she/her) and I’m excited to be running for Creative Arts Committee this year with Stand Up! The creative arts shape the university experiences of so many students such as myself, and I would love to be a voice for promoting opportunities for students in the arts next year! Vote [1] Stand Up! To continue the tradition of a vibrant and diverse creative arts culture at our university!

Leah Bourne — Stand Up! Hi, I’m Leah and I’m running for the creative arts committee. Before getting involved in student theatre I didn’t know anyone on campus. Having a creative community that is diverse and supportive has

CREATIVE ARTS COMMITTEE CONT. made my university experience memorable. It would be an honour to represent the creative community and help decide what programs receive financial support. If elected I will focus on two distinct goals: reviving the creative arts sector on campus to come back from the pandemic stronger than ever, and run a program that connects students with industry professionals, so students can hit the ground running!

Georgia Walton Briggs — Stand Up! Hello, I’m Georgia (She/Her) and I’m beyond excited to be a candidate for creative arts committee this year. I’m very passionate about art in all forms and I’m massive fan of the amazing, inclusive and diverse creative arts community here at the University of Melbourne. I’ve really enjoyed being a member of the creative arts committee this year and would absolutely be honoured to continue being a member of the committee in 2022.

Tobias Glover — Stand Up! G’day, my names Toby (He/Him) and I’m super pumped to be running for creative arts committee this year. I really love the creative arts, especially film and I’m really excited to see how I can contribute to the fantastic creative arts community here at the University of Melbourne.

Jack Buksh — Stand Up! Hi I’m Jack Buksh (He/Him) and I am honoured to be running for creative arts committee this year. The Coronavirus Pandemic has done so much damage to university life with the Creative Arts department being no exception. Seeing the merciless attacks by the Liberal government on the arts sector has shown the importance of a vibrant creative arts scene here at the University of Melbourne and in the wider community.

Alon Trigger — Stand Up! No statement submitted.

DISABILITIES COMMITTEE Mara Wearmouth — Stand Up!

Hannah Krasovec — Stand Up!

Hello! I’m Mara (she/her), I’m a second year Bachelor of Arts student double majoring in Psychology and Sociology. As someone who has struggled to navigate university with a disability that went undiagnosed for the first 19 years of my life, my goal is to push for de-stigmatisation around campus and amongst tutors/subject coordinators, as well as directly benefiting YOU by collaborating with veteran students to create information packages that are aimed to help make university and study life easier (how to study with ADHD/ Autism, friendliest wheelchair study spaces on campus etc.).

Hey there!! I’m Hannah (she/her) and I’m an Arts student majoring in geography and history. I’ve struggled with mental health for most of my life and it’s impacted my studies, especially at university. The reality is that students that struggle with mental health and other disabilities do not get enough support from the university. As your representative on Disabilities Committee, I will make sure that the Disabilities OBs are doing their very best to secure more support from the university for students with disabilities. Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

Alisha Collenette — Stand Up!

Jeffrey Reynolds — Stand Up!

Hi there! My name’s Alisha and I’m a current Master of Engineering student. During my (extended) time at uni I’ve been able to see the struggles that I, myself and other members of the disabled community face in both study and uni life. I hope that as a committee member I will be able to bring insight into some of the ways in which UMSU can work to help support all the members of the disabled community. I look forward to helping to improve the experience of students living with disability. Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

I’m Jeff (he/him) and I am proud to run for the disabilities committee. As a mature student with various disabilities, I empathise with the many struggles students encounter with our academic departments and SEDS. Times are especially difficult in that most of us have to face not only physical, and mental health challenges, we also have to face many of these in isolation and alone without adequate and timely support. I intend to listen to your needs. I will also ensure that UMSU and campus are accessible to us all. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change!

DISABILITIES COMMITTEE CONT. Lucy Birch — Stand Up! Everybody has been affected by online uni, but it has been especially hard for students with Disabilities and carers to keep up. I am Lucy (pronouns) and I would like to be elected to Disabilities committee to make sure no student is left behind. I didn’t even know the department existed until recently and I feel so much more could be done with it. I will make sure the department provides more workshops, inclusive collectives and lobbying the university to actually care about us. I am certain only Stand Up! can deliver this. Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Jack Buksh — Stand Up! Hi! I’m Jack (he/him) and I’m super excited to be running for the Disabilities committee. I’ve been at the university for a couple of years and time and time again have failed to fully show up and support students with disabilities and it’s time for that to change. With my role on the committee I hope to best advocate for students with disabilities and hold the OBs accountable to their campaigns and actions. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change!

Naomi Smith — Stand Up! Hiii! I’m Naomi! (she/her). This year I’ve chosen to run for the Disabilities committee because I believe that the university does not support Students with a disability enough. It’s time for this to change, and I know the Disabilities department can help advocate and support students with disabilities in so many awesome ways. Unfortunately, the Disabilities department has not been advocating for students this year in a time when we need it most. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change!

Ali Al Lawati — Community for UMSU Hi! My name is Ali, and I’m delighted to run for the UMSU Disabilities Committee this year. I’ve been part of a few clubs and societies over the years, and something that I have observed is that people with disabilities always seem to be an afterthought. Community for UMSU is here to change that. We’re here to represent, fight, and build. We’re passionate, we’re ambitious, and our mission is to make people with disabilities a priority, not an afterthought. So please vote for a more inclusive UniMelb, Vote [1] for Community! ^_^

Daniel Bolitho — Community for UMSU Hey guys! I’m Dan and I’m pleased to announce I’m running in the 2021 UMSU elections for Community! I think we can all agree that it’s been a rough couple of years. We’ve been forced to adapt to many new challenges and for many of us, we’ve had to do so without the guidance and stability in Uni policy we would have liked. I believe UMSU can provide that guidance, stability, and safety for all the student community, but there’s work to be done in achieving this – especially for those who are already at a disadvantage. Vote 1 Community!

Nimrat Kaur — Community for UMSU My name is Nimrat Kaur and I’m a first-year Arts student at the University of Melbourne, majoring in English Literature with minors

in Media Studies and Sociology. I keenly understand society’s need to be more empathetic towards difference and diversity. We must support marginalised people in having their voices heard to create greater inclusion. I value serving the people we represent and delivering work with honesty, sincerity, and integrity. If given the chance to work with UMSU Disabilities, I will work to support my peers in achieving their goals. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Aarushi Golchha — Community for UMSU Taking care of our mental health is more important now than ever. Hi, I am Aarushi Golchha, I am currently studying Masters in Management while working on the “Donate an hour” campaign with mental health professionals in India to provide free counselling services. I strive to bring a similar service for students who need mental health support from the University. I will work towards recognising and meeting needs of the differently abled community to support their experience at university. Inclusivity for all students is a personal cause of mine and I am committed to bring forward policies that increase accessibility.

Purnajit Bhowmik — Community for UMSU As someone who understands how mental illnesses can directly affect one’s educational and social life, I am strongly driven and excited to run for Disabilities Committee! University can be overwhelming especially for those who face disabilities. My vision is to create an environment that is inclusive, supportive, and loving. I believe that more change is required to support students’ hard work, ensuring that physical or mental disabilities do not limit their academic achievements and university experience. Through working in UMSU Disabilities, my desire is to make things less stressful, more accessible, and fair for each student. Vote [1] for Community!

Nidhi Sikka — Community for UMSU Hey all! My name is Nidhi Sikka. As someone passionate about supporting those struggling with physical and mental disability and struggles, I am excited to run for Disability Committee this year! University can be overwhelming, especially for those who face disabilities. I want to create an environment that is inclusive and supportive. Through working with UMSU Disabilities, I hope to help make the university experience less stressful and more accessible for students.

Clea Porteous Borthwick — Community for UMSU Connecting with people with all different disabilities this year as the Disabilities Representative on Council affirmed to me that we as people with disabilities know the solutions. The task is to work strategically to bring teaching, SEDS and administration staff with us on the road to making UniMelb more disability-accessible. I’ve been part of our online disability community, creating social events and forums bringing together international, interstate and local students. I’ve also helped increase CAPS and map minimum access standards. I’m excited to be part of the Committee to bring my experience and team-relationships to keep solving long-standing issues.

EDUCATION COMMITTEE Georgia Burke— Stand Up! Hi everyone! My name is Georgia (she/her) and I’m running for a position on the education committee for 2022! The pandemic has challenged the accessibility and quality of our education, and this has been exacerbated by cuts to staff, funding and units. With the Education Department playing an important activist role, it is vital that there is a committee willing to fight back. We need representatives driven to strive for the needs of students, and that starts with choosing the right team. Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

Isabella Phillips — Stand Up! Hi everyone, I’m Isabella (she/her) and I’m running for the Education Committee. I’m a second-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in psychology, politics and international studies. I am passionate about quality education and support for all students to succeed in their studies. I have watched the quality of student’s education and support systems diminish with zoom tutorials and minimal support from Melbourne Uni over the past two years. I will fight for our students’ rights to high-quality education and robust support systems, to ensure that all students succeed in these challenging times. Vote 1 Stand Up! For your education.

Alistair Shaw — Stand Up! Hey everyone! I’m Alistair and I’m running for Education Committee for 2022! I’ve seen the impacts of neoliberalisation on our education - Unimelb cut over 750 jobs last year and hundreds more this year, despite making an $8 million profit last year. As a result, all of my classes have less tutorial options and class sizes are increasing every year. Additionally, when the Education Department won WAMnesty in 2020, it really benefitted students, but it’s something we’ve missed out on this year. Vote 1 Stand Up! for an activist Education Committee.

Mietta Stephens — Stand Up! My name is Mietta (she/her), a first year Arts student majoring in History. We as students are already experiencing the effects of the neoliberalisation of higher education, with the prevalence of staff, funding and subject cuts in recent years. I believe that the quality and accessibility of our education should never be compromised in the interests of profitability, and I would love to advocate for your rights and interests as students as a member of the Education Committee next year. Vote [1] Stand Up! to defend students and staff next year!

Millicent Grealish — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Millie (she/her) and I’m running for Education Committee this year with Stand Up! because I strongly believe that free and accessible education is something that all students deserve! The recent cuts to our education have shown us all the importance of progressive activism for students and staff within universities, and I want to be part of this activism within UMSU next year. Vote [1] Stand Up! For Change in 2022!

David Collis — Stand Up! Hey there, I’m David (he/him) and I’m running for Education Committee!! I’ve been involved in the UMSU Education Department since 2020 and the various campaigns that have been run. It is really important that students continue to fight back against the corporatisation of universities - Unimelb cut hundreds of jobs this year, despite making an $8 million profit last year. If elected, I will make sure that the Education Department keeps up the fight to make

sure our education is properly funded. Vote 1 Stand Up! to defend your education.

Georgia Walton Briggs — Stand Up! Hi my name Georgia (she/her) and I love all things education. I was so proud last year to be part of the Education Academic team that DELIVERED WAMNESTY - so much so, that I have decided to run again so we can get back Wamnesty. Clearly, this years Education Academic officers didn’t’ the handover we gave them. I’m running with Stand Up! Because I believe in a ticket that runs genuine campaigns that put the interests of students above their own. Vote 1 Stand Up! For Change.

James Gallagher — Left Action Universities are increasingly treated like private corporations where quality of education and the rights of students are being overridden by wealthy executives trying to churn out degrees for maximum cash. At UniMelb, the VC and the Liberal government have been relentlessly attacking education by pursuing staff cuts, course cuts, and fee hikes to increase their profits. Students should be opposed to the incursion of millionaire fossil fuel companies, weapons manufacturers and right wing culture warriors onto campus, especially amidst attacks to higher education. Left Action is committed to organising the student body in a fightback against the corporatisation of universities.

Alec Ferguson — Left Action I’m running for Education Committee to demand decent education. With everything on Zoom, the quality of education is facing a severe decline. Such deterioration, however, does not stop with the necessary consequences of a global pandemic. The university has also seen across-the-board drastic staff cuts recently - this was not a decision made in dire obligation as in 2020, the university boasted a surplus of $8 million dollars. Left Action seeks to fight against this total disconnect between our extortionate fees as students and an educational experience that is barely the shell of what it should be.

Chinakila Makwaza — Left Action The Menzies Institute is representative of everything that is wrong with education today. After decades of underfunding and corporatisation, our millionaire Vice-Chancellor has accepted $7 million from the government to establish a Liberal think-tank on campus. This is the same VC who has spent the past year using the crisis as an excuse to sack hundreds of staff and reduce education quality. Our education and our campus should not be open to the Liberal party and their rich mates to buy influence over. As a member of the Education Committee I’ll campaign tirelessly against the Menzies Institute and education cuts.

Maryam Hessami — Left Action I’m running for the education committee because we need a student union that prioritises fighting against any and every attack on higher education. The current dominant force in the student union, Community, are hostile to any and every attempt to mount the absolutely necessary fight for higher education. In the context of fee hikes, staff cuts and the eroding quality of education with Zoom classes that cost thousands - Community have been missing in action. These careerists think it’s more important to organise social events than to lead the fightback against these unprecedented attacks students are facing.

EDUCATION COMMITTEE CONT. Xavier Dupe — Left Action Left Action fights to win free education. University fees expose the naked class discrimination of Australia today, where, according to our government, only those with cash deserve to understand the world. With the excuse of the coronavirus, our universities have been ruthlessly cutting subjects and staff, and then actually increasing fees, basically for the privilege of Zoom. Free education was won when the student movement was strong in Australia, and the everincreasing fees of the past decades demonstrate the ever-increasing encroachment of capitalism and neoliberalism, where every service in society can only exist if it makes a quick buck.

Bridget Bracken — Independents for Student Democracy I am a second-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Ancient World Studies. I am passionate about the history and language of Ancient History, as well as the study of underrepresented people in ancient history. I am excited to be involved in the student election this year and be an Education candidate. I am passionate about student education and advocating for better student education and wellbeing. I strongly believe in making education as accessible as possible to all!

Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m a first-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Politics and Islamic Studies. I have over five years of experience representing students at Gleneagles Secondary College, YMCA Youth Parliament, and the City of Casey Youth Action Committee. In 2020, I helped create an educational primer to help local secondary students with work experience and finding employment. I want to use my organisational and administrative experience to help UMSU campaign against the Federal Government’s punitive hikes to university fees while remaining independent from the influence of Labor, Liberal, and other political parties to best represent you!

Peggy Lucas — Independents for Student Democracy No statement submitted.

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy I’m Daisy and I am excited to be one of the Education candidates for

the ISD. I care a lot about what we learn and why we learn it, and my experience includes being a tutor and subject coordinator for various VCESS subjects, being the President for the Classics and Archaeology Students Society (including running study sessions and subject review events), and as an UMSU Host volunteer, taking new students around campus. I have also been involved in advocacy with making parliamentary inquiry submissions and campaigning, including against the Job-Ready Graduate Bill (which raised the costs for many student’s degrees).

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy University should be a great place for students to learn and exchange ideas and gain knowledge and skills for the future. There are many issues facing students with the quality and the affordability of their education. In this uncertain time, there are great challenges for students facing lockdowns or not being sure whether their university experience is worth the cost (especially for international students). I believe all students should expect a quality education and should be supported in their learning experience.

Liam Horrocks — Fightback for UMSU The tide of neoliberalism has created a system that doesn’t make sense. Thousands of University workers have lost their jobs during COVID, while Universities continue to pay million-dollar salaries for the bosses, and deny students fee relief, while the value of our degrees plummet. This isn’t coincidental. To address this crisis we must deliver policies that resolve the issues caused by neoliberalism. Bosses will keep exploiting casuals and staff will continue to be cut if there is no alternative clearly articulated. I’ll reclaim our education for social good by supporting transformative policy. Vote [1] Fightback for a fighting Education Committee.

Sriram Gopalasubramanian — Community for UMSU My name is Sriram Gopalasubramanian and I am running for UMSU Education Committee. I want to play an active role in representing students and in fostering effective academic interaction and networking. My goal is ensuring that quality of education remains equal online or on-campus, or otherwise is reflected in course fees. I aim to bridge the gap between domestic and international students. Finally, I’ll ensure that students facing difficulties, due to the pandemic or otherwise, can access university support services irrespective of location. I will campaign vigorously on these issues. Vote [1] for Community!

Lawrence Thai — Community for UMSU My name is Lawrence and I am running for the Education Committee. After a rough start to University life due to the ongoing pandemic, I understand concerns that many have in regards to reaching academic potential. Education unites everyone in this community and I hope to ensure that opinions from my peers are voiced and heard to oppose the status quo. I hope to remove barriers which some face in order to achieve an equitable university experience for everyone. And most importantly, I hope to work with students to implement change that will create a better University experience for everyone!

EDUCATION COMMITTEE CONT. Luka Michalczak — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is Luka and I am running for UMSU Education Committeeonce more. I was elected to the committee last year and I feel I have contributed to many issues throughout the year, such as library hours, keeping check on Duncan Maskell and campaigning against the Menzies Institute. I want to run again, so I can continue to ensure that all students get a quality education on a fair basis, so we can all learn in a comfortable environment. In other words, I want all students to learn to their best of abilities in these crazy times.

Hui Ping Cheng (Michelle) Community for UMSU

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Hi, I am Hui Ping/Michelle and I am running for UMSU’s Education Committee. I believe students should have a say about how our education is being run, as it ultimately impacts our futures. If elected, I will fight for equity, to ensure our voices are heard, for a better quality of education and important policies such as WAM adjustments and fee reductions. Now, more than ever, with the university’s budget cuts and online learning - it is vital that we speak up about how it has affected the quality of our education and make a change. Vote [1] for community!

Thuy Uyen Nhi Tran (Annie) — Community for UMSU I will do my best to fight for the equity for all students, whether it be fee reductions/relief for students adversely impacted by the transition to online learning or fighting for the rights of staff who make learning possible. I will explore potential issues that are affecting the community and to ensure that as a union representative, their voices are heard. Students and staff deserve to be treated better than they are now, and I will make sure to fight for a better university and union. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Daniel Bolitho — Community for UMSU A global pandemic has brought a huge impact on our education. In such challenging times, it’s immensely important to ensure our university provides the education we all have signed up for. I’ll endeavour to be the voice of our students, to fight for better teaching quality and for our education rights, including but not limited to fee reduction, academic support, fair grading and safe learning environment.Given the chance, I’ll ensure proper standards of equity and fairness are set and implemented by all faculties in our university.

Aitha Varunraj — Community for UMSU During the pandemic, the university have revealed their apathy and inadequate support to us, who already underwent tremendous hardship of isolation and studying from home. Despite sitting on the highest revenue of all of Australian tertiary institutions, the University of Melbourne still racks up fees of humanitarian subjects and proposes staff cut to further undermine the quality of our education. They failed, time and time, the expectation of their most important stakeholders, we, the students. This has to stop. If I were elected, I would endeavour to fix these issues and make the university a place for students again.

Raphael Duffy — Liberals off campus - Stop the Menzies Institute The Menzies Institute is representative of everything that is wrong with education today. After decades of underfunding and corporatisation, our millionaire Vice-Chancellor has accepted $7 million from the government to establish this Liberal think-tank. This is the same Vice Chancellor who has spent the past year using the crisis as an excuse to sack hundreds of staff and reduce education quality. Our education and our campus should not be open to the Liberal party and their rich mates to buy influence over. As a member of the Education Committee I will campaign tirelessly against the Menzies Institute and education cuts.

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Education committee is important to bring the balance between student life, academic life, and life life. UMSU and University has to reach an agreement through discussion to ensure students receive the best they could. So that’s why I want to ensure that the Education department does so! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE Xavier Dupe — Left Action This year I helped lead a rally on campus demanding that Melbourne Uni cut its ties with fossil fuels and that the government take urgent action on the climate. We mobilised over a hundred students to march for climate justice. The majority on Students’ Council (called “Community”) refused to promote this rally - on the grounds that it would march on the road! What we need right now is an UMSU that organises students to fight for their rights. One that is not just advertising the next Bevs and BBQs, but the next protest against course cuts. Vote Left Action.

Sophia Graley — Left Action The University of Melbourne plays a scandalous role in funding and greenwashing climate change. It invests 70 million dollars in fossil fuel companies, hosts climate criminals such as ExxonMobil for careers days, and allows weapons manufacturers a space to do research on campus. University funding and research should be going towards saving the planet through renewables and ecology, not destroying it through fossil fuels and military technology. I will use this position to organise protests against the destruction of the planet, which is currently being perpetrated by the university and the government.

Julian Petito — Left Action The Environment Committee under Left Action will be committed to fighting for climate justice. Part of that fight is protecting humanity from increasing climate disasters. In the past couple months we’ve seen one extreme weather event after another ravage the globe. From the immense heatwave in the US and Canada to the devastating floods in Germany and the savage fires in Greece and Turkey, there’s no denying the effects of global warming are here. We demand the immediate end to all emissions and proper disaster relief systems, to protect ordinary people from the disastrous effects of a heating planet!

Winnie Zheng — Left Action With each passing year, disasters; cold snaps, hurricanes, flooding, and wildfire infernos, are becoming the ‘new normal’ globally. The IPCC recently released a dire warning that we are looking at reaching irreversible tipping points by 2030, in less than a decade. We need an activist student union to fight for climate justice. We can’t rely on politicians when support for coal, gas and oil is bipartisan politics in Australia. The Liberal government supports a gas-driven economic recovery, and the ALP is committed to coal. Fossil fuels are at the heart of Australian capitalism. Real resistance will only come from below.

Nicole Widjaja No statement submitted.

Elizabeth Riley — Independents for Student Democracy No statement submitted.

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy I am passionate about sustainability and environmental challenges. University is a great place to learn about environmental challenges as young emerging leaders and advocating for a better and more

sustainable future for ourselves and coming generations. I am also a keen reader and writer on environmental challenges and sustainability. My favourite environment books include The Future We Choose and Doughnut Economics and the novel Clade. I also write submissions to parliamentary inquiries about climate change and other environmental issues. I am also a member of several community environmental organisations such as TreeProject, Greening Australia, and Australian Conservation Foundation.

Hannah Lewis — Independents for Student Democracy I am a second-year arts student studying classics and ancient history and am extremely passionate about promotive sustainability and ensuring active measures are taken to ensure the protection and longevity for the environment. I have actively campaigned for the environment since high school, where I was involved in promoting recycling and tree planting initiatives, and I have attended multiple climate strikes calling for political action to combat environmental damage and climate change. I believe in both promoting individual awareness for sustainable action and increasing political and corporate pressure to increase sustainability initiatives and action plans.

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hey! I’m Daisy and I am studying a Bachelor of Arts in Ancient World Studies. I am a passionate advocate on climate change and other environmental issues and working for a better paradigm for humans and the environment – such as the Doughnut Economics model. I am also involved with Aboriginal heritage, working as a casual fieldwork archaeologist in Victoria. Last year I made a submission to the Juukan Gorge Inquiry on behalf of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society, as I strongly believe we should work to conserve and respect Aboriginal People’s heritage sites and the environment.

Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m a first-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Politics and Islamic Studies. I have over five years of experience representing students through the YMCA Youth Parliament, and City of Casey Youth Action Committee, and am passionate about environmental sustainability. While striving for individual ecosustainability is important, it is crucial that we channel our student activism towards combating the Federal Government’s neglect of the international climate disaster, and pressuring large corporate organisations into decreasing their emissions. We need to force UniMelb to divest from mining and ethically allocate our university fees for a sustainable future.

ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE CONT. Jaslyn Potter — Stand Up! Hey I’m Jaslyn! I’m a 2nd year Science student studying Immunology and Cell Biology. As an Enviro Committee member this year, I’ve had the opportunity to advocate for responsible use of SSAF to ensure spending aligns with student values. And I’m excited to be running again for Environment Committee 2022! If I am elected I hope to encourage more students to get involved in sustainability on campus & subvert the idea that imperfect sustainability is not impactful! Support intersectionality, vote [1] Stand Up!

vegetation at Wilson Reserve. I’m eager to do more and push for better Environmental policies at UMSU! Vote 1 for Stand-Up! For Change.

Zisis Zak Tsiouklas — Stand Up! Hi I’m Zisis (he/him). I am running for Enviro committee as I believe that climate action is a pressing issue in today’s society. I really want to get involved in campaigning for environmental justice and contribute to the department!

Eirene Carajias — Stand Up! Hey all! My name’s Eirene (she/her) and I’m a Zoology student hoping to be elected to the Environment Committee in 2022. My participation in environmental activism has been a circumstance of my own privilege. This isn’t possible for many students living on a tight budget! For this reason, I want to focus on accessibility and intersectionality. Every student deserves to be supported by the university to make the world a better place. It is imperative to work alongside my peers to hold the university accountable for their ties to the fossil fuel industry. Vote [1] Stand Up! For change.

Alistair Shaw — Stand Up! Hi my name is Alistair (He/him) and I’m running with Stand Up! For the Environment because our University needs to take action on Climate Change. I think our whole generation feels the pressure and stress of the climate crisis that is why it important we have an activist Environment department that pressures the University to take action. Vote 1 Stand Up! For Change.

Laura Quintero — Stand Up! Did you know that there are more trees than people on this planet? Hello everyone, my name is Laura Quintero (she/her). I’m a Bachelor of Science student passionate about environmentalism and campaigning for a sustainable future. I want to build awareness of climate change and other critical issues because as we all know climate change affects everyone! I believe that this campus has an opportunity to be a force for good in the fight for sustainable change and I would love to be a part of that. Vote [1] for Stand Up!

Greta Troelli — Stand Up! Hi everyone! My name is Greta and I am so thrilled to be running with Stand Up! For the Environment Department. I would love to represent you as a member of the Environment Committee next year because I believe that progressive activism is the way to campaign for policies and initiatives aimed at environmental justice and sustainability, on campus and beyond. Vote [1] Stand Up! for Change

Tom Perrett — Stand Up! FROGS! KOALAS! TREES! Are these some of things that you love and want to protect? I’m Tom and I believe in strong representation for the Environment at UMSU. I can be someone to represent your values on the Committee. I’m a Science Student majoring in Ecology and a member of the Wildlife Conservation Society, working towards a career in Conservation. I love to get involved in volunteer science events at Nangak Tamboree Wildlife Sanctuary or restoring native

Raphael Duffy — Liberals off campus - Stop the Menzies Institute While the impacts of climate change are being felt by millions around the world, university management - who have $70 million invested in fossil fuels themselves - are setting up a think-tank backed by the Liberal party, the party of climate criminals. Its board includes outright climate denialists like Peta Credlin, as well as Leigh Clifford - a former Chief Executive of mining company Rio Tinto, and current Director of Bechtel who are working on the Adani coal mine. I will use my position as an Environment Committee member to oppose the Menzies Institute and the climate criminals who run our university.

Raj Rai — Community for UMSU My name is Raj Rai, and I am running for UMSU Environment Committee. We all understand the repercussions of our actions on the environment. Through small choices like planting a sapling to even bigger decisions like going vegan, we all have it within ourselves to make positive changes. However, I believe change comes not just from bigger actions, but also from little choices we make for a brighter future.These steps should be celebrated! I hope to encourage a university-wide awareness through events and initiatives, while growing as an environmentalist through active contribution to the department. Vote [1] for Community!

Mikhail Lenskii — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is Mikhail Lenskii and I am passionate about environmentalism and campaigning for sustainability. I see the Environment Department as a way to be a part of a team that positively contributes to the student community. I am highly motivated and hard-working, and keen to learn much more about how I can make a difference. Vote [1] for Community, for an effective Environment Department!

Lola Dunne — Community for UMSU My name is Lola Dunne and I am running for the Environment Committee. I believe that Universities must lead practices and initiatives that are inclusive, equal and sustainable. I will rally alongside my student community, driving the University to promote sustainability. (cont. over page)

ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE CONT. I am hugely passionate about the environment and I believe that Universities are key sites for change. I will advocate for campus sustainability to improve environmental outcomes. I believe that the University of Melbourne should lead larger and more ambitious environmental initiatives – e.g. the University of Queensland’s Warwick Solar Farm, enabling them to operate at net-zero emissions.

During my role, I hope to help organise many environmental events for like-minded students, but to also provide opportunities for those who don’t know where to start in helping our planet.

Haritima Bahuguna — Community for UMSU

Hey, my name is Harshit Sinha and I am running for the environment committee. I was born and brought up in a small town in India. I have felt a close connection to nature and the environment from the early days of my childhood.

My name is Haritima Bahuguna (She/her), I’m currently in the final semester of my Master of Environment (Climate Change) degree. Growing up in the lower Himalayas in a family of environmentalists, I was habitually reminded of nature’s indispensable role in our lives. However, my passion to fight against climate change began after I witnessed the catastrophic impacts of climate change in my home state. I am a fervent believer of global unification against climate change and through UMSU I thus aim to collaborate with other likeminded individuals to contribute in making the university campus a living laboratory of sustainability.

Lucia Fernandez Klempert Community for UMSU

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Do you feel like you are not doing enough for the planet, or that you don’t know enough about sustainability to get involved?

Harshit Sinha — Community for UMSU

I believe that working with UMSU I can help in creating a sustainable and safe environment for students. My aim is to spread awareness among and increase involvement of international students in various activities and initiatives so that we can make the environment better together. Vote [1] for Community!

Vidula Kedar Pande — Community for UMSU No statement submitted.

My name is Lucia and I’m an international student from Argentina, majoring in Environmental Science. I want to be a part of the Environment Committee because I’m very passionate about sustainability and would like to encourage more students to learn about how to help the environment!

INDIGENOUS COMMITTEE Jessica Alderton Provisionally elected unopposed

PEOPLE OF COLOUR COMMITTEE Moosa Raza — Stand Up!

Yuqi Eve Zhang — Stand Up!

Hey y’all! I’m Moosa, an international student from Pakistan running on the PoC committee. PoC experience multiple struggles due to structural inequalities. We are disproportionately affected by inaccessibility to housing, fair wages, job opportunities, and access to mental health services. Asides from these issues, PoCs are impacted due to discriminatory policies, microaggressions, university negligence, and xenophobia. I’ve been involved in activism on and off campus for the last 3 years in Melbourne. I want people of color to feel represented, understood, and safe. This is something I’m passionate about and I’m going to do whatever it takes to hold officebearers accountable and transparent. Vote [1] Stand Up! Keep up the fight.

I am Yuqi, although most people call me Eve (She/Her). Studying a Bachelor of Agricultural science, and now a Masters of Agricultural Science has often left me feeling isolated and out of my comfort zone. In my time as the President of the Melbourne University Wine Society, I worked to help make Wine, an intimidating field, accessible to a diverse range of students. Likewise, as media director of Melbourne Pioneer, I connected students from all around the world to community events. I want to help make international students feel safe and welcome in all aspects of university.

Jeffrey Reynolds — Stand Up!

Hi, I’m Nicole (she/her), I’m a third year arts student. I’m running for POC committee as I’m passionate about fighting against discrimination and the many barriers POC face in everyday life. Racial inequality remains prevalent throughout this university and affects students’ mental well-being and study. It’s something I am hoping to help rectify. I’ve previously been the UMSU POC officer and am looking to be your POC rep on council to ensure UMSU is a space that represents POC interests and can be a safe and diverse space for all...Vote 1 Stand Up! for change.

Hi, I am Jeff (he/him). As an immigrant and multi-national student, I understand the challenges faced by minority students and POC, including for those who are here alone, struggling without family, and for those stuck overseas due to Australia’s COVID-19 restrictions. I previously studied law, and strongly advocated for equality, equity and for the rights of POC, and ethnically, spiritually, and culturally diverse students, individuals and communities. I bring that spirit of advocacy and tenacity with me to Australia, and will fight for inclusivity, diversity, equality and equity for our diverse population of POC

Nicole Nabbout — Stand Up!

Kasturi Deshpande

Vote [1] StandUp! For Change.

No statement submitted.

Sneha Challa — Stand Up!

Reham Elzeiny — Community for UMSU

Hey! I’m Sneha (she/her) and i’m running for POC committee for next year! I’m really passionate about the issues that are relevant and harmful to all POC on campus. As a POC, I personally know about how harmful overt racism and microaggressions can be on one’s experience at university and safety, not to mention mental health impacts. That’s why I’m running with Standup!, so that POC voices are better heard and valued within our student union and university community. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change.

Hann Jie Teo — Stand Up! Hey, my name is HannJie Teo (he/him) and I’m running for next year’s POC committee! Overt racism and microaggressions cannot be tolerated in university and online class. I personally know how harmful it can bring to someone who just trying to enjoy their life, not to mention mental health impacts. This is the reason why I’m running with Standup! to make sure all the POC voices are better heard and valued within our student union and university community. Vote [1] StandUp! For Change and prevent spreading of racism and bullying in our lovely university environment.

Daniel Gu — Stand Up! Hi everyone! I’m Daniel (he/him), and I’m a second year BSci student running for People of Colour Committee. As a first-generation Chinese immigrant, I have a strong desire to help resolve the racial inequality that is still prevalent in so many sectors of society, including tertiary education. As campus begins to reopen, it is vital to ensure that all People of Colour feel heard and accepted within the broader university community. I will strive to promote cultural diversity and awareness in all facets of campus life, so that each individual, irrespective of cultural background, feels confident in voicing their concerns.

The warmth and togetherness that I’ve felt, and the knowledge I’ve gained through being able to connect and share experiences with other POC is incomparable. Having a community like this is super important in order to foster a sense of belonging at the university, as well as to maintain good mental health and well-being. Having the opportunity to contribute to this and provide other POC at the university with a safe, comfortable and welcoming space is the reason I’d like to run as a member of the UMSU POC committee.

Isioma Ogwu — Community for UMSU Hi! I’m Isi Ogwu, a second year Politics and Creative Writing Arts Student. I am so grateful for the support I’ve received from UMSU initiatives such as Black and Women’s Collectives and opportunities with CAMP and Myriad Magazines. As a Black Queer woman, I understand how valuable these initiatives are and how crucial their availability is to those most marginalised in our communities, as I have needed them myself. More so, I understand the structural failures that necessitate them. I believe my experience in the volunteer and non-profit sectors would be valuable in continuing and expanding these indispensable programs.

Isioma Ogwu — Community for UMSU I am a second year BA student majoring in Anthropology and International Studies. I’m really passionate about issues of identityincluding racial, cultural, as well as gender. To have an identity is to belong, and at the same time, to stand out. As a PoC committee (cont. over page)

PEOPLE OF COLOUR COMMITTEE CONT. member, I will get to delve further into my interests and align them with hard work and dedication. I have many ideas for the department, including diversified curriculum, balancing integration and diversity, supporting PoC welfare and mental health, etc. I will ensure that the PoC department’s ideals and initiatives reach a wide audience.

Wasif Rahman — Community for UMSU Hi, my name’s Wasif and I’m an international student from Pakistan. I’m a second-year Science student, and the current Head of Events for the UniMelb Islamic Society. I believe Muslim and PoC representation in UMSU is very important, therefore I stand as a voice for them, so their needs are better recognized by UMSU and the University. Change for the better is something I’ve always stood up for, and what better way to contribute to a positive change than being a part of UMSU? I can’t wait to work with the future officers on initiatives supporting Muslim and BIPOC students!!

Kasturi Deshpande — Community for UMSU University should be a safe place for students irrespective for their cultural and social backgrounds. Being a student of colour, I aim to work on these issues to help make the university a more inclusive place. I believe that it is of extreme importance to bridge the gap between the students of colour and the other communities to foster a safe, positive, and welcoming learning environment. Inclusion is

of utmost importance and hence I am determined to work with the people of colour department to provide support and work for the students of colour in every way possible.

Donya Delf — Community for UMSU My name is Donya, and I’m running for the POC Committee. In my high school leadership roles , we ran our schools first ever cultural day. This was a huge achievement for our predominantly white catholic school, although we wish we could’ve done more. I want to contribute to my community in more impactful ways than before. Unfortunately, feeling welcomed has been uncommon for me throughout my Australian education. To know that other PoC feel included and welcomed at the University is imperative. Now, as a part of a bigger community at the University, I must speak up more than ever

Selena Li — Community for UMSU My name is Selena Li. By running to be a committee member of the People of Colour Department, I am determined to bring different opinions and live experiences to the department and contribute my voice to the UMSU to balance the team dynamic. I will commit my time and effort to push back all forms of discriminations and lift up the voices of the PoC community to create a sense of belonging for everyone on our campus. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

QUEER COMMITTEE Greta Torelli — Stand Up!

Andrew Yerondais — Stand Up!

Hi everyone! I’m Greta (she/her) and I am a third year queer studying a Bachelor of Arts running for the Queer Committee. I’m running becuase I know that as much as inner-city Melbourne life can be freeing and progressive, queer visibilty and inclusivty rests on constant advocacy. My lived sapphic experience lends me passion and understanding, but I also believe in listening to the many different queer experiences beyond my own. COVID lockdowns have further exposed how qeeer life is often isolating and challenging. Knowing this, I will work hard to ensure all students graduate with strong queer literacy and I hope to strenghten queer community and voice at Melbourne University.

Hey everyone, I’m Andrew (he/him), and I would love the opportunity to represent the queer community! Being a queer, ethnic person, I know, and have experienced first hand, many of the issues our community faces and I really want to see a much more supportive and safe environment for queer and gender diverse students. I would like to help eliminate transphobia, especially in the academic environment as there is no room for hate, and create a more inclusive learning environment for all. Vote [1] Stand Up! to see real change.

QUEER COMMITTEE CONT. Renee Thierry — Stand Up!

Prior to university, I completed a Diploma in Biotechnology, and two years of service in the Air Force.

Hey, I’m Renee (she/her) and I’m so excited to be running for Queer Committee! As a queer person, I am so excited to contribute to the UMSU community and represent an amazingly diverse student body. I am committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming space for all students and advocating for their rights. I am beyond thrilled to be running with Stand Up! Who endeavour to make students’ lives better through programs such as Welfare Breakfasts, WAMnesty, Pill Testing and so many more important initiatives. Vote #1 Stand Up! We’ll deliver.

My diverse background and experiences help me to be a dynamic, adaptable and empathetic leader.

Ava Wansbrough — Stand Up! Hi my name is Ava (she/her) and I am running with Stand Up! For queer committee. I’m running with Stand Up! So that we can have an activist and intersectional queer office. I want to see a Queer office which is truly inclusive. Additionally, I want to see the queer department run campaigns about queer health, experiences of discrimination in healthcare settings is far too common in our community. Vote 1 Stand Up! for an inclusive and activist queer department!

Eva (Ev) Perret — Stand Up! Hi! I’m Ev, and I’m running for the Queer Committee with Stand Up!. I believe in a strong, diverse UMSU Queer department, which is why, on the committee, I will fight to fight to centre the voices of TGD folks, as well as queer women and queer students of colour. I think it’s so important that intersectionality plays a key role in the activism we engage in. If elected, I will continue the campaign to keep transphobes off of our campus and ensure that uni is a safe and accepting place for all. Vote 1 Stand Up!

Jordyn Bassilious — Stand Up! Heyo everyone! My name is Jordan (he/him) and I am running with Stand Up! For the Queer Committee. I’m running with Stand Up! Because I believe our Queer department needs to prioritise mental health and an Intersectional Queer department. I believe that the voices of Queer People of Colour and trans and non-binary people need to uplifted, that is why I am running with Stand Up! Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

Chaitanya Chandrika Raghuvanshi — Community for UMSU Everyone should have the freedom and opportunity to explore their true identity with full support from the university and its staff. I have always wanted to express the importance of queer representation, promoting their rights. Lots of university students are still unaware of what LGBTQIA+ stands for and it is necessary to incorporate training workshops for those who want to learn more. I want to form a cohesive queer community for international and domestic students, giving them an opportunity to share their experiences and inspire others. I want to bring change and support my community, ensuring their voices are heard.

John Lee — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is John, currently pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce.

I’m excited by the changes we are making through UMSU. I’m eager to be a part of the changemakers, to lead our student body into greater inclusivity and diversity. I hope to champion equality for the Queer community, to ensure that every student feels comfortable to be their true, authentic selves and achieve their fullest potential.

Kat Zhang — Community for UMSU As a current Queer Committee member, I hope that by running again, I can continue to make the student union a visible and approachable representative body. I would like the opportunity to keep on advocating for students like me and making the University of Melbourne an inclusive space where everyone feels at home. With anticipation, I look forward to contributing to event planning, decision making, providing ample support and creating an accessible and exciting new chapter for all of the Melbourne uni queer community next year! Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Poom Sangruang — Community for UMSU Hello! I’m Poom, and I’m hoping to run for a committee position for 2021! In 2021, I want to support all LGBTQIA+ people without exception in facilitating a transition from a high school environment that for most of us would not have been so accepting In addition, I want to build a flourishing campus culture that not only accepts all queer students but actively aims to support them at every stage of their journey. I’m particularly interested in addressing internalised biphobia and bi-erasure, both things I have struggled with before, and will fight during my term if elected.

Song Han “Julie” Chau — Community for UMSU I am a Vietnamese international student and I am Queer. As a queer POC, there are many cultural obstacles that had restrained me to find who I am. Only when I moved to Australia and lived alone, I started to discover my true colour. All those years before, I thought I was weird but now I know I am me. If I got elected, I would like to help other Queer BIPOCs to have a safe space to rediscover and express themselves freely. I would want others to feel loved and safe for who they are.

Will Farnsworth — Community for UMSU Hi, I’m Will Farnsworth, I use they/them pronouns and I’m one of the university’s many trans and gender diverse students. My main goal for next year would be to focus on the safety of LGBTQIA+ students on campus – whilst it can be easy to be complacent considering how Melbourne is one of the most queer friendly cities in Australia, there (cont. over page)

QUEER COMMITTEE CONT. is still work that needs to be done to ensure that trans students, particularly trans students of colour, can fully participate in campus and uni life without fear of discrimination and exclusion from other members of the community.

Lucy Johnston — Community for UMSU Hello! My name is Lucy Johnston, and my pronouns are they/she. I am an active member of the UMSU Queer community and would be honoured to take on the position of a Queer Committee member. I frequently attend the Ace & Aro Collective as well as the Queer Political Action Collective I have thoroughly enjoyed engaging with other queer people with similar experiences, as well as learning about differing experiences. If elected, I hope to work with fellow committee members to make the university a safer place for all LGBT+ people and to support queer people who need it.

WELFARE COMMITTEE Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Well, well, well, this is my welfare committee statement. Well, well, well, what should I say? Well, well, well, maybe vote for me? Well, well, well, that’s all from me. Well, well, well, thank you! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else).

Lachlan Mutimer — Independents for Student Democracy G’day, I’m Lachie! I am currently in my third year studying Arts, majoring in History and Ancient World Studies. I work as a delivery driver for an outdoor furniture company and spend my spare time snorkelling, training for triathlons, head-banging to music, and taking care of my rescue dog (Honey) and cactus (Jonathan). I have also previously volunteered in my community – maintaining public gardens with a local group, planting trees, coaching a kids basketball team, and giving a hand at an Op-shop. I am passinate about getting involved, trying new things, making progressive change, and helping others in the process.

Eleanor Riggall — Independents for Student Democracy No statement submitted.

Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Hey all! I’m Josh, and I’m a first-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in Politics and Islamic Studies. I have over five years of experience representing students at Gleneagles Secondary College, YMCA Youth Parliament, and the City of Casey Youth Action Committee, and am keenly aware of the importance of student wellbeing and mental health. As someone who struggles from psychiatric and other mental health conditions, I know how important it is to have a supportive committee full of people with lived experience to create a safe and welcoming environment for all students to help with whatever challenges you face.

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy The Student Union has an important role in providing services and support to students - particularly during the hardships of the COVID-19 pandemic. Free food is a big part of student welfare, to ensure they have their basic needs met and can sustain their physical health while they study.This harkens back to the Roman poet Juvenal saying the people relied upon “Panem et circenses” or bread and

WELFARE COMMITTEE games. There was also an old campaign inscriptions stating “Elect Gauis Julius Polybius aedile. He supplies good bread.” If elected, I would advocate for more free food including high quality bread.

the effects of COVID-19 are felt disproportionately and I want to make sure everyone’s voices are heard. I want to make sure the University views student welfare as a priority, as it should be.

Edward Wu — Community for UMSU

Daniela Lin — Community for UMSU

Hey everyone! I’m Edward Wu and I’m running for the Welfare Committee. As a second-year Biomedicine student, I have unfortunately had both of my university years cut short by Coronavirus. I can definitely understand the frustrations that my fellow peers have experienced over the last few years, especially in regards to the hardships of studying away from campus via remote learning. I am running for the Welfare Committee because I would love to have the opportunity to contribute to changes so that every student can enjoy their time at Melbourne University and feel safe in a respectful and inclusive environment.

Hey, everyone!

Jialiang Yu — Community for UMSU Everyone a gangsta until COVID showed up… Right, here we are stuck in COVID. I can’t cure COVID but I can do my best to make sure your mental health is fully charged up! I’m Jia, an African-Chinese psychology major who wants the university to take responsibility for students’ wellbeing, especially those studying remotely or who haven’t quite found their sense of belonging in university yet. Hoping to reach out as far and wide to those who might be suffering alone as I can!

Monica Mair — Community for UMSU Hi, my name is Monica, but you can call me Monnie! Last year was a huge challenge for everyone’s mental health, mine included, but for the first time in a long time, I feel happy. I’m therefore running to try and help others to feel like I do and to overcome their personal challenges. Providing students with an easy yet comprehensive mental support system is one of my main goals, especially adapting for our online restrictions. Everyone is having their own struggles right now, but I hope I will be able to help many students in the future.

Ana Jeong — Community for UMSU Hey everyone! My name is Ana Jeong, and I am excited to be running for Welfare Committee this year. I am incredibly passionate about supporting the wellbeing of students in the University of Melbourne, whether that’s through mental health initiatives, food security or in social support - especially in the midst of a global pandemic. Vote [1] for Community!

Ella Banic — Community for UMSU Much has changed at unimelb over the past year or so. With classes and services moving online, international students unable to attend campus, and the impact of other extenuating circumstances caused by the GLOBAL PANDEMIC. Through frustration with my own experience with the University system over the past year, I have decided to run for the Welfare Committee with Community. i know

I’m Daniela Lin and I’m running for the Welfare Committee position for this year’s UMSU election. As an active volunteer in various UMSU events, I know that as a student, looking after both our mental and physical wellbeing is very important — especially during these ‘unusual’ times. I believe that if I get the chance to become part of the Welfare Committee, I would be able to help advocate for the provision of necessary services for all students. No matter what socioeconomic background you belong to, or where you come from, YOU deserve to get the most support!

Aakash Chandak — Community for UMSU I am Aakash Chandak, a first year MCM international student whowants to address the welfare of our students in the University of Melbourne. I believe that the individuals’ welfare and student well-being is extremely crucial. This includes, community support, mental health awareness, and intellectual disabilities inclusivity. This is my commitment and my vision after being elected into the Welfare Department as a committee member. I will advocate for vulnerable groups, whilst promoting an equitable, safe and inclusive environment. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Toby Glover — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Toby (he/him) and I’m excited to be running for Welfare Committee with Stand Up! this year! I am passionate about providing accessible and reliable welfare services, accounting for the difficulties experienced by all students. I will advocate for services such as free breakfasts addressing student food insecurity, so vote [1] Stand Up! for a staunch Welfare Department!

Konstantinos Liontos — Stand Up! Howdy, I’m Kosta (He/Him). After transferring from Agricultural science, I fell in love with health sciences. This passion has led me into studying biomed honours, researching auditory neuroscience. Working in the disabilities sector for the NDIS has helped me assist young adults in building employment skills. Likewise, in the CAKE Club I helped produce at-home cooking classes in collaboration with UMSU International during the 2020 lockdown. I want to build a future in improving and advocating for people’s welfare. Vote[1] Stand Up! For Change!

Mietta Stephens — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Mietta (she/her), a first year Arts student majoring in History. The pandemic has accentuated the welfare issues (cont. over page)

WELFARE COMMITTEE experienced by students at this university; now more than ever, while there is so much uncertainty in the world, students deserve to be certain of their access to holistic and reliable welfare services at university. I would love to be part of organising and providing these services for you as a member of the Welfare Committee next year! Vote [1] Stand Up! for accessible and meaningful Welfare policy!

Scott Carter — Stand Up! G’day my name’s Scott Carter, I am a current second year science student. I’ve always been interested in studying somewhere within the discipline of medicine to make a change for the better in people’s lives. This past year I have fulfilled the role as the Senior Men’s Coordinator on the Brunswick Hockey Club committee - it has done great work behind the scenes to build support networks and help the development of the up and coming generation. A position on the welfare committee would provide a great opportunity to help others. Vote [1] for Stand Up! For change.

Ben Czapla— Stand Up! I’m Ben (He/Him), and I’m researching the Enteric Nervous System as a part of my honours year in biomedicine. I’m deeply passionate about gut health, and ensuring that neurodivergent students of all kinds are protected and respected. In my work with the Anatomy and Physiology Student’s Society, I have been highly involved in ensuring honours students, often undergoing the most intense year of their studies, have the support they need. I’m running because I want to ensure that student welfare breakfasts are reinstated, so that students have access to healthy breakfasts at university. Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

Jack Toce — Stand Up! Hey there, I’m Jack (he/him) and I’m a Bachelor of Design student majoring in Urban Planning. I’m running for Welfare Committee because I have seen what happens when free breakfasts for students aren’t available. Breakfasts are extremely important for our health and learning - we all know we can’t study as well if we can’t have our breakfast. That’s why I will make sure that the free welfare breakfasts will be reinstated if I am elected. Vote 1 Stand Up! for change and free welfare breakfasts.

Millicent Grealish — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Millie (she/her) and I’m running to represent you on Welfare Committee next year! I strongly believe that all students should be able to rely on welfare services at university whenever they are in need of support, so I would love to be part of the Welfare Department’s activism as an advocate for student mental health and wellbeing. Vote [1] Stand Up! for Change!

WOMEN’S COMMITTEE Hannah Lewis — Independents for Student Democracy

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy

I am a second-year arts student studying classics and ancient history, while at Melbourne I have been an active member with university clubs, including serving on the executive committee of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society. In addition to this, I am a passionate feminist, and an eager reader of feminist literature, and I strongly believe in promoting intersectionality and inclusive feminist initiatives at Melbourne. I am excited to foster a positive environment that eliminates discrimination and supports women in academia.

Hey, I am Daisy. I am passionate about feminist discourse and the issues women face, as well as the Australian political climate, and the status of the Arts and Humanities in contemporary Australia. I have also been involved in advocacy with making parliamentary inquiry submissions and campaigning, including against the Job-Ready Graduate Bill and making a submission to the Juukan Gorge Inquiry. Even while there are challenges and frustrations in politics and issues we face, I believe it is important to stay engaged and celebrate the small wins where we can.

Elizabeth Riley — Independents for Student Democracy

Phoebe Leggett – Independents for Student Democracy

No statement submitted.

I am a third-year Arts student studying linguistics and ancient history. I am involved with various clubs, including serving as Secretary and President of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society. I also play the Bassoon. I firmly believe that all students should be able to access and have a say over their education without fear of discrimination. As the Greek philosopher, Plato said: ὁ δὲ ἀνεξέταστος βίος οὐ βιωτὸς ἀνθρώπῳ “the unexamined life is not worth living”. Independents for

Eleanor Riggall — Independents for Student Democracy No statement submitted.

WOMEN’S COMMITTEE CONT. for Student Democracy is a group of students passionate about democracy and promoting student wellbeing and community/clubs experience on campus.

Jasika Verma I am motivated by my experience as a woman, people still have stereotypes about women and what they can and cannot achieve and making the university campus a safe place for women and their individual growth as a person in this male dominated society. Discussions on these issues and finding concrete ways to get rid of them are vital. If elected as a part of women’s committee, I would like to introduce a policy that makes reporting sexual misconduct easier and focus on the sexual health of the women. I will also continue the strong women programme and other female centric events

Jemilla Lister — Stand Up! Hi!!! I’m Jemilla and I’m super keen to run for Women’s Committee with StandUp! I’m a really passionate feminist and hope that in this position i can elevate the voices of women and non-binary people to ensure their voices are heard in all the work that the Women’s department does. Women and non-binary people are often left at the sidelines in activism or our hard work often is recgonised and valued and i hope that i can help make UMSU and the university a safer and more inclusive space. Vote [1] StandUp! For change.

Jaslyn Potter — Stand Up! Hey I’m Jaslyn! I’m a 2nd year Science student studying Immunology and Cell Biology. I am super excited to be running for Women’s Committee 2022 as I am passionate about gender equality and intersectional feminism on and off campus! If I am elected I hope to make supporting women’s safety and activism more inclusive and increase student engagement in gender equality issues! Support women, support change, vote [1] Stand Up!

Ngaire Bogemann — Stand Up! Hello! I’m Ngaire (she/her), a first year Arts student and passionate feminist who’s running for Women’s Committee with Stand Up! As a woman of colour, I know first-hand how polarising university spaces, both on campus and online, can feel to female-identifying, trans and non-binary students, especially students of colour. I’m strongly committed to fighting to make Unimelb an inclusive and safe space for all women and non-binary students, and, importantly, in making sure this is done with the voices of trans women and people of colour at the fore. Vote [1] Stand Up! For Change.

Isabella Phillips — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Isabella (she/her) and I’m running for the Woman’s committee with Stand Up. I am a second-year Bachelor of Arts student majoring in psychology as well as politics and international studies. Throughout my high school and university experiences I have been passionate about advocating for the improved experiences of women within education and day to day life. I believe that all women should have access to accessible and safe services/programs throughout their university experience and be able to partake in university life without fear or discrimination. Vote [1] Stand Up! for Change.

Alexandra Griffiths — Stand Up! Hi, my name is Alex and I am running for UMSU Women’s Committee because I am passionate about making our university and campus a safe space for women at all times of the day to learn and explore. If elected, I will advocate for the safety and freedom for all members

of the university, especially women, and will act as a representative for the needs and desires of our community. I will continue the fight for fairness and equality in all aspects of university life and especially thought out the remainder of this pandemic. Vote [1] Stand Up! For Change!

Yuqi Eve Zhang — Stand Up! Hi, I’m Eve (She/Her)! I do not come from an activism background, rather, my studies in agriculture led to a passion for the wine industry. My journey, beginning as president of the Unimelb Wine Society, has led me through an industry often dominated by men. I want to be a representative for women who might not go to rallies, but are still passionate about supporting other women.

Sneha Challa — Stand Up! Hi my name is Sneha (she/they) and I’m running for the Women’x Committee with Stand Up! The Women’s department needs to continue to be intersectional and vocal on campus. For years we have the University refuse to act on Safety on Campus and refuse to address patriarchal culture on campus. Stand Up! Believes that the voices of People of Colour and Trans Women should be at the front and centre of this department and that is why I am running with them. Vote 1 Stand Up! For change.

Imogen Senior — Community for UMSU Hi! I’m Imogen, and I’m running for Women’s Committee in 2022! I’m a second-year Politics and Criminology student from regional NSW. In 2020, I conducted global research into girls’ visions for a post-Covid society, as a youth activist with Plan International. This was presented to the UN! I’ve also been President of the Greens Club this year and have participated in a Greens Community Campaigning Fellowship, where I learnt all things social change and organising! I’m keen to continue work on advocating for a better sexual assault policy on campus and increasing the accessibility and contact of UMSU to students.

Laura Cardamone — Community for UMSU Hi! My name is Laura and I’m studying a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in politics and philosophy. I am passionate about inclusivity, and most of all, advocating for marginalised communities. It is my utmost priority to ensure everyone feels safe, included and heard during their studies at Unimelb. Furthermore, I am passionate about learning through the experiences of others, unlearning my own biases, and doing the deep-rooted work needed to battle foundational and systemic injustices that characterise institutions like ours. I am committed to not only inclusivity but the elevation of marginalised voices in a patriarchal institution.

Arshia Arora — Community for UMSU As a woman of colour, I believe the world has yet to reach a point where women can feel completely safe in their surroundings and voice their opinions. As numbers demonstrate, around 1 in 5 women on campus have reported incidents of assault and many of us already know that often incidents go unreported. If elected to the Women’s Committee, I would aim to create a safer, inclusive environment for women to study and voice their opinions. I hope that throughout my time on the Women’s Committee, we can create more women-led initiatives and support all women on campus

WOMEN’S COMMITTEE CONT. Kaori Weightman — Community for UMSU

Muskaan Dalmia — Community for UMSU

Hi! I’m Kaori (she/her), a first-year Bachelor of Arts student, and I’m running for the Women’s Committee with Community for UMSU. Being a first-year, I don’t have much experience in UMSU but I am putting myself out there and hope to learn! As a queer woman of colour, I would like to commit to the perspectives of further marginalised women being amplified, as issues we face as women do not affect us all equally. We all deserve a safe environment to learn, and that includes not pushing other women down to give ourselves a leg up!

“Do you support feminism?” I asked my childhood friend. “No, and to be fair I don’t really care” is what he replied to my question. I stood there stunned before I managed to gather myself and ask him “Why?” “Women have so many laws protecting them, so I don’t get the point of feminism”. That was enough to frustrate me. I wish to be the candidate who represents the interests of women in UMSU so that when they do feel unheard, they know they have someone who will support them and who will fight to make university safer for them.

Aisha Nayer — Community for UMSU

Chaital Vasta — Community for UMSU

HI! My name is Aisha, a first-year student at Unimelb. I believe that we are a product of our community and, giving back to it is our utmost responsibility. Women’s development is an issue close to my heart, so I am running for Women’s Committee with hope to positively contribute towards bringing change. My experiences as a woman of colour have helped me realise my power and have taught me how small actions can fuel change. Through this, I will tackle issues related to sexual harassment and racism, and create a safe,inclusive space for all women and non-binary people.

It’s no secret that time and time again women have been told to fit in a box and if they exhibit a narrative that does not fit the ideal “girl” trope, then they have been heavily criticised and belittled by society. As a woman of color, this experience is not foreign and is one that I encounter quite frequently. If elected to the Women’s Committee, I would strive to achieve an environment on campus that is inclusive, safe and positive for all and would let women voice their opinions without having to wonder what others would say.

SOUTHBANK COMMITTEE Samantha Blunn — Stand Up!

While I believe the interdisciplinary aspect of our faculty should be treasured; more can, and should, be done to facilitate it. Our peers at Southbank are the future of Australia’s arts industry, so let’s connect while we share a campus! Furthermore, I want to ensure that Southbank students can access everything UMSU offers!

No statement submitted.

Ikshvak Sobti — Stand Up!

Vote [1] Community!

No statement submitted

Jenny Le — Community for UMSU My name is Jenny and I will be running for Southbank Committee. As a current committee member, I am interested in continuing to foster a sense of community at Southbank, as well as promoting wellbeing and support. My experience as a second-year Production student in both online and on-campus scenarios has strengthened my passions for developing opportunities for students to connect with one another and reducing stressors, from inconveniences to broader difficulties. I hope that we can all work towards ensuring the Southbank campus life is an enjoyable and enriching one!

Zodie Bolic — Community UMSU

for

Hey! I’m Zodie, a first year Dance student! As the current Treasurer of the Intercollegiate Activities Council, and the Vice-President of the Unimelb Greens, I have a variety of skills that will serve the Southbank cause well.

Taylor White — Community for UMSU I’m Taylor and I believe the most effective change is created by students for students. To me, interdisciplinary bonds across campuses are crucial, especially for students who have a variety of interests. I hope to encourage fellow peers on Southbank Campus to create connections across the university, in other faculties; something that has proven challenging during the pandemic due to a lack of onsite learning. I’m a first year studying a BFA (dance), so my skill set mostly stems from high-school leadership; which taught me about working as part of a team, supporting others, and creating a collective impact.

Purnima Padmanabhan — Community for UMSU My name is Purnima and I am running for Southbank Committee in

SOUTHBANK COMMITTEE CONT. in these elections! It is crucial that Southbank has representation and advocacy in a campus-specific form, and I am passionate about fighting for my fellow students in this. I aim to further support the welfare and academic achievement of my peers, to the same caliber of our Parkville departments. Vote 1 for Community!

Elliot Wood — Community for UMSU I’m a current second year Music Theatre student, who couldn’t have made the move across the ditch from Aotearoa New Zealand at a worse time. I want to run for Community for Southbank to promote student power and unity, to extend student advocacy across the entirety of Southbank campus, and engage with other students about issues directly affecting them to bring about tangible, positive change for campus life. I’m passionate about forging stronger bonds between courses and the prospect of more inter-course events for everyone to meet one another and connect with other incredibly talented creatives!

Lachlan Oliver — Community for UMSU

I originally come from a farm just outside a small town called Dunkeld, just at the base of the Grampians Mountain Range. There you can barely walk a few steps down the street without running into another local and having a chat. I am running to try and bring some of that small, friendly town feel, to the big city and to our university, which is something all universities have been lacking in this ‘Zoom’ based world. If elected, I would help enable this institute to become a close, friendly community.

Taylor Reece — Community for UMSU I am a first-year BFA Theatre student at the VCA, originally from Newcastle, NSW. I’m a queer feminist who tries her damn best to be tough but will tear up at any video of a baby animal. I am running for the UMSU Southbank committee because I’m passionate about student advocacy and welfare. The union should be a place where all students can find support and community. I would love to play a part in ensuring that my fellow students have access to the vital services that UMSU provides, and would be honoured to represent my wonderful, creative Southbank peers.

I’m Lachy, a 2nd year BFA Music Student!

NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS DELEGATE Beau Annoptham — VVholesome “It’s Britney Bichh” Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

Students are under attack: Arts degrees are more expensive, chancellors are paid millions, while university staff face job cuts and casualisation. Universities should be places for self-actualisation - we need a militant national union, organising for collective action, to make this a reality. I’ll fight the neoliberal assault on our universities and bigotry on campus.

Aisha Nayer — Community for UMSU

I’m running for a fighting NUS. Vote [1] Fightback for NUS.

It’s been two years since I wrote my first statement regarding NUS. I wonder if more people have learn about NUS more than last year. Maybe? Maybe not? Well, maybe an influencer should be there to make it famous! Do you know any influencer? *wink* *wink*

Briana Symonds-Manne — Liberals Off Campus - Stop the Menzies Institute

Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

It’s not just on our campus that rabid, right wing culture warriors are pushing their politics. The Liberals are in government, launching attacks on our education and on the lives of oppressed people all across the country. Every student has an interest in building an activist student union to fight the Liberals, but that can only be done nationally. The National Union of Students is our best chance to organise a national student movement against the Liberals and their planet destroying, racist, sexist and homophobic agenda. A vote for us is a vote for a left-wing, activist NUS.

Jett Wickes — Fightback for UMSU NUS works best when it is fighting hard for its members. It’s easy to assume NUS’ hard-fought gains have been handed to us by benevolent bosses - nothing could be further from the truth.

NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS DELEGATE CONT. Joshua Davis — Independents for Student Democracy Government policy throughout the pandemic has been unfairly punitive to university students; the fee hikes of the Job Ready Graduate package and the exclusion of universities from JobSeeker highlight how little the Federal Government cares about universities and their students. We are in need now more than ever of a diverse and representative National Union of Students that can fight for our collective, universal interests without getting bogged down in factionalism or used for personal political gain. As an Independent candidate, I can honestly and effectively represent you at the NUS without being muzzled or censored by political party interests. factional politics.

Daisy Norfolk — Independents for Student Democracy Hey, I am Daisy. I am passionate about feminist discourse and the issues women face, as well as the Australian political climate, and the status of the Arts and Humanities in contemporary Australia. I have also been involved in advocacy with making parliamentary inquiry submissions and campaigning, including against the Job-Ready Graduate Bill and making a submission to the Juukan Gorge Inquiry. Even while there are challenges and frustrations in politics and issues we face, I believe it is important to stay engaged and celebrate the small wins where we can.

Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy The National Union of Students (NUS) has an important advocacy role to speak up on issues affecting students. This includes affordable housing, free public transport and access to mental health services, among other issues. I believe delegates should represent the interests of students and work constructively on these issues, rather than being involved in factional politics.

Shirley Killen — Left Action When the bushfire crisis hit in 2019, tens of thousands marched against the Morrison government and the fossil fuel industry, whose destruction of the climate had made it the hottest summer on record. But those protests didn’t come out of nowhere. Student protests across the year set the tone: there are no more natural disasters. The fossil fuel industry is to blame for these crises. The protests said: when our planet is under attack, we fight back. NUS protests played a role in this, but only because activists associated with Left Action argued to make them happen.

Xavier Dupe — Left Action Activists associated with Left Action turned NUS’s Ethnocultural Office into an anti-racism Office. We used it to organise large demonstrations against Islamophobia, for Black Lives Matter, and around a number of other causes. The need for national anti-racist activism has never been clearer. The heroic struggle of Palestinians saw massive solidarity demonstrations, which NUS should have championed and built. We need uncompromising antiracists and anti-imperialists in NUS.factional politics.

James Gallagher – Left Action

\ The COVID crisis has seen an attack on the welfare of students by the government and by universities. Youth Allowance and JobSeeker are pitifully low, and denied to international students. NUS should be campaigning for welfare for all students that is adequate to live on. We know this can be won - last year the government temporarily doubled welfare when it found it politically expedient. A national campaign of students, workers and poor could force it to make liveable welfare permanent. That’s what I’ll fight for as NUS delegate.

Jaan Schild – Left Action Right now, we’re seeing a backlash from the most revolting elements of the political class, desperate to claw back their ability to openly discriminate against anyone who challenges their rigid gender and sexual binary. At a federal level, Scott Morrison’s religious freedoms bill is a direct attack on the rights of gay and trans workers and students, and now Mark Latham is pushing a similar piece of legislation in NSW. This legislation must be fought. Big community campaigns in NSW are doing just that, but we need a national campaign to fight Morrison that’s what I’ll fight for.

Andoni Fischer, Lauren Scott, Planning Jay Vynn Saw, Lindsay Tupper-Creed, Amo Chakravarthy, Jeremy Cameron, Kalyana Vania — Community for UMSU Throughout this year, we have witnessed a series of attacks on our students. Our students paid for an education that was meant to encompass the campus experience; where there would be activities, clubs, and most of all, friendship. This was once the University experience, and all that remains is the shell that is online learning. Online learning that is devoid of the social interactions that fostered friendships in tutorials, devoid of the laboratory skills essential for research, and devoid of passion when participating in on-campus activities. Our students, already affected by the series of lockdowns that only exacerbates our physical and mental struggles, have been inadequately provided for. The absence of financial support for our students, especially our international students, is abysmal. Students are still forced to pay full fees when there are no in-person classes, especially when their work is constantly being disrupted due to lockdowns. (cont. over page)

NATIONAL UNION OF STUDENTS DELEGATE CONT. Student well-being has been undermined given the inefficient counselling and psychological services (CAPS) provided by the University. The fact that our students are under constant stress and the University has done nothing is proof that student rights have been undermined and we must fight back. In the past, the National Union of Students (NUS) has organised campaigns to fight for marriage equality, against attacks on education, to demand free education, and to petition the government to stop spending millions of dollars on arms manufacturing. There is so much potential in student unionism and the NUS, if we can rise above factional politics and genuinely strive to be a national voice for students in these unprecedented times of crisis. We want to be your voice at the NUS and fight so that you will be supported. Vote [1] Community, your community fighting with you!

Jack Buksh — Stand Up! The National Union of Students is the peak representative body for all students in Australia. Is it perfect? No. But the more student voices inside it the better. The NUS is an important part of the fight to keep higher education accessible for all, and it would be great to represent the voices of our student body at National Conference. Vote [1] Stand Up! For Change!

Sophie Nguyen — Stand Up! I’m Sophie Nguyen and I’m running for NUS Delegate. How good are unions? Too good.

Ruby Craven — Stand Up! Hello! My name is Ruby and I’m running for NUS to advocate for an activist NUS that Stands Up for students. In a year where we have seen massive cuts to Universities and a lack of support from the federal government for students we need a strong NUS. That’s why I am running with Stand Up! For NUS delegate.

Ngaire Bogemann — Stand Up! Hi everyone! My name is Ngaire and I am so excited to be running for NUS delegate. Personally, I am running for NUS because of the need for strong feminists in our NUS. That’s why things like AA on NUS ballots are really important! Imagine running four men at the top of a ballot, that would be 1. Silly and 2. Sexist.

Max Dowell — Stand Up! I’m Max Dowell and I’m running for NUS Delegate. You can talk, but you can’t run All that’s good is undone I went to the summerfest In search of welfare breakfast A president said their club was dead I saw their face and shook my head Can’t you see their immorality We’re losing SSAF and solidarity ‘Cause it’s the state of the union That’s holding our salvation Yes, it’s the state of the union That’s holding our salvation

Oh, the state of the union Is causing deprivation Oh, the state of the union Is causing deprivation Vote [1] Stand Up!

Felix Sharkey — Stand Up! The NUS is the peak representative body for all students. There would be nothing that would bring me more joy and pride than being able to represent my fellow University of Melbourne students at the NUS National Conference. Woo!

Nicole Nabbout — Stand Up! Hi my name is Nicole! And I am so excited to be running as a NUS delegate.Fun fact: The NUS is the peak representative body for University students in our country. How good is that!

BURNLEY CAMPUS COMMITTEE BY-ELECTION No nominations received.

SOUTHBANK CAMPUS COORDINATOR BY-ELECTION Leyla Joy Moxham — Community for UMSU Provisionally elected unopposed.

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER BY-ELECTION Ezra Bangun — VVholesome I run out of fun plant facts. Although, I have a Lily in my house, and I do need advice on how to make sure it grows nicely. Anyone has any advice? Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

ENVIRONMENT OFFICER BY-ELECTION CONT. Elizabeth Riley & Benjamin Cronshaw — Independents for Student Democracy Elizabeth and Benjamin are the Environment candidates for ISD. You can see our main statement under the Environment OB position. Instead of repeating ourselves, here are some great environmental quotes from a couple of classic movies: As the Captain said in the year 2805 in Wall-E: “Wait, that doesn’t look like Earth. Where’s the blue sky? Where’s the-the grass?” And as Mufasa said to his son Simba in The Lion King: “Everything you see exists together in a delicate balance … you need to understand that balance and respect all the creatures, from the crawling ant to the leaping antelope.” To avoid an apocalyptic rubbished planet caused by massive human overconsumption, we believe we need to appreciate the wisdom of a certain lion and respect and appreciate the balance of nature more.

Lynne Bian & Disha Zutsh — Community for UMSU No statement provided.

GENERAL SECRETARY BY-ELECTION Ezra Bangun — VVholesome Let me just say one thing. Let’s have a new person here because why not. New Normal, New Face, New Fun, New Writing. I will make the General Secretary position to be a Special Secretary! Always be VVholesome, and don’t forget to vote [1] (and [2], and [3], and etc.) for the ticket you prefer (it can be us, or anyone else)!

GENERAL SECRETARY BY-ELECTION CONT. Max Dowell — Stand Up! I am Max Dowell (he/him) - I encourage you to read my other candidate statement for a substantive overview of my bid for General Secretary, and what I would like to see as General Secretary. Instead, I shall explain why I must contest this by-election as well. In my opinion, UMSU hasn’t run as efficiently or as transparently as it should. For a student looking to find minutes about where their student money has been spent, it’s very difficult - sections of the UMSU website are bare where meeting minutes should be kept. A motion was brought to council with an hour’s notice to suspend financial regulations (there to ensure good governance) and spend $10,000 on a lawyer without a proper tender process. The current General Secretary, Allen Xiao is responsible for the governance of UMSU. There were no constitutionally mandated councils for nearly two months, denying students the forum to voice their concerns with their student organisation. Does this sound like good governance to you? It doesn’t to me. I want to foster a productive and respectful culture for students, not one for big personalities and their egos. I want to ensure all motions and financial decisions are considered properly and transparently. We need an UMSU that fights for clubs, essential services, and international students – not just in name only. Some of you may have friends in Community and I understand if you’d like to support them. But I think that for the sake of a strong student union, we need change now. If you love UMSU, put Allen last.

Jasika Verma No statement provided.

Hannah Lewis — Independents for Student Democracy My name is Hannah, and I am a second-year arts student studying classics and ancient history. While studying at Melbourne, I have been an active participant in student life despite the difficulties COVID-19 has presented. In particular, I have been an enthusiastic member of the Classics and Archaeology Students Society since 2020, and currently I serve on the executive committee, fulfilling the role of Consul (President). Although I began my experience at Melbourne at a difficult time during COVID, I have been lucky to stay involved and overall enjoy a positive student experience. I would love to ensure all students at Melbourne also enjoy a similar positive experience, where they feel connected to others and encouraged to foster curiosity and engagement in their studies. Outside of university, my hobbies include reading, playing field hockey with a local club, and enjoying relaxing video games such as Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing. As someone passionate about democracy and exchanging ideas with others, I am excited to participate in this election as a member of Independents for Student Democracy. I strongly believe in encouraging student participation in university life, such as promoting participation in clubs and societies, and maintaining a positive University experience for students both on campus and during online delivery. To ensure this, I believe in increasing financial support for clubs, maintaining student wellbeing support and being a vocal representative of students’ expectations for education quality, especially during periods of online classes.

GENERAL SECRETARY BY-ELECTION CONT. Allen (Haotian) Xiao — Community for UMSU Hi! I’m Allen (he/him), a first-year Doctor of Medicine student. This year, it’s been a privilege to serve as your General Secretary with Community. We have made sure that UMSU’s structures work for, and not against students, making the student union more accessible than ever. It would be my honour to continue this work for the remainder of 2021. As General Secretary, I’ve had the chance to lead some of the most wide-reaching Constitutional reforms in recent memory. Historically, our elections have been an alienating, in-person experience. This year, we secured the right to have online elections for all students. International students, overseas students, students with disabilities, and many more communities who are ordinarily disempowered from participating in UMSU’s processes will have their voices reflected in their student representatives. We even established a representative position for Southbank students on the highest level of UMSU governance, expanding the voice of one of our most important- and neglected- campuses. Beyond reforming UMSU’s governance, we have made sure that students can be genuinely empowered to change their University experience. This year, we: • Provided hundreds of students with free food and daily resources, while keeping our campus COVID-safe, through the Welfare Department’s Union Mart • secured a reduced study load for international students. • supported clubs and societies with additional funding, allowing students across the University to grow their community. But we will need to finish what we have started. There is still much more that UMSU can do for the average student. More engagement, more consultation, and more potential to advocate for the struggles we have faced, within the University and beyond. I believe, more than ever, that the only way to secure this is a grassroots-based, independent-minded voice leading UMSU. So vote [1] Community- your community fighting with you!

INDIGENOUS COMMITTEE BY-ELECTION Jessica Alderton Provisionally elected unopposed.

TICKET: COMMUNITY FOR UMSU Students need support. Students need representation. Students need community. Our time at University is more than just studying. It’s about the connections you make, the relationships you grow: it’s about the Community you discover. We’re Community for UMSU, a grassroots movement of students from almost every faculty and background, onshore and offshore, domestic and international. We’re committed to creating a university experience where no student is left behind. That means rallying with students against a university administration that puts profits first. That means equitable and meaningful representation for all students. That means listening to what students want. UMSU has the potential to meaningfully serve all of us. We have made huge strides in making the student union prominent and accessible. But with immense challenges ahead, we won’t stop fighting with you. That’s why we’re putting some of the best candidates to continue the work we have started this year. A Community-led UMSU will continue to: Meaningfully engage students UMSU runs on approximately $8 million of student money every year. And while more students are accessing the many services UMSU offers, we will continue to address this gap by connecting UMSU to the diverse communities of our student body. Represent the true diversity of our students Our candidates are drawn from clubs, societies, and cultural communities of Unimelb. An overwhelming proportion of our 120 candidates are international students, which make up over 40% of our student body. Last year, we greatly increased international representation among UMSU Officers and Councillors. This year, we want to defend this vision in a Community-led UMSU for 2022. Effectively advocate for students UMSU needs student representatives who will speak out, scrutinise the details, and prioritise ordinary students over themselves. To succeed, we will need courage, strategy, and a diversity of tactics. We have fought tirelessly against university administration to support a student body deeply affected by the pandemic. And we believe only a grassroots-based, independent-minded voice can make it happen. Supporting our Community Now, more than ever, students should guide their representatives to achieve student goals. We want to make UMSU more accessible, fighting for : 1. • • •

Simplified UMSU governance. Translate UMSU and university documents, ensuring all students have access to materials in their preferred language. Publish guides into UMSU governance in plain language for students to understand how their union can function for them. Further election reform, tackling aggressive online campaigning, and expand UMSU’s affirmative action policies- so that nonbinary students, students of colour, and other marginalised communities are represented at the highest level.

2. • •

Equitable academic policy: Fight to reform the special consideration process, to equitably recognise the continued impact of the pandemic on all students. Advocate for better student feedback systems, inputting the feedback and suggestions of all students to faculty leadership, and fighting for additional student representation on the University’s policy-making bodies.

3. •

Reformed support services: Prioritise the reform of the CAPS system, including culturally competent counsellors that are able to serve students from different identities, cultures, and languages. Secure counsellors that are qualified to consult overseas students, and uniquely responsive to their needs.

•

Building our Community Many of us are still stranded overseas, and those of us in Melbourne must contend with lockdown after lockdown. UMSU needs to step forward and connect with students in these chaotic times. We will: 1. • •

Fight to bring overseas students back on campus Continue our work negotiating with the University, to allow for a safe transition of overseas students back on campus. Ensure that overseas students are well-supported when they arrive on campus, by fighting for financial support for affected students.

2. •

Engage our student communities Work with UMSU International and clubs and societies, to deliver engaging online events that connect international students whether onshore or overseas. Advocate for the end of complex Stop 1 bureaucracy, by fighting for increased availabilities in Stop 1 services, and ensuring they are responsive to students across different time zones.

•

(cont. over page)

TICKET: COMMUNITY FOR UMSU (CONT.) 3. • • •

Creating an accessible campus for all students. Push for the creation of quiet spaces on and around all on-campus events. Advocate for physically accessible teaching spaces in-person, and continue the work to guarantee close-captioned lectures, across all faculties. Expand existing employability programs for students, ensuring that all faculties are able to support their students from university to working life post-pandemic.

Fighting for our Community Students need a union that fights for their rights and interests, acknowledging their varied experiences and needs. This diversity is reflected in Community. Our many experienced candidates come from marginalised groups largely neglected by the University. Together, we will fight for: 1. • • •

Truly inclusive activism Centre the voices of women and non-binary people of marginalised backgrounds through workshops, speakers and feminist reading groups. Hold the university to account in its inaction against sexual harassment and assault on campus, fighting for a trauma-informed response centre separate from general university administration. Ensure the representation, support and wellbeing of the transgender and gender-diverse students they represent, supporting the Queer Department in their fight against TERFs on campus, and prioritising gender-affirmation work.

2. • •

Environmental justice for all Centre Indigenous voices in all environmental activism- as there is no climate justice without First Nations justice. Continue to push for sustainable practices during club and UMSU events, mobilising the broader student community against the environmentally destructive practices of the university administration.

3. • •

A vibrant Bla(c)k, Indigenous and People of Colour community. Connect communities of colour, by directly liaising between UMSU departments and cultural clubs. Build upon existing anti-racism training frameworks, and advocate for a university-wide staff training that centers student struggles. Streamline Clubs Regulations and funding to be more accessible to cultural and international-student focused clubs.

•

Our vision remains the same- a community that fights for a better UMSU, and a better university. Creating this change doesn’t happen over one year, but it is a continuous fight that can only be done with your support. We deserve a functional, activist union. Vote[1] Community in all positions, for a student union that will fight with you! For more information, visit communityforumsu.com!

TICKET: FIGHTBACK FOR UMSU Fightback for UMSU is running to make your student union about students and unions. Too often, our student union has become a place for political powerbroking and has missed crucial opportunities for building a fighting movement for students and workers. This isn’t good enough! The costs of inaction are too high while students and workers around the country are pushed further into economic anxiety, and thousand-dollar degrees increasingly buy little more than a piece of paper. We can only beat back these attacks by fighting back for students and workers as students and workers. We need to unite as one, be willing to get political, and take action against injustice. As elected representatives, students and working people will be front in centre in everything we do. We’ll strengthen UMSU’s links to rank-and-file trade unionists across the country, and put the activism back into student life – because when you don’t fight, you lose! Fightback for Climate Justice! Rapid climate change represents an existential threat to our planet, livelihoods, and our future. But it is impossible to fight for climate justice without taking on the ongoing dispossession of Indigenous peoples, and the effects of neoliberalism. First Nations peoples have cared for country for at least ten thousand years. The colonial state has decimated biodiversity, and the cultural knowledges that sustained it. Organising for climate action is impossible without also organising for Aboriginal selfdetermination. Only a decolonial analysis of climate change gives us the tools to attack the structures of extractivist capitalism and its unevenly distributed harms. We will stand behind First Nations people fighting climate change and put their voices and causes front and centre. This means building a collective willing to be on the frontlines and being ready to activate it in response to calls for action. In the struggle for climate justice, no worker should be left behind. We reject the assertion that jobs and sustainability are mutually exclusive. Our sustainable energy future, articulated within a just transition framework, can create a new wave of high skilled and well-paid sustainable jobs. Aligning with trade unions, we’ll continue to articulate an alternative vision of climate justice backed by a just transition, which creates green, stable, union jobs in our construction, energy, maritime, transport and service sectors - and build a student movement that can make this vision reality. Fightback has endorsed Community candidates Jett Wickes and Disha Zutshi for Environment Officers. They’re committed to these politics, and can build an Environment collective that is open and inclusive, and builds movements. With a strong foundation in social justice and workers’ movements, the Environment Collective can become a formidable force for climate justice. Fightback for Economic Justice! Fightback is a proudly unionist ticket. We’ll stand with working people taking action anywhere in their fight for a fairer world. UMSU is a union for students, and is at its best when it fights hardest for its members. Students and working people alike have been hit hard by the tide of neoliberalism. Rent and living costs keep going up, but wages remain stagnant, all while work becomes increasingly insecure. Too many of us are on casual contracts or paid under the table. As we move towards a federal election, we want a fighting student union that will raise these issues. Fightback members of Student’s Council and NUS will push campaigns that tackle job security, low pay, and our broken industrial relations system that lock these things in place. On our own campus, hundreds of staff have lost work - we’re seeing wholesale attacks on the quality of our education. Staff working conditions are student learning conditions: we lose out when our tutors are paid so little to prepare for classes, and we face hour-long wait lines at Stop One. Solidarity with staff members is not an aesthetic, it’s a practical action our union should engage in. Fightback members of Student’s Council and NUS will forge stronger links between UMSU and the staff union, and continue the good work aligning our struggles, encouraging students to join our NTEU comrades on the picket lines. We’ll also drive campaigns to unionise students, bringing unions on campus to increase union membership. Fightback for Social Justice! There’s no room for any form of discrimination, anywhere, anytime. While universities claim to be open spaces of learning based on meritocracy, they often themselves uphold systems of privilege, reflecting the same structures of racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, ableism and classism they purport to oppose. Student unions are so important for this reason. When students don’t feel comfortable speaking up in classes, they deserve spaces where they can express themselves, and find like-minded people who share their experiences. Fightback will fight for continued funding for our Women’s, Queer, Disabilities, People of Colour and Indigenous Departments. We’ll back campaigns that actively combat discrimination, and work to build them in strength and numbers - because when hate goes unopposed, it spreads. This year’s anti-transphobia protests showed an appetite for fighting bigotry on campus, demanding the University do more to protect queer students and staff from discrimination. Fightback will work alongside UMSU’s collectives as they take the fight against bigotry to the systems that entrench discrimination. Touch one, touch all! Fightback for a student-led union! We fundamentally believe students deserve a say over the student union - after all, we’re the ones who fund it! We applaud the introduction of online elections which make it easier for students overseas to vote. Fightback, if elected to Student’s Council, will continue to support measures that encourage participation in the Student Union, and make UMSU more transparent and open. Make your student union about students and unions. Vote [1] Fightback for UMSU! Vote [1] Jett and Disha for Enviro Officer!

TICKET: INDEPENDENTS FOR STUDENT DEMOCRACY The Independents for Student Democracy (ISD) has been involved in the student elections since 2019. The ISD is a group of students passionate about democracy and promoting student wellbeing and community/clubs experience on campus. As a ticket, the ISD aims to support students from various backgrounds and perspectives to contest student elections and get an experience of the civic process and to serve the student community. Democracy is a great thing, allowing us to express our views and choose our own leaders based on who best represents our interests and values. This requires people to get involved, both to vote and to stand for election. This is what motivated the founding of the ISD. Being involved is a great experience and helps contribute to a healthy democratic process and a more representative student union. Elections are also a critical way in which we can hold our student leaders accountable and encourage good governance and democratic transparency. We also believe in encouraging women in leadership and respect for women in politics. We can disagree or critique each other on policy issues, but sexist or gendered harassment is never acceptable and drags down our political discourse. Democracy should be open for people to bring their best ideas and contribute to productive debate for a better society. We believe all students should have quality, positive and enjoyable educational experiences. There are great opportunities that students can have at university. There are also many challenges that students face (both in university and in broader society) that affect their education and their future. University should always be a safe and encouraging place for people to study, find new friends and have fun. People have a right to feel safe and respected always and anywhere, including in their place of learning. We welcome the work of the Respect Taskforce in raising awareness of these issues and educating people about what is expected of them, including the nature of respect and consent. We support more work being done to strengthen policies around sexual misconduct and provide support for survivors. Another challenge facing students is mental health. We believe in the importance of increasing awareness around and support for students with their mental health. The stress of study, financial issues, lockdown, bullying or other issues can have major impacts on students and their ability to do their study and feel okay. The Student Union has an important role in advocating for student wellbeing and for an equitable and sustainable society. This includes advocating for sustainability and action on environmental issues, such as climate change. The Student Union also has an important role in providing student services and supporting students with their essential needs, including food. As an ancient Egyptian proverb notes, “He who has bread and something to dip it in has the whole of happiness.” We also want students to have a fun and positive experience, including making new friends and experiencing the student community. Clubs and societies and other groups can be a great way for people to bond over shared passions or find new interests. Many of ISD candidates come from the ancient history or classics background, including being involved with some of the humanities clubs (among others). We are a strong supporter of the value of clubs. We are a ticket that is committed to democracy and empowering people to gain experience and bring their unique perspective and ideas to the election. We believe democracy can be improved with constructive and engaged dialogue and seeking to reach common ground. Bipartisanship does not have to mean compromise, but finding areas on which people can have productive agreement. In an era of division and polarisation, we believe in listening to each other and appreciating the perspective of people who are different (or think differently) to ourselves. ISD candidates have a variety of experiences, passions and hobbies that they bring to each position that they are running for. We encourage you to read their candidate statements for more information on what they represent. If we have contributed to the debate and given more choice to the student community, then we will have fulfilled our role and enjoyed the experience.

TICKET: INDEPENDENT MEDIA Independent Media has held the Media Office for well over a decade. Our three tenets are accountability, transparency, and independence: we’re an autonomous, impartial ticket, with the goal of keeping UMSU and the University accountable. We exist because we believe students have a right to easily accessible information on issues which involve them. Every year, we run specifically for the Media Officer position, usually as well as nominating some students to be General Representatives on Students’ Council, in order to ensure the interests of media are being represented and catered for. Furthermore, to protect our ticket from any threats (e.g. anyone pushing a particular political agenda), our candidates are chosen democratically. Anyone who has contributed in any way to the Media department (including UMSU’s magazine, Farrago, our radio station Radio Fodder, and the creative anthology Above Water) throughout the year are eligible to vote in our preselection. Our 2022 candidates are Joanna Guelas, Nishtha Banavalikar, Jasmine Pierce, and Charlotte Waters. We’re also extremely lucky to have Annalyce Wiebenga, Aeva Milos, Melana Uceda and Chelsea Rozario running to represent us on Students’ Council. One of our main responsibilities is to manage and edit Farrago, and each of us has been chosen to take over a specific section of the magazine. Joanna is running for News Editor. She’s a second-year Arts student, majoring in Media/Comms and Politics. She’s been a Farrago Reporter since 2020, is Farrago’s 2021 Video Team Manager, and has co-hosted a Fodder show called ‘ok zoomer’. This year, she’s representing Indie Media on Students’ Council. She’s also the Commentary Editor at Myriad Magazine, the Youth Press Gallery Leader at the YMCA Youth Parliament Victoria Program, and the editorial intern at Going Down Swinging. Jo is committed to creating an inclusive and intersectional newsroom that tells the facts as it is. Nishtha, who’s planning to take over the Non-Fiction team, is a third-year Economics and Finance student. Since 2019, she’s been a part of many publications both overseas in Hong Kong and Singapore and here in colleges, Myriad, Judy’s Punch, and Farrago. Within Farrago, she’s created and edited news, reviews, articles, and columns, and worked with the Fodder and video teams. She’s also been an UMSU International OB, and a QPOC and Media POC collective coordinator. Nishtha is passionate about demystifying, decolonising and dematerialising barriers of entry to media. Our Design Editor, Jasmine, is a fourth-year Arts student, majoring in Creative Writing and English. She’s been part of the Farrago illustration and design team throughout 2021, and created the magazine’s Edition 3 cover this year. In 2018, she led the editorial team behind the St Mary’s College annual magazine Zenith, and in 2016, she coordinated her Year 12 yearbook. She’s had her creative writing published both in print and online, including in Cordite Poetry Review. Jasmine is committed to fostering a collaborative space of positivity, passion, support, and fun. Charlotte, our Creative Editor, is completing her Honours in English. She’s been a Farrago Creative Subeditor since 2019, and has also subedited for Judy’s Punch and CAMP. She’s written poetry and prose for Farrago since 2018, including the creative column she’s currently co-writing about lockdown, tea, and furniture coming to life, “The Foggy Shores of Our Bedrooms”. She’s also had her writing published in Above Water and CAMP. Charlotte’s dedicated to building a Media community that’s accessible to a diverse range of creatives, with different backgrounds and skill sets. Our plans for 2022 are centred on three deeply interlinked priorities: 1)

Making the Media department as inclusive as it can be.

Some examples of our plans: expanding and strengthening our online presence, and making sure we’re hosting a wealth of online events; fostering partnerships with autonomous UMSU departments to provide more opportunities for students within specific communities; promoting more bilingual writing and writing in languages other than English, and encouraging non-native English speakers to submit. In turn, we’ll make sure a variety of backgrounds and perspectives are represented across our subediting teams. We’ll engage representatives of campuses other than Parkville, advertise more widely, and create online/print spaces devoted to their work. 2)

Expanding the range of content we produce, and fostering collaboration between more students.

We want to expand Fodder; for instance, by introducing new roles alongside that of Manager; making its website more accessible, striking and interactive; and exploring more channels through which to promote it. Furthermore, we’ll strengthen the ties between Farrago and Fodder, e.g. through guest features and joint events (open mic nights? sign me up!). We’d love to collaborate with UMSU-affiliated clubs, and to broaden topics and genres of news reporting to reflect student interests. Most of all, we’ll reach out to students to find out what kind of content they’d like to see or create. 3) Providing more individualised support, as well as more formal growth and learning opportunities, so that students are encouraged to continuously develop their skills. We want to foster a collaborative and supportive community with frequent meet-ups (both online and in-person) to work on media projects and to check in on each other’s wellbeing. We’ll implement a formalised internal feedback system, so that all contributors and team members can have their voices heard. We want to provide opportunities for growth and professional development by organising workshops to be run by both current students and industry professionals. This would introduce a genuine path of development and self-improvement, so that roles aren’t solely reliant on applicants having all the prior skills. We’d also like to promote external opportunities, for instance with literary magazines, and to build a network with newspapers that students can pitch to in order to further build their portfolio. When you vote Independent Media, you are voting for experience, diverse skills, and unparalleled dedication as long-time participants of the very department we want to represent. You are voting for community, development and accountability. We want to solidify and build upon the foundations set by our fellow students to ensure the Media Department has concrete systems for feedback, accountability and accessibility.

TICKET: LEFT ACTION Left Action is a coalition of activists and anticapitalists on campus. We fight for education rights, the environment, and social justice every day of the year. We’re running because we want UMSU to stand in the best traditions of radical student unionism and fight for our rights, while taking a stand against every instance of injustice and inequality. No more staff cuts and fee hikes. Free education now! Education is in crisis. Duncan Maskell, the corporate head of our university, has used the covid pandemic as a cynical excuse to push through devastating staff cuts. Last year, more than 450 staff were fired, leading to bigger class sizes, and a poorer education. Despite posting a surplus of more than $178m in 2020, and taking in a personal salary of more than $1.5m, Maskell has announced that there are more cuts to come. Meanwhile, the Liberal government has entrenched a two-tiered education system by dramatically increasing the cost of certain degrees, like humanities and law. If that wasn’t enough, Duncan Maskell and the Liberals have teamed up for one further attack on our university - they are collaborating to establish the Menzies Institute, a right wing think-tank. If established, the Menzies Institute will be a bastion of conservative politics on campus. Its board is composed of Liberal party members and Sky News commentators, and it is named after a Nazi-sympathising, anti-Communist former Prime Minister. The Vice-Chancellor and the Liberal government both treat universities like private corporations - profit factories for the wealthy executives who run them, speech platforms for cashed-up right wing Murdoch commentators, and playgrounds for the select number of rich students who can afford to pay exorbitant fees. We need to fight back with a powerful student movement which demands education as a right, not a privilege. Left Action has been involved in the staff and student-led movement against attacks on our education, helping to establish the No Cuts campaign on campus. Two of our members, graduate representatives in the GSA, established Stop the Liberals - Menzies Institute off our Campus and have helped attract national media attention to the campaign. We demand the University: -Offer all students fee reductions -Sack rich execs, not staff -Cancel the opening of the Menzies Institute We demand the government: -Drop all attacks on the accessibility and quality of education -Fully fund free education now We need climate action! The latest IPCC report confirms it: capitalism is destroying the planet. We are on track for catastrophic levels of climate change. The key tipping point of 1.5 degrees average warming could come as early as the mid-2030s unless there is an urgent reduction in carbon emissions. The effects of the climate crisis are already here, as the world is increasingly gripped by extreme weather events like bushfires, cold snaps, and flash floods. Amidst this crisis, support for coal, gas and oil is bipartisan politics in Australia. The government is determined to achieve a ‘gasfired’ economic recovery, rapidly expanding fossil fuel infrastructure which will lock us in for decades of unsustainable emissions. The Labor Party offers no alternative, stating that they will support coal mining beyond 2050. While Melbourne University claims to be going ‘green’, this is nothing but a cynical marketing stunt. The Uni has an estimated $70m tied up in fossil fuel investments, and has even named a lecture theatre after Rio Tinto, the minerals giant. We need a massive radical activist movement to challenge this climate vandalism. Left Action has been involved in every important fight for the climate. We helped organise the blockade of a mining conference in Melbourne’s CBD. We set up Uni Students for Climate Justice, which got 100,000 out in the streets against the Morrison government during the bushfire crisis. We have organised events on campus disrupting jobs fairs where fossil fuel companies attempt to recruit students to work for them. We will use positions in UMSU to continue organising activism and protests in 2021 to force the University and the government to take climate action now! We demand the university: -Withdraw its financial support from the International Mining Conference and Resource conference -Divest from fossil fuels -End all collaboration with Rio Tinto, Lockheed Martin & Boeing We demand the government: -Stop Adani -Implement a just transition to 100% renewables -End all coal and gas projects Fight racism and oppression Capitalist society is awash with racism. The courageous and radical Black Lives Matter uprising in the United States has inspired anti-racist movements across the world and drawn attention to the barbarity and injustice of the system everywhere. From Indigenous deaths in custody to the brutal system of mandatory detention in Australia. From the decades-long forever wars in the Middle East, to the dispossession of the Palestinians by Israel, backed by western governments. We need to continue to build an anti-racist fightback, on campus and in the streets.

TICKET: LEFT ACTION (CONT.) Across the country, activists associated with our ticket have organised some of the largest and most inspiring protests against the racist celebration of Invasion day. We helped found and continue to lead the Campaign Against Racism & Fascism, which has repeatedly pushed back against the racist far right when they have attempted to organise on the streets. Our members have spoken to the thousands who have assembled on the streets of Melbourne in solidarity with Palestine. At Melbourne University, we’ve campaigned endlessly this year to free the refugees locked up in the Park Hotel, leading to the release of 43 men. We still have so much to fight for- and having committed anti-racists elected to UMSU will make sure the campus is a hub of social justice campaigning. We demand the university: -Institute free degrees for refugee students -Increase the number of subjects that deal with race, Indigeneity, and historical battles for social justice We demand the government: -Free the Park Hotel refugees -Defund Victoria Police -Cut economic and diplomatic ties with the apartheid regime in Israel

TICKET: LIBERALS OFF CAMPUS – STOP THE MENZIES INSTITUTE The hard right of the Liberal Party, an alliance of the most powerful sociopaths our country has to offer, want to establish a shrine to their Nazi-sympathising Liberal Party icon on our campus. Not content with their platforms on Sky News, the rest of Murdoch’s media empire or even their platform and seats of power in the Federal government, these ultra-conservative culture-warriors are spending millions of dollars, including money in grants from the federal government, to use our campus as a hub for their rightwing political project: the Robert Menzies Institute. We are a group of student activists committed to making sure that doesn’t happen! We think the university should be a space for free and vigorous political debate as well as serious academic and intellectual inquiry. The proposed Menzies Institute is neither. It is a case of some very powerful and very rich people purchasing space on our campus as a means to legitimise their rabidly anti-human political project by cloaking it in the guise of “academia”. Liberals are anti-student, anti-working class, racist, sexist and homophobic mouthpieces of big business in Australia, and they make up almost the entire board of this so-called “non-partisan” Menzies Institute. We want to defend academic integrity and genuine democracy on campus against the power of corporate entities to simply purchase a platform. As well as that, we want to oppose the entire project of these right-wing cranks with a perspective of fighting structural oppressions and inequality in society, not justifying and reinforcing them. We’ve already spent months organising this campaign since we discovered plans for the Menzies Institute. While the uni administration tied up backroom deals and shady agreements to sell a part of our campus to this monstrosity, we worked tirelessly to bring it all to light, publicising the plans to establish the Institute and promoting the open letter against it. But uncloaking the institute’s deeply reactionary project is not enough; we need protests and disruptive actions to stop it from opening at all! A vote for our ticket in UMSU and in NUS will be a vote against the Liberal Party and their Menzies Institute. It will be a vote for student activism, campus democracy and a fight against oppression, on our campus and beyond!

TICKET: STAND UP! Every student deserves a student union that is there for them and amplifies their voice in the University. But this year, too many of us have been worried about our student community, and have not felt that UMSU represents us. During 2020, when Stand Up! was elected into UMSU, students were represented. Stand Up! won the WAMnesty, financial support during COVID-19 and fought off special consideration changes. In previous years, we’ve brought in the UMSU Free Breakfast Program, made lecture recordings mandatory, lowered the WAM requirements for exchange and so much more. When Stand Up! was elected into the union, we understood how important students’ money was and that’s why we delivered services that students relied on the most. Things like UMSU breakfast and fun events that bring our campus to life. We provided students with free public transport passes when they needed it, established the safer partying initiative with free pill testing kits and established the UMSU foodbank. This year, some of the services that we think students rely on from UMSU haven’t been provided. That’s why Stand Up! is running in this election. To make sure that students are represented by their student representatives. To use the resources of UMSU for better, not for our own interests. We are committed, effective and proven activists with a long list of wins during our time in the Union. We will bring back an UMSU that cares about you. We believe in an inclusive, accessible and safe campus for all students. We want to continue to fight for free and accessible education, for representation of marginalised groups, against staff and funding cuts, for safety on campus and for your rights at work. We know that students should be able to feel safe, supported, and included for the best university experience. We have some amazing policies we’re bringing to the election. We don’t have enough words to highlight each and every single department but we hope the ones we do can demonstrate how passionate and experienced Stand Up! is. Despite the pandemic impacting higher education, funding support from the Federal Government continues to be disappointing. The Education Department will continue to fight for students’ rights alongside the National Union of Students and the NTEU. We aim to make protests and rallies more accessible and open next year so that all students can have a say in their activism. We will fight for better learning quality that has been impacted by the neo-liberalisation of our university. We want to revise the late penalty to make sure that students have every chance to succeed at their studies and to bring it in line with other universities. With dual delivery and the ongoing lockdowns and pandemic, we want to make extensions easier to apply, bring online spaces to be considered as university spaces, and push for fee relief for international students. We will fight for WAMnesty in 2022. This year, our EdPub officers, we were successful in our No Cuts campaign and kept pressure on the University. We also initiated the Keep Menzies off our Campus campaign to fight against right wing ideology off our campuses, because teaching and research should not be influenced by money. In the Welfare Department, we’re bringing back the Free Breakfast service. We want to readjust the service to make sure it is safe and adhering to COVID-19 restrictions. We know how important this service is for students, especially for those who live close to campus. We want to expand the UMSU Food Bank to ensure that sanitary products, household supplies and groceries are available. We want to reintroduce physical health programs that can connect students both online and in person. We’re also going to focus on improving CAPS so that these services are as comprehensive and accommodating to all students. The Welfare Department is committed to providing necessary students for all. The Women’s Department will continue to strive for intersectional feminism and demand a stand alone policy from the university around sexual assault and harrassment. We will launch the health and wellbeing centre for survivors of sexual assault so that survivors are supported on our campus. We will continue the Safety on Campus campaign, continuing to centre survivors and push for trauma informed policy. We want to make sure that we platform voices of marginalised women and non-binary people so that the Department is representative. The POC Department is committed to making the Department strong and diverse. We want to campaign for proactive solidarity including responding to injustices and crises so that POC students on campus can feel supported and included in conversation. We want to lobby for cultural and religious sensitivity training for staff members and students alike so that education can be accessible and welcoming. We aim to launch a campaign that tackles undertones of xenophobic behaviours. We aim to work with the INdigenous Department to campaign for the continual decolonisation of our studies. We also want to launch intercultural events in hopes to build community for POC students. The Queer Department will contiinue to fight against transphobia on our campus. We will push the university to provide training for UniMelb Health Service staff regarding quuer related health issues. WE want to campaign for online resources for students overseas to ensure that queer and gender diverse students are safe regardless of where they are. Stand Up! is experienced. We’re passionate and determined to fight for students. A vote for Stand Up! is a vote for a transparent, effective and bold student union. For more information visit standupforumsu.com or look us up on Facebook!

TICKET: THE PEOPLE’S PRESS We, the People’s Press acknowledge the First Peoples of Australia, especially the Boon Wurrung and Wurundjeri peoples of the Kulin Nations on whose land we write and live on. This land was stolen, their sovereignty never ceded. We’d like to pay our respects to their elders past, present, and their young leaders of today. We, the People’s Press here to encourage and celebrate democracy in the UMSU Media Department that has been run by the same ticket for over a decade. For, is not democracy exciting? We are a team that have faithfully contributed to and love the media collective (with the exception of Caitlin who has recently joined, but more on that later). Although we cherish the media collective, we see that year after year, tens of thousands of dollars given to the media office from the SSAF budget have been consistently and disproportionately distributed (insert sad face). This has meant that Southbank students, international students, and rural students do not see themselves genuinely represented in student media. We propose to you 3 things: (1) Creating equitable and accessible environments in student media is our number one priority. It is a skill that we value, foster, and take seriously through training and engagement with underrepresented groups. We believe that the empathy we have amongst our team that includes a Southbank representative, Disability Support team representative, People of Colour, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, is immense. We are a team made up of humans that have a history of going out of our way to ensure equity and access. We think that our tangible histories speak louder than what we say our intentions are. (2) Genuine representation in student media can only happen with genuine accessibility and equity. We believe in providing you with opportunities and news in YOUR LANGUAGE(S). Thoughtful, meaningful, intellectual and insanely valuable content is lost in a media collective that does not have structures to ensure that students can submit work and receive content in their preferred languages. We also believe that many opportunities for community and empathy building are lost, when words are not translated for greater access. (3) None of the above can happen without the restructuring of an inherently flawed system. We intend to include international students, satellite campus’ students, and students that prefer diverse expressive mediums like radio (Radio Fodder), and video (Farrago Video). We are confident in our ability to do this because we are not scared of changing the way overbearing inheritors of the media office historically have been. We each have our own experiences in leading that we bring constructively to the table. Here is a breakdown of we, the team: Vivian Li (she/her), for the past 2 years, has contributed to the Media Collective as one of the most proactive illustrators in Farrago history! Viv’s work is on the cover of Farrago Edition 1 this year, she is also a co-Illustration Manager of Farrago 2021. Viv has been on the university’s Disability Support Team to increase equity at unimelb for a few years now. She is also a small creative business owner, and a mum of two bunnies :3 Tereza Ljubičić (she/her) is almost trilingual and a migrant from Croatia. Tereza is studying a Bachelor of Arts with aspirations to complete the Juris Doctor so that she can help create equitable systems. She has been a proactive member of the Media Collective in 2021. In her creative life, Tereza is passionate about multimedia art, film producing, fashion and genuine student representation in unimelb media. Elmira Cheung (she/they) has worked with the Debaters Association of Victoria, as an Executive Member for the past 3 years (the same amount of time she’s been in the Media Collective), and an adjudicator and trainer for the past 4 years. They have travelled all over Victoria working at rural and lower SES postcodes to equip young adults with tools to communicate and express themselves. Elmira would like to tangibly bring her experiences in creating equity and accessibility to the media office. Elmira is also a coillustration Manager of Farrago 2021. Caitlin Chiam (she/her) is studying a Bachelor of Arts majoring in History and French with a burning passion for journalism. Caitlin writes for in-house Unimelb clubs, has had letters published in newspapers, maintains a self-run blog and has always seen media as a productive avenue for expression. In 2022, Caitlin would like to help create the most proactive and successful student journalism team Unimelb has ever seen! (Insert optimistic face): When you vote for The People’s Press, you are voting for empathy and hard work. You are voting for equity, accessibility, and representation. You are voting for the distribution of funded opportunities AND an amazing team of 4, very attractive, very thoughtful, and very skilled humans.

TICKET: VVHOLESOME I’m Memes, You’re Memes: The main point of VVholesome is memes and having fun. We want to ensure that election is fun and you also have fun. Memes is our lord and saviour and we should always appreciate them. But Also Serious: In the same vein, we believe that UMSU elections is an important part to ensure that the student union is run properly by the people that the students choose to be elected. If any of our member get elected, we will either resign to allow better people to run the union or satisfy the responsibilities that we are given. We believe that our candidates are amazing people that will do the best for UMSU to become a better union Student Votes: We believe that every student votes’ matter. With the low turnout rate of UMSU election, it’s important to let people know that they should vote in UMSU election! Student Union: We believe that student union is a good idea, however, since it’s being funded by SSAF, the expenditure should be spent wisely. Progressive: Change is good and will ensure that students get the best they could Reasonable: Being reasonable is important so changes will happen, even slowly. Balance: Perfectly balanced, as all things should be Transparent: We believe that all tickets and UMSU should be transparent to ensure that the election as well as UMSU’s future operation are trusted. Critical: Being critical with all statements from all sides, including all tickets are important. Representation: Since UMSU is being funded by SSAF, which is paid by ALL students, it’s important for UMSU to represent all students within the university. By listening to students’ voices, UMSU will become better than ever. Merit: We believe that the people who get elected should have some merit to why they get elected. To become the best union, the best people for the position should be selected. Respect: Respecting everyone and their voices are important. Criticism is good, but intimidation is not. Discussion: Having a discussion with all students is important to ensure one faction doesn’t dominate the whole population Free Speech: Free speech, in most situation, as long as it doesn’t promote violence, should be respected. We will ensure that criticism towards our ticket is not ignored or deleted and we believe that all tickets should do the same. More? More!: We do have more to say, but I have an assignment due soon so this will be all the policy statement there is. If you have any question, please message any of us! Thank you!