25 minute read
NUI Galway second year Nursing Students raise over €2,000 for Galway Simon Community
from SIN Issue 10
By Ewelina Szybinska
Second-Year nursing students have held an annual fundraising drive that has raised more than €2,000 for Galway Simon community.
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General Nursing students attended a guest lecture given by Amy Lavelle and Brian Hickey of the Galway Simon Community, which informed the students about the reality of homelessness in Ireland and how it impacts individuals.
It inspired the students to give the proceeds to Galway Simon Community.
Catherine Meagher, lecturer at the NUI Galway School of Nursing and Midwifery, said: “Our student nurses got to hear first-hand about the impact the pandemic had on fundraising opportunities and the growing number of people in need of support services offered by the Galway Simon Community. They wanted to do something to help.”
All student nurses continue to study online. Despite that, they have successfully managed to organize a fundraiser during the pandemic.
“Usually the fundraising is done by shaking buckets on Shop Street during the Christmas shopping period, but with Covid restrictions, this year we decided to organise it as a virtual event” said second year General Nursing class representative, Ciarán Mac an tSaoir.
“As future nurses we’ll be caring for patients who are homeless through our degrees and future careers. We not only gained knowledge, but an understanding that we can always do something to help alleviate hardships for others” added Mac an tSaoir.
The 500k walking, running and cycling challenge took place remotely due to level five restrictions. All students were involved in walking, running and jogging within their five kilometres.
The fundraiser was also an opportunity for students to reconnect with their fellow classmates and exercise for a good cause.
Hannah O’Donnell, Second Year general nursing class representative said, “It was so much fun, and it felt so good to do something as a class for the people in the Galway community. It was also nice to be able to connect with each other.” “Doing the fundraiser was so nice during lockdown as it gave us all a great excuse to get out and get some exercise. It was also so nice to be able to help other people at a time when we were all struggling” said Second-Year nursing student, Eilís Cahill who also participated in the fundraiser.
The charity expressed their gratitude for the wonderful initiative from NUI Galway General Nursing students.
Amy Lavelle from the Galway Simon Community, said “Their motivation to raise funds in support of those facing homelessness in these difficult times was truly inspiring and their compassion will go a long way in their future careers.
We are deeply grateful to have been the chosen charity for this wonderful initiative and we can’t thank the students and lecturer Catherine Meagher enough for all that they did to make it possible.”
The ENLIGHT Network and NUIG – ENLIGHT EU Kick-off Week
By Lucy Kelly
ENLIGHT is a European network of 3rd level institutes that are working towards a more equitable quality of life through the development and transformation of higher education across Europe. Currently there is nine universities involved in the network, including NUI Galway.
At the core of ENLIGHT’s aims is the transformation of higher education to empower learners to develop as engaged global citizens. Universities in the ENLIGHT network don’t want students to just graduate with your degree, rather they want students to graduate with the tools to be ‘lifelong learners and agents-of-change to tackle the challenges of tomorrow’. As part of the network, a week-long programme of lectures and webinars among other events was held, that anyone in the University’s community could attend, to help spread information and increase the engagement in the programme. As a student I was intrigued and inspired by the events I got a chance to attend, as it really brought to the fore how much students can be empowered and involved in research and development of a more equitable future for our communities. Not, only this, it was fascinating to hear from other institutions and their approaches to transforming higher education in their context and communities.
ENLIGHT From A Students Perspective
As a student, I found it interesting that so much is being done on an international level to make higher level education more accessible and holistic in its approach. I found it interesting that the University community is engaging, developing, and collaborating with its surrounding community and further afield. The flagship lectures throughout the week explored how the network is working with their local communities to create a more equitable, sustainable, and open community for future generations. One of the many events held focused on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) #3, Global Engagement and Equity. From a student perspective, I found it resonated with me that both our college and the surrounding network of universities are making a conscious effort to create a more equitable future, in terms of further education and its contributions to the community. Hearing from several different perspectives on how to move forward with the SDG Goal three in mind, it brought focus on a local level on how each in our own way, we can bring equity and global engagement it many different aspects of our lives. As, students, we have a prime opportunity to fully develop as globally engaged graduates. There is serious potential for both personal and professional development in understanding that all aspects of university life has a role to play in transforming communities, not just in their specific aspects but also in making education more accessible, and the local community more equitable.
Another lecture focused on the future shaping impacts the Universities can have on the development of the surrounding communities. What stood out in the general theme of the lecture was the Universities’ dedication to sharing the journey of creating a brighter future. Four speakers brought different perspectives on how exactly communities and universities are working together to better and shape the future. While this work goes on in the backgrounds of our university lives, it is important to understand that Universities, as institutions do not exist in a vacuum, they have a symbiotic relationship with the communities surrounding. In terms of students, it is important to highlight the limitless possibilities of projects that can be developed from a student level upwards, in a research manner, that could lead to big changes across the different communities involved with ENLIGHT.
Overall, with the development of different programmes and networks that reach-out beyond the inner community of the campus, student engagement with the programmes are essential for the best outcomes. Because, of course, without students in higher education, there is no higher education!
NUI Galway release second four-year Sustainability Strategy
By Caoimhe Killeen
NUI Galway have officially unveiled a second sustainability strategy entitled the ‘Sustainability Strategy 2021-2025.’
The strategy which was launched by former President of Ireland and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson was developed by a Community University Sustainability Partnership (CUSP) team chaired by Professor Jamie Goggins and focuses around 25 key measures of success through a “live, learn and lead” approach.
These measures are based around the themes of research and learning, energy and greenhouse gas emissions, nature, and ecosystems, built environment, health and wellbeing and governance and leadership to lead a transition to a sustainable future by adapting policies that are more sustainable for the university.
Some of the key sustainability measures include integrating sustainability across all education programmes offered in NUI Galway by 2023, improving energy efficiency by 45%, reducing food wastage by 50% and achieving a tobacco free campus within the year.
“It is heartening to see NUI Galway stepping up and shaping a future that has sustainability at the core” stated Dr Robinson at the launch.
“It is incumbent on Universities to act on the single greatest challenge our society faces…you can play a leading role in the transition to a more sustainable future. By unleashing sustainability potential in the leaders of tomorrow, you can extend sustainability beyond the campus wall and into our communities.”
Under the first sustainability strategy, NUI Galway managed to become a Green Campus Ireland awarded site and reached a targeted 40%, exceeding the Public Sector 2020 Energy Efficiency Target of 33%.
NUI Galway has also tried to extend its sustainability efforts beyond its campus walls. It won the Sustainability Category of last year’s Galway Chamber Awards on a local level. On an international level, it has signed the Sustainable Development Goals Accord.
“We are living in a time of great threat to the sustainability of our planet” stated Professor Pól Ó Dochartaigh, NUI Galway Deputy President and Registrar and Chair of the CUSP Advisory Board.
“Today we are putting in place a strategy that sets out our vision and commitment to lead the transition to a sustainable future on our campus, in our city and around the world. The strategy has been a collaboration involving academics, students, and professional staff right across the University and in the wider community. It is only by coming together that we can achieve the future we want.”
“When it comes to sustainability, the students’ voice was loudest,” stated NUI Galway’s Students’ Union President Pádraic Toomey.
“We will inherit this planet and want to make sure that it’s one that we can live in. Too long as a society we left things just go by without change and we hope with pushing for sustainability within the college we can make waves for the future.”
One Year On and students are still feeling the financial impact of Covid-19
By Éanna Johnston
She finds herself in an unfortunate financial situation, but she’s not the only one.
It’s been nearly a year since the government announced the first of Ireland’s Covid-19 lockdowns, and students across the country are still feeling the incredible financial strain. Many of us right now check our bank balances every day to see how far the SUSI grant will take us for the month. With the hospitality sector closed, many students who relied on part-time jobs to make their way through college are now scrambling to find any morsel of money to get them through the months ahead.
Speaking to several NUI Galway students about how their jobs have been impacted by the ongoing pandemic, their stories are an eye opener into the severity of the grip the virus has on students financially.
“I was a sales assistant in a store, and I found out I lost my job the Saturday before Christmas” says Chloe. “I’ve found it difficult and have had to use my savings – it’s been hard to adjust” she added.
Second-year science student, Ashling Laffey, lost her job at the start of the pandemic, “When I went on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment, I was given the lowest payment – I give myself about €50 a week for expenses – I’m left with €23 for my savings each week.”
Third-year arts student Ryan Kearney, who works in essential retail, found himself in a trying situation at the beginning. “ I was getting 80% of my wages, putting me well below the poverty line. That was tough” he says. “Although my pay has thankfully improved, there is a lot of stress trying to balance work and college” he added.
These are three of many students whose future may be influenced by the pandemic. With postgraduate positions already being an incredibly straining investment for students financially, it’s common to hear stories of students having to make use of their savings or, in some cases, having no savings at all.
With the only governmental support directly to students being a one-off payment of €250 in December 2020, now asks the question, are the government doing enough for students? “It was a sad effort to reverse the effects of the crisis that they had caused,” Ashling added.
Students clearly do not have the trust they may have once had before the pandemic started. Currently, the government has no plans to give another one-off payment. Needless to say, students are left with too many unanswered questions. With troubling stories of students being distraught about whether they’ll have money for food for the month, and the shocking statistic that one third of students suffer from depression, it’s painfully clear that the financial pressure put onto students is becoming all too much. In the words of Chloe, “my anxiety became so severe, all I was thinking about was money and finding a new job.” Is this the college life that many young people expected?
—UL students share their thoughts on the College Court incident
By Caoimhe Killeen and Saoirse Higgins
While NUI Galway has seen its fair share of controversies over the past academic year, public attention shifted to Castletroy in Limerick in recent weeks, as the latest student-related incident took social media by storm. Several videos started to circulate on Twitter both from students and on the ‘UL Confessions’ page on the eve of March 2nd, of a street party outside the College Court accommodation situated near the UL campus. Gardaí were quickly called to the scene to disperse the gathering shortly before 11 pm.
Many people rushed to social media to condemn the actions of the students, including Limerick Fine Gael Councillors Daniel Butler and Olivia O’Sullivan. The President of UL, Kerstin Mey, also condemned the actions of the students. On the night of the incident, she stated on Twitter,
“UL will take action with strong disciplinary measures against any student who has been found to have breached public health guidelines,” and concluded that all UL students are subject to a Code of Conduct.”
UL Student Life also released a statement saying, “the events which took place in College Court on Tuesday, March 2nd are completely unacceptable and show a disregard of public health guidelines by the students involved.”
They continued, “UL Student Life acknowledges that the vast majority of our students have followed public health advice and we encourage these students to continue to do so.”
They also added that the actions of the students involved were “indefensible” and that they would support the University in any disciplinary action.
“I actually first found out it was happening early that day” explained one University of Limerick student, “My friend is living in College Court, and I was self-isolating due to being a close contact. I was on the phone to him, and he said there was a house party going on next door and he could hear the music. I didn’t really think much of it this stage… he then rang me around seven or eight that night to say a firework went off right outside his window, and he later sent me videos of them all out on the street and the guards arriving.”
The reaction on social media, particularly on that of the UL Confessions page was mixed. “Many people were upset and giving out about the party, but others were happy about the party and encouraged it” stated another UL student. “I was surprised at the amount of people encouraging it considering the rising numbers in Limerick...I do see where both sides are coming from and I can support both views in what they represent, but at the end of the day we need to be safe and the views for partying and breaking restrictions is not a good one at this time.”
There are several investigations ongoing with Gardaí still looking to identify people who were at the party. Currently, 50 fines have been issued and three arrests were made. The University of Limerick have stated there is a possibility of suspension or expulsion for students who severely breached Covid-19 guidelines. However, that has not seemed to ease UL students’ minds over the incident.
“I heard that they are suspending everyone involved…But I don’t see how everyone who was there can be accounted for. Also, if some were to be suspended while others got away with it, I don’t think that would be fair” was one such viewpoint.
“I also heard that following the incident a small number of students at the gathering had to delete all of their social media accounts because they were receiving death threats from members of the public for their involvement in the College Court incident,” another UL student said to SIN.
“I know what they did was unacceptable, but it is also unacceptable for any human being to send death threats or abusive messages to people they don’t know. The University and Gardaí were working together on the issue, so there was no need for anyone else to get involved.”
During a meeting of the Limerick Joint Policing Committee, Chief Superintendent Gerard Roche claimed that there have been several drug seizures in College Court over the past few months. Due to that and recent events, he said that they will be putting pressure on individual landlords in the student estate to take some responsibility for what has been happening on the premises. “We will be making contact with every one of those owners with a view to putting pressure on them to regulate their own houses” he remarked.
Even to the student journalists in UL, the event drew shock and disbelief. “I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the snap map videos” stated Chloe O’Keefe, Editor of UL’s student newspaper, An Focal. “It’s upsetting to see that carry-on when we’re all looking for the same end goal.”
Such stories have also reflected events that have occurred here in NUI Galway with the university enforcing its own fines on those who break Covid-19 restrictions, going as far as to confirm a 2,000-word reflective essay as an alternative to paying fines. Students’ Union Welfare and Equality officer Roísín Nic Lochlainn has stated that NUI Galway needs to reflect on how they carry out disciplinary processes.
“We’ve seen, from the likes of Limerick and around the country, that it is the colleges that aren’t in the news about outbreaks are the ones that don’t actually have a code of conduct” stated Nic Lochlainn. “So, this begs the question, how effective is our Code of Conduct as it currently is?”
“Management of NUI Galway cannot say that they are concerned for students’ wellbeing and that they understand the pressures that students are under with work right now while enforcing a 2,000-word essay – it’s as simple as that. Enforcing such an archaic sanction such as this essay would only add to the pressures that students are finding themselves under when they are already at breaking point…perhaps senior management of NUI Galway could write 2,000-word essays on their description of the €295 repeat fee as ‘modest’”
Sustainability Student Summit
Rachel Hume
On March 4th, the Students’ Union, ALIVE, the NUI Galway Societies and CUSP held a collaborative workshop with sustainability opportunities and as a way for students to engage in conversations on sustainability and what events they can engage with this semester for sustainability. The summit was a great way to bring like-minded people together to discuss their views, address what they felt were campus challenges surrounding sustainability and to collaborate on the recently updated Sustainability Strategy on campus. The event had many brilliant speakers ranging from the Sustainability Officer on campus to the Energy Society to ALIVE.
The first speaker at the event was NUI Galway’s Sustainability Officer, Michelle O’Dowd. Michelle discussed the Universities Sustainability Strategy 2021-2025, she identified the five areas that will be worked on in the University’s Sustainability Strategy. The five work areas included: Research and Learning, Energy, Nature and Ecosystems, Health and wellbeing, Built Environment, and Governance and Leadership. Within each of these areas, Michelle listed a couple, of many, ideas that the University’s Sustainability Strategy aims to achieve. Within the research and learning area, the strategy hopes to implement: integration of sustainability across all education programmes, co-curricular sustainability experiences for all students, to establish an understanding of funded research projects that are aligned with the SDG’s, and leadership in sustainability innovation and entrepreneurship. The energy, nature and ecosystems area in the sustainability strategy aims to reduce greenhouse gases by 15% based on the 2021 baseline, improve energy efficiency by 45% from 2005 baseline year, and 20% of electricity to come from renewable sources by 2025.
Michelle next discussed the nature and ecosystems part of the strategy, the ideas that were aimed to be implemented in this section included: a biodiversity plan implemented and monitored for future updates, demonstrated linkages between sustainable management of campus and campus biodiversity, and co-developed community projects in city and county with key partners. In the built environment section of the strategy, the goals that were aimed to be met included: Reducing the total water consumption by 10% from 2019 baseline (metering, water efficient fixtures and fittings, use of alternatives sources of water), the banning of single-use plastic convenience items. A reduction of food wastage by 50% and the establishment of baseline transport carbon footprint by 2021 and reduce year on year.
The last two areas in the strategy that Michelle discussed were health and wellbeing and governance and leadership. The goals for the health and wellbeing section aimed to implement included: Achieving the keep well mark and healthy campus status, the implementation of a smoke free campus, and a reduction to the level of harmful drinking among students year on year. In the governance and leadership section, Michelle discussed the aims they hope to implement on campus. These aims comprise of: Showing year-on-year progress on the achievement of the SDGs, they have also recently held an up-cycled Christmas Tree competition in December. The society are currently working on pedal-powered charging stations that will be put on campus. This project will look at a greener way for students and staff to charge their phones/computers/etc. and aims to make people more aware of their energy consumption, while being physically active! As well as the pedal-powered charging stations, the Energy Society are included in a wide range of projects this semester such as; the Climathon, the
establishing impactful partnerships with community groups to achieve SDGs, making all laboratories green lab certified, achieving a STARS Ranking and to improve upon their award ranking, and aiming to find a pathway towards achieving carbon neutrality.
Students Union:
The Students Union on campus encouraged the students who showed up at the summit to get involved in the SUstainability Working Group. This is a group of like-minded students who meet every second Monday from 6-7pm and discuss different sustainability campaigns to run on the campus. Some of the campaigns that were mentioned that the SUstainability Working Group run consists of: Sustainable Mondays, promoting how to be more sustainable, and submissions to Government on sustainability e.g., Fairtrade. To get involved with the SUstainability Working Group, email Róisín at ‘su.welfare@nuigalway.ie’.
The NUIG Energy Society:
Next, the NUIG Energy Society were on to talk about their previous and upcoming events and their ongoing projects. This society have had a range of projects and fundraisers they have held in the past couple of years, for example last week on March 5th they held a Quiz Night with many spectacular prizes and the proceeds of this fundraiser went towards helping local biodiversification & environmental protection projects. Along with event they have hosted many other fundraisers and social nights including: Wind Farm 5k, a Halloween movie night and a Table Quiz back in 2019! The Society then gave everyone an insight into their most recent projects and events. The society ran an Instagram series before Christmas, on Monday’s called ‘Meatless Monday’s’ and National Park City initiative, CUSP and the Green Energy Festival. This Society gets involved with so many sustainable projects and would be a great way for any student interested in sustainability to get involved.
ALIVE:
Then Lorraine Tansey in the ALIVE team came on to discuss all the different opportunities for students to get involved with sustainability on campus. Lorraine mentioned the Eco-Café on Wednesday’s at 10am on Microsoft Teams. The Eco-Café is a great way for any student on campus to meet in a safe and non-judgemental environment to discuss their fears/anxieties about the environment/ecological crises. Fiona in the Student Counselling Services is there to help students take positive action to better help themselves and the planet. Another project on campus that is looking at sustainability is the National Park City initiative in Galway. This looks at creating an ecological corridor between all the different parks in Galway for species to move more freely and looks at making Galway a more sustainable city that is more connected to nature. As well as the National Park City initiative, is An Taisce and Eco-UNESCO, these are brilliant opportunities for students to become more involved with sustainability. They investigate environmental conservation and Ireland’s sustainable development and run successful programmes on the environment and sustainability.
Thank so much to all the amazing speakers at the Sustainability Student Summit. There are so many amazing opportunities here on campus for students to get involved with sustainability. Overall, the Sustainability Student Summit was a massive success and allowed many students to come together to express their thoughts on sustainability and the challenges facing a more sustainable campus for everyone.
Don’t cough on my parade
By Rachel Garvey
It has been a full year since the Covid-19 pandemic descended upon Ireland. To those who have been doing their part and staying home, it feels like a lifetime has passed. Their usual routines were halted while time ticked by in a completely different way for essential workers. Frontline workers are somewhere in between feeling “time went by fast, but slow at the same time,” becoming exasperated with extended lockdowns, hours on end of wearing masks, and not being able to see friends and family due to their constant contact with the public on a daily basis. It has been a year of hardship, depression, and uncertainty, but there is still hope. Talks of the vaccine and getting everyone vaccinated holds hope for the future and how our normal lives will be returned to us soon.
St Patrick’s Day is fast approaching. The public holiday is a time where people come together to celebrate and watch the traditional parade that winds through the streets in all counties of Ireland. On St Patrick’s Day last year, we were robbed of our annual parade and everything that comes with the day as the public were told to stay indoors. The streets of Galway that were once full of life in years previous became deserted and quiet. The sound of drums from marching bands and children’s laughter didn’t echo through the streets last year and won’t this year either. Galway is still in level five lockdown, as is the rest of Ireland, and gatherings are still not permitted. Pubs and shops remain closed until further notice. However, another year of the parade being cancelled doesn’t necessarily mean that our small plans to celebrate have to be put on hold too!
Here are some ways in which we can celebrate St Patrick’s Day 2021:
Virtual parade:
Watching the parade with friends and family or having a few friendly drinks in the pubs isn’t possible in times such as these so it’ll teach us to think outside the box for ways in which we can still celebrate the day. Why not sit down with your friends or family and watch clips of the parade that took place in years previous? Talk about the memories of that day and what you liked or disliked about the parade. If we can’t physically attend it then the virtual world lends us a helping hand in capturing such events even if it took place years ago.
Be Green:
Nothing is stopping us from dressing up at home and wearing green or the colours of our tricolour. Even though we can’t show off our outfits and multicoloured hats and hairbands, we can still spread joy through sharing our outfits on social media. You would be surprised at how it can bring a smile to someone else’s face and maybe even bring some motivation or inspiration to them to do the same thing. On that note, with the concept of dressing up there is no law against having a few friendly drinks at home with your family or housemates. Also, videos surfaced on social media last year of children driving in their little toy cars in an attempt to make their own parade. Playing some traditional Irish songs can also be a great mood booster to raise one’s damp spirits.
Make it a fat-night:
Cook a lovely roast dinner for everyone or make it a bacon and cabbage sort of day for all who live with you. Also, if you don’t want to go to the effort of making a dinner, you can always order a takeaway from wherever your heart desires. Where would we be without delivery apps nowadays? Don’t forget your desserts, perhaps some mint ice-cream to add more green to your day.
St Patrick’s Day has been called off not once, but twice now and even though there’s not a thing we can do about it, we keep our fingers crossed that for St Patrick’s Day 2022 we will be back to normal with no restrictions and no cancelled parades. For now, we all have to try and celebrate at home with each other with our green coloured friends like an innocent Irish edition of Fifty Shades of Green, but with no foreplay involved. St Patrick was able to drive out the snakes from Ireland so perhaps we should say a prayer to him to drive out the coronavirus too!
