CSC 2014/15 TCD Societies Yearbook

CHAIR'S REPORT Thank you for picking up a copy of this year’s CSC Yearbook! Editing this beautiful journal (thanks, Grace) has been a joy - reading each and every submission was a pleasure. My only regret is that I could not attend each event that graces the pages in front of you - there truly is too much talent on offer from our societies for one person to experience it all. When we remember that this wealth of activity and creativity occurs despite funding cutbacks from College, it is more impressive still.

Overall, I would consider this year to have been a good one for the CSC. To name but a few highlights, we have had a crucial input into the necessary reform of The Dean of Students’ Roll Of Honour, added three provisionally recognised societies to our ranks and organised another wildly successful Fourth Week festival. I have no doubt that next year will see even more success with Andrew at the helm.

I have repeatedly given thanks to my fellow CSC Officers and staff over the last few weeks, but I feel they deserve to blush one more time.

Thank you, then, to Andrew, Caitriona, Grace, Ronan, Emma, Lucy and Joe. Your cooperation, passion and friend-

ship have been invaluable.

The CSC Exec has also been hugely helpful this year, and have shown a great engagement with, and interest in, the CSC process, so thank you to Aifric, Frank, Jamie, Jim, Kevin, Paul, Síle and Tobe.

An extra-special thank you must go to the wonderful Grace Nuttall, whose design work on this Yearbook is, as always, outstanding. All credit for this publication should go to her.

Finally, I would like to say how incredibly grateful I am for having had the opportunity to be CSC Chairperson this year. I never imagined that my time in college would go so quickly, be as enjoyable, or introduce me to so many life-long friends, but my involvement in societies has ensured that it has.

It has been a privilege to fight for, promote and assist societies this year - they, and the students who run them, are the beating heart of this university, and if given the chance I’d do it all again.

Thank you, and enjoy the Yearbook, Eanna Drury

Yearbook Team 2014-2015 Editor: Eanna Drury Design Editor: Grace Nuttall Contributors: Andrew Burrows, Caitríona Sheil, Tobechukwu Arize, Paul Behan, Frank Bradley, Jim Connell-Moylan, Kevin Fogarty, Aifric ni Chriodain, Síle Somers & Jamie Buckley.

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FRESHERS’ WEEK Freshers’ Week 2014 kicked off with the usual Monday madness of gazebos and goodie bags as blinking first years got lost in the maze of Front Square. Society officers had risen at the crack of dawn to secure the best spots to fight for new members and prove that their events were the best around. From freshers to jaded sophister students, there were a huge number of events to look forward to over the course of the week, with something to satisfy every taste.

Knit Soc continued their legacy of being the cutest society around with a ‘PicKnit’ in the Rose Garden combining wool and home-baked goods, followed by their first Stitch & Bitch session of the year. Chair Adam Keilthy reported that everyone had ‘a lovely time, teaching knitting, chatting to people and just generally trying to make Trinity seem welcoming’. The Knit Soc Committee were also encouraged by an increase in ‘so many enthusiastic new members’.

The Phil carried on from the success of the previous session with a whole host of events. With the annual comedy debate, a talk from renowned speaker Chris Lubbe, debating workshops, plus free breakfast every day, their jampacked Freshers’ Week set the tone for what was to be one

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of their best years yet, culminating in their ‘Best Large Society’ win at the CSC awards.

According to Treasurer Jamie Buckley, ‘Freshers’ Week 2014 was one of the Phil’s most successful of recent years.

The team really outdid themselves to create an incredibly fun and positive atmosphere with a variety of cool events, which hopefully gave incoming students a great introduction to college life!’

The sheer number of high quality events happening around campus saw many societies witness an increase in membership from previous years. Newly recognised Global Development Society had a particularly successful week, with over 270 new members signing up. Zoe Eves, Chair of the society, said there was ‘a great atmosphere and we made links with other societies who put up stands next to us, and followed up on those with events during the year’.

Hosted by Trinity Arts Festival (TAF), the Trinity Arts Walk was one of the most unique and engaging events to take place on campus. Featuring nine different societies, the event featured a tour of Trinity filled with live performances from DU Dance, Jazz Soc and Players. ArcSoc and VisArts provided information on the art and architecture of

campus, alongside a photo trail from DUPA. Participants were treated with tales of Trinity literary legends from LitSoc, while Juggling and Circus Soc led a fire juggling performance in Front Square with drumming from the Afro-Caribbean Society. Chair Dara McElligott said ‘The Trinity Arts Walk was a brand new event for TAF so we were surprised and delighted by the amount of people who showed up for it. It was brilliant to collaborate with so many societies so early in the year and to be able to showcase their talents to the incoming first years. It was a really fun event that will hopefully be continued next Fresher’s Week.’

With over 110 societies to choose from, it would be impossible to give a full account of all the activity carried out throughout Freshers’ Week. Large and small, our societies really excelled themselves, bringing in a host of new members and surpassing all expectations with the variety and standard of events on offer. The tireless work of all the committees involved led to the success of the week, setting a fantastic standard for the year and showcasing the best of Trinity life to students old and new.

Caitríona Sheil

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From 3-7 June 2014, DU Players hosted the inaugural MythFest, a theatre festival celebrating Irish mythology. In previous years, the society had hosted a Shakespeare summer festival, so MythFest marked a departure for us.

Without a wealth of plays to choose from, our members had to create their own pieces inspired by Irish mythology. The result? Eleven diverse and exciting shows. From the musically titillating reimagination of The Legend of Setanta to the design-rich shadow puppetry in Tales From the Shadows, the inner-child awakening Sweeney’s Treehouse to the enthralling movement of Magic And Myth, there was a little bit of everything at MythFest.

In line with these original and innovative theatre pieces, our headline show was a step into contemporary collaborative theatre. We invited renowned playwright Shaun Dunne to create a new theatre piece with society members. The result was The Sorrows, a modern interpretation of Deirdre of the Sorrows set at Trinity Ball. It was a whirlwind of verse and aural flavour rooted in the heart of the campus itself. It was extraordinary to see all of these works brought to life in the open air, where the myths themselves would have taken place.

The festival also had a variety of evening events, from a Spoken Word night to a Céilí. With an estimated 150 society members taking part and over 2,500 visitors over the course of the festival, MythFest brought a breath of life into the college long after the lecture halls had closed for business.

sofia

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du players

The Palestine Ambassador to Ireland, Ahmad Abdelrazek, visited Trinity for a SOFIA panel discussion in the Robert Emmet Theatre on the 23rd September. The event, entitled ‘Peace In Palestine: What’s Next?’, began with a presentation by the Ambassador, who talked about the history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in order to show ‘how we [the Palestinians] passed from an unknown people only recognised as refugees to a recognised people’.

He then described how people ignored the Palestinian people in the 1950s and 1960s, ‘considering them just as refugees and ignoring their national aspirations’. He recounted his own experiences in Europe in the 1970s and remembered how he had to hide his nationality due to the perceptions some Europeans had of Palestinians at the time. His Excellency made clear on a number of occasions throughout the night that the Palestinian Authority’s aim was for a twostate solution on the internationally recognised 1967 borders.

He said that negotiations have continually failed with Israel ‘for the simple reason that the Israelis have failed to negotiate borders’.

He concluded by saying that the Palestinians have ‘strong legal means [they] will use if America and Europe do not find a rapid solution’, namely seeking admission to all United Nations institutions and the International Criminal Court (ICC). He finished by saying that it will become near impossible to evacuate settlers in the long-term if they come to exceed one million. Concluding with a Question and Answer session with attendees, this event began SOFIA’s year with a bang, discussing an issue of huge international significance before an enthusiastic and vocal capacity crowd.

high society The annual High Society soirée in October was just as sophisticated as previous years - and and more fire-andsafety approved than ever before! The societies with rooms in House 6, as ever, wanted to reward their members for climbing all those stairs during the year to visit them, and threw the customary glamorous, glitter-flled evening to woo and entice them into continuing their support.

Lit Soc, Film, Comedy, Alternative Music, Gender Equality, Orchestra, QSoc, TFM, Metafzz, Amnesty, and TTV all donned their tuxedos and cocktail dresses and combined their interests, fun-lovin’ spirit and society rooms to bring their members together—a bit like your granny sending you on a blind date with her neighbour’s son because ‘he’s a lovely boy and I’m sure you’ll get along famously if you just give him a chance.’

Each society hosted their own mini-event in their respective room. LitSoc and DUGES joined forces with a poetry slam, where they smashed the patriarchy into smithereens using the spoken word. Comedy Soc brought out the hilarious (albeit slightly less than politically correct) Cards Against Humanity in order to break the ice. Trinity FM inadvertently held a ‘Broadcast Party’ - some partied, others tried to broadcast, blasting out some boogey-worthy tunes to warm us all up. I guess that’s late October in a listed building for you.

TTV and Film opened up their room to listen to some movie and television soundtracks, inviting all to come in and give their two cents on Hans Zimmer (and any others in the field, I guess). Metafzz took a more covert approach to the night, wandering around wine in hand, and before we knew it, spirited philosophical debates were breaking out all over the building. Guerrilla philosophy—what more could you want on a night out ?

DUAMS held one of their renowned jam sessions (with real jam!) which inevitably just turned into a sing-song as the night went on, before we rallied the troops and headed out, head to toe in glitter, to the très chic Café en Seine, where of course the high-heels came off and much elegant and sophisticated dancing ensued. A classy evening enjoyed by the highest of societies in House 6, and hopefully a tradition to be carried on for many years to come.

Síle Somers

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FOURTH WEEK Fourth Week is a week dedicated to highlighting the activity, enthusiasm and creativity of Trinity’s 120 student societies. A much-loved staple of the college calendar, it gives students and staff a chance to ‘try before they buy’, to support the societies they’ve always had an interest in or to discover something new and wonderful, with all events being free to attend. This year saw more than 60 events fill a jam-packed timetable, with a Falconry exhibition, sean-nós dancing workshop and a hiking trip being just three of the activities on offer.

Some standout events included the Animation Society hosting noted children’s illustrator Sarah Bowie, Food & Drink’s ‘NutellaNomNom’ event and DU Player’s incredible production of Witness for the Prosecution.

This proved to be a hilarious Law & Order take on Agatha Christie’s most suspenseful drama, where the audience were kept on the edge of their seat by its classic and unpredictable ‘whodunnit?’ question. Directed by Trinity’s resident creative genius Grace Nuttall and former University Times societies editor Shona McGarry, this play was something special indeed.

Knit Soc won the hearts and minds of the college community with their adorable Let’s Make A Blanket event and the ever-reliable History Soc didn’t disappoint with their Daniel O’Connell Talk featuring Professor Patrick Geoghegan. Elsewhere, the Quiz Society crammed a seemingly-impossible amount of people into Doyle’s pub for their Harry Potter quiz and a new

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group of aspiring debaters were coached in the Phil’s Chamber Debating Workshop.

If the week started well, it ended even better. Building on last year’s award-winning showcase, Trinity Arts Festival returned again with ‘The Fall’, a stunning re-imagination of Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost.

After a stellar advertising campaign, the likes of which is rarely if ever seen, TAF delivered a mesmerizing collaboration alongside DU Music, Singers, Vis Arts & many more. TES continued their outstanding ‘TES Talks’ series with Irish entrepreneur Ray Nolan, while DU Music and the Germanic Society teamed up to present a jam-packed German Music recital featuring the best of German classical music.

Those hoping for a quiet weekend were to be sorely disappointed. Saturday saw DUPA give their ever-popular darkroom classes, while NetSoc and the Pirate Party presented their ‘Hackathon’ event. The week was rounded off in style with the Hiking Society taking a large group on a trip to Howth.

Despite the exhaustion of those involved in organising, and those who attended every event they could throughout the week, the consensus was that Fourth Week had been a great success.

This was not just measured in the extraordinary array of events or the huge boost it gave to Trinity’s societies; its true achievement was the incredible atmosphere of fun it created across campus and the sea of smiles lighting Trinity up across week four.

Paul Behan

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s2s

Caledonian Society

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Fourth Week this year saw S2S take on their most ambitious event yet: a week-long Gumball Challenge that was open to all in College. Plotting and planning began over the summer holidays, with the original event targeted at just Junior Freshman students. The committee then re-thought the idea and asked the question ‘why should first years have all the fun?’

Following from this, we decided to make it a free event open to all years in college, ending up with 310 people on 62 teams competing for some great prizes. And what a week it was! We were inundated with amazing photos and videos from Monday to Friday - ranging from people flying up Grafton Street using lab coats as wings to some fabulous ‘models’ strutting their stuff on the Arts Block ramp. It was an extremely close race with the majority of teams completing most of the challenges.

We kept the teams in suspense until the following Wednesday as we waited for our annual Mental Health Week Speak Your Mind event to announce the winners. It was an amazing event to kick off what turned out to be a great year for S2S - and we’d it all again.

One of our favourite events here at CalSoc was our first ever club night, RAVEHEART, which took place in October. The event’s concept was borne out of our deep love for the finest (although ludicrously historically inaccurate) example of Caledonian cinema, ‘Braveheart’, and also a lifelong admiration for good ol’ fashioned raving.

Taking place in the Blind Pig of Suffolk Street, the stage was set for an almighty celebration of Scottish culture, albeit in a unique and unusual forum. The venue was decked with the finest decorations our spiritual homeland had to offer, from saltires and ribbons of the finest tartan to the strategic placement of several ornamental haggii.

Our evening was sound-tracked by the expert hands of DUDJ’s finest specimens. On top of their usual trappings of 90s cheese pop and sleek 80s disco, their set list featured some truly fantastic remixes of quintessential Scottish music - everything from a techno infused Flower of Scotland to an electro-swing Auld Lang Syne. Braveheart battle-style face-painting and spontaneous reels were the order of the night as was our unique blend of whisky and pineapple juice the secret recipe for the Caledonian cocktail.

With the sweet sound of our national instrument piping our entry and exit, the night began and finished on a Highland high. Many thanks to all of our members for attending and we can promise that it will be happening again. Lang May Yar Lum Reek!

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christian union

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Where else but in college would you get the run of an 18th century manor for the weekend, with all food, accommodation and travel costs included for 45 euro each? That’s what the Christian Union managed to pull off last October with the generous help of the CSC travel grant. Our weekend away fell earlier than usual this year, which turned out to be a gift, because it gave everyone who came along a chance to begin proper friendships, settingthe tone for the whole year at CU.

Our theme for the weekend was Romans 12 – which shows how we are all called to live a life of selfless love. This Bible passage was unpacked over four hour-long sessions over the weekend led by one of our own, Ben Jacob. It was challenging. It was great.

Saturday saw a rather intense game of capture the flag, as well as making use of the 12 acres of lawns that we had free rein of. While this was going on, some of our committee were preparing a pretty fabulous three course meal (deserved special mention here for Clare’s mango chicken and Emma and Elaine’s mocktails). After, we braved the cold to head out for a bonfire, which was as star, marshmallow and music filled as one would hope for.

Our hashtags for the weekend - #GetOutOfDublin and #GOOD started off as a joke, but there was something pretty special about getting out into the countryside for the weekend, into the fresh air and into a reminder of the goodness of God and the life He has called us to. CU next year.

global development

In late October, Trinity Global Development Society, in conjunction with DU Amnesty International, hosted a panel discussion on the topic of Human Rights and Humanitarian Aid in the Gaza Strip.

The event took place in the Emmett Theatre and speakers included Senator David Norris, Trocaire’s Programme Officer in Israel and Palestine Gary Walsh, TCD sociologist Dr. David Landy and Dr. Ephraim Nimni of Queens University. The speakers provided the audience with their experience and opinions on this issue as well as taking part in an interesting Q&A session with assembled students following the discussion.

The event was followed by a reception for both the audience and guest speakers. This panel discussion proved to be a successful evening, providing interesting, lively debate between the speakers and an opportunity for Trinity students to ask questions about the series of complex events currently unfolding in the Gaza Strip.

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germanic society

The Horse Racing Society’s annual trip to Paris for the prestigious Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe was a runaway success again this year. Encapsulating what the society is all about, our members experienced world-class racing with like-minded enthusiasts and had a great time away from the racecourse too!

On a dreary Friday morning, a group of sixty lined up at Terminal One for the early flight to Beauvais. After eventually reaching ‘Hostel Oops’ on the beautiful Avenue des Gobelins, we then split up to explore the City of Light by ourselves in the 24 degrees heat.

That night, we hit the Boulevard de Clichy - home to the Moulin Rouge - to enjoy a meal and night out in O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub. Dubbed ‘The Coppers of Paris’, our time there did not disappoint!

The highlight of the weekend was, of course, the topclass racing action on Saturday to kick off Arc weekend. Lifelong racing enthusiasts and newbies alike had a fantastic day at Longchamp racecourse.

That night, we met up in the Chez Robert restaurant for a delicious meal, followed by a trip to The Hole in the Wall, a quirky bar in the city centre. Despite leading all those in the bar in a hearty singing session, we had enough energy left to cheer the fantastic Treve home in Sunday’s Arc.

Arriving back in Dublin exhausted, all agreed that the trip had been fantastic from start to finish.

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As a society which aims to spread an appreciation of German culture across and beyond campus, it seemed fitting that the great festival that is Oktoberfest was celebrated again by DU Germanic Society. On the 2nd of October 2014, our celebration - one of the biggest events of the year for Germany and for the society - took place.

Although our own society ‘Fest’ received some competition from the Dublin Oktoberfest, it still succeeded because of its unique Trinity twist. This year we decided to return to our bar of choice, J.W. Sweetman, known by all thirsty students to serve delicious craft beers.

Each attendee was offered a choice between homebrewed cider or lager – and, of course, traditional German Pretzels, as well as other treats, were also provided. Our members, including many German visiting students, were happy to have found a way to celebrate the festival and were welcomed to a private area of the pub which had been appropriately decorated with German flag. Some members eagerly availed of the opportunity to have German flags painted on their faces.

With a wide variety of students present on the night, this year’s Oktoberfest turned out to be a very pleasant cultural and language exchange event, with students taking turns to speak both German and English. Overall, a wonderful night was had by everyone, setting the society up for its most active year yet.

horse racing

In order to make people feel welcome and to help foster a sense of community in the society, KnitSoc organized the ‘Let’s Make A Blanket’ event. We invited everyone in the college community to join us for tea and biscuits, to learn to knit and to help us produce a piece of KnitSoc history.

Everyone worked on a small square of knitting and we then sewed all the tiny squares into a society blanket. It gave new knitters an achievable goal, so that they actually got to say they made something. We as a committee feel that it is something that members will be able to look back on, years from now, and find the square they contributed. It also gives us something to pass onto the society next year and watch as it grows.

We were thrilled at how well the event went, with huge numbers attending. It was reported on in The University Times, and we think that the piece describes exactly the atmosphere we try to create: relaxed, welcoming and educational. The blanket turned out brilliantly, with some really interesting contributions: a pokemon square featuring Gengar, several Lord of the Rings squares and even a square describing the Fundamental Theorem of Calculus – leaving us with a blanket as diverse as our society.

This event marks the start of a wonderful tradition that we hope to continue until we cover Front Square! After that… would the Provost object to a knitted Hamilton cozy?

trinity labour

knitting society

societies’ choice

Trinity Labour had an active and successful year with some very enjoyable and informative political events, including talks, workshops and campaigns. However, one event was unlike any other.

In October, we had the unique opportunity to visit the home of the labour movement and one of Dublin’s tallest buildings, Liberty Hall. Hosted by Dan O’Neill of SIPTU, we went on a tour of the building, learned about its history and the role it played in the history of the Irish Left and visited the rooftop viewing platform with the most stunning views in Dublin.

Dan also spoke to us on the importance of trade unions and activism for young people today. Our tour took in the rich history of the labour movement that the Labour Party draws on, and showed us how young people can get active and involved in politics, in the workplace, or in everyday life to fight for justice, equality, and human rights - the core of our society’s beliefs. It also took in some truly breathtaking views of Dublin from the heart of the city!

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In October, the Phil held a debate on the motion that ‘This House Believes That Women Should Embrace the Word Slut’.

The debate took place at our weekly public business meeting at 7.30pm, in front of a full attendance of around 220 students in GMB’s Debating Chamber.

In a year that has seen the highest number of packed chamber debates in recent memory, the popularity and legacy of this particular debate stands out above the rest and marked the beginning of a session where women’s issues were to the fore in the society. It was undoubtedly the best event run by the Phil this year – a verdict unanimously agreed upon by council. The atmosphere in the chamber was electric as the audience fell silent for moments of powerful emotional impact and burst into applause for others. As Phil President Sarah Mortell remarked at the end, it was a debate marked not by conflict and anger but by solidarity and respect. Everyone in attendance seemed to be aware that they were witnessing a little piece of history.

The all-female lineup included five student speakers ranging from Senior Freshman to Masters and three guest speakers: Natasha Devon, journalist and media consultant; Margaret E. Ward, entrepreneur and founder of Women On Air; and Sonya JF Barnett, founder of the SlutWalk movement.

A live-blog of the debate was run by TN journalist and Buzzfeed contributor Naoise Dolan and was covered in Cosmopolitan UK. Its contribution to conversation around female empowerment was felt much further afield than Trinity and was a highlight of our year.

Cumann Gaelach

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the phil

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Instead of spending October 31st this year frantically running around town attempting to put the finishing touches on Halloween costumes, 80 members of the Cumann Gaelach spent the morning en route to Kerry for the society’s annual trip to Oireachtas na Gaeilge. A festival attended by thousands of Irish language speakers and culture enthusiasts every year, the trip is always one of the highlights of the Cumann Gaelach’s calendar, and this year was no different, as our members took over The Neptune Hostel in the centre of Killarney.

On Friday night we attended ‘Oíche na Mac Léinn’ clad in fancy dress for the Halloween-themed student party, where a night of craic and divilment followed. Although we were robbed of the title of ‘Best Dressed College’ for the first time in six years, many of our members won individual prizes for their costumes.

A bleary-eyed Saturday morning saw our braver members face the outside world to attend the cultural events of the day, which included singing, dancing and music competitions as well as the final of the Gael Linn third-level debating competition. The afternoon was also a fine opportunity for members to meet representatives from TG4, Radio na Gaeltachta and RTE and other organisations to get an insight into the work they do.

The weekend finished off with the infamous Club na Féile in the Gleneagle Hotel, where members sean-nós danced their way into the early hours of the morning. We returned back to Dublin on Sunday afternoon, already counting down the days till Oireachtas 2015.

sociology society

One of our popular open microphone events took place on the 22nd of October 2014. These nights are always our most successful events, with great attendance and camaraderie and this one was no different. Housed in the upper floor of Chaplains, a pub which manages to appear secluded despite being on the college’s doorstep, it was a chance for our members to get up on stage and perform their latest covers and creations in front of their peers.

Opening the night was a new member, Rob, who took pleasure in introducing himself to the DUAMS members with a performance of White Stripes ‘Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground’. We usually expect to get everything from singers, guitarists, pianists to violin and bouzouki players with everything in between. This night, though, was particularly special because we had one of our members, who is a stand up comedian, stand up and tell a few jokes.

Some of our members that night used the open mic to showcase their newest sound or instrument that they’ve just learned, and were welcomed to warm applause. Our equipment manager Ben was given a test of his merit when a Senior Freshman science student requested to use his iPhone as a pre-amplifier for his guitar. Luckily, Ben knew his way around the sound board and it sounded great!

The chair, Conor, kept everything moving swiftly along and even performed a country song at one stage himself. The night was closed out by our then-treasurer Síle with a soft piano rendition of her favourite (though profanity riddled) rap songs.

The Sociology Society - still a young society! - enjoyed a fantastic second year of events ranging from our documentary film festival ‘DocStock’ to pub quizzes and guest speakers events. Yet one event has stood out from all the rest for both the committee and the members of the society and this was our fourth week event ‘El Dia De Los Muertos’ (The Day of the Dead).

El Dia De Los Muertos is an ancient tradition celebrated particularly in Mexico but also across Latin America, Asia and Africa. It is a day of commemoration for those that have departed and on this day people sing, paint sugar skills, wear face masks, decorate graves to show appreciation for those that have departed and have a sizzling siesta! To keep this tradition alive and, more importantly, keep in line with SocSoc’s aim’s to encourage awareness and experience of other cultures and societies, we brought El Dia De Los Meurtos to Trinity this year.

In the Global Room we had face painting, an arts and crafts workshop, a slideshow presentation of images of Dia De Los Muertos from across the globe and Mexican music. Of course, this event would not be complete without a table full of burritos, guacamole, salsa, nachos and a variety of other succulent snacks! The event had a Halloween theme and everyone was looking rather spooky by the time the night was over. El Dia De Los Muertos will go down on SocSoc’s calendar as one its most quirky and exciting events.

alternative music

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zoology society

AIESEC is the world’s largest youth-run organisation and is active in 126 countries across the globe. We at AIESEC Trinity have striven for, and will continue to provide, an international platform which enables young people to explore and develop their leadership potential, so that they may have a positive impact in society. This we achieve through the arrangement of internship and volunteer programmes abroad for Trinity’s budding young global leaders.

In November of 2014, AIESEC Trinity representatives attended AIESEC in Ireland’s national conference (NatCo).

Besides the various Irish, University-based AIESEC representatives, there were also plenty of AIESEC members from all corners of the globe present at the 2014 NatCo -an appropriate example of the international and global-reaching nature of the AIESEC organisation! At the NatCo, workshops were held to aid our AIESEC Trinity members in the running of our local committee so that they may continue to expand the society and assist in the realisation of the great and unique leadership potential the students in Trinity possess, in the hope that these students will create a more positive future.

Fortunately for our members at the NatCo, it wasn’t all hard work! It offered a fantastic opportunity to meet and greet other AIESEC members from various local committees, share ideas, as well as providing a motivational boost, invigorating our members into making AIESEC Trinity as good as it can be.

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ZooSoc’s Bat Walk is particularly special. We don’t bring the animals to our members; we bring them to the animals. We always hope that the bats will be there, but we can never guarantee it, as animals are unpredictable. It’s the very real chance of seeing nothing that makes the first glimpse so special.

That’s the real thrill of zoology.

We entered Phoenix Park, bat detectors in hand, eyes on the sky. Using our bat detectors, we had a pretty good chance of seeing two species considering the location and the time of year - Leisler’s and Daubenton’s. There was a very slim chance of finding Pipistrelles as they were starting to hibernate. But who knows? Maybe we’d be lucky.

We headed to the edge of a wooded area first. This was a prime location for Leisler’s bat, and Pipistrelles if we were going to see them. Almost instantly, we detected calls at the frequencies of both species. The bats heard the detectors and began to fly very close to us, swooping over our heads, much to the delight of the entire group.

Daubenton’s bats mainly hunt over water so we moved on to a lake. We were lucky once more and spent some time watching them descend to fly across the lake surface before disappearing again.

All in all, the event was a fantastic success. Some in attendance were zoology students, but many weren’t, and by the end, all were bat enthusiasts and committed Zoologists!

aiesec

computer science

The Fashion Show was our main event for the year. We chose the theme of “Insubordinate” and got to work preparing every aspect of the show with each one of our 100 fantastic volunteers. The show took place on the 26th of November in the Generator hostel, where we were absolutely delighted to raise €3000 for Samaritans Dublin.

An huge amount of work was done by the Styling Committee, which consisted of two core members, Hillary Scott and Stephen King, and a huge group of dedicated volunteers. The responsibility of styling the show involved securing a team of makeup artists and hairdressers, contacting 20+ fashion retailers, hand-selecting all items to be worn, acquiring rails and hangers and organizing model fittings, along with organizing the transportation of the clothes to and from the show.

Coordination with the other teams from the society, such as entertainment and PR, was an essential element in the success of the night. In order to generate maximum exposure for the show, our PR and Styling committees teamed up to shoot some promotional posers of some models due to take part in the show. These were displayed in college and promoted online to publicize the show.

On the night, our team remained backstage dressing and styling the models, ensuring all clothes were bagged to keep them from any damage and finally transporting all clothes from the venue to a secure location on campus in Trinity College to make certain nothing was damaged or missing.

One day in late November, in collaboration with Irish youth website SpunOut.ie and Guidewire Software, DUCSS held its inaugural hackathon, which we more affectionately called DUCSSATHON.

A hackathon is an event where a group of people come together for a day or two to collaboratively work on a software or hardware project. Our event, which took place at Trinity Hall, was centred around the theme of ‘positive mental health’.

Eight teams of 4-6 members took part on the day.

The teams spent the day hacking on all kinds of apps and services based around the idea of providing young people with technology that promotes positive thinking. Some of the concepts included a browser plugin that would hide overly negative content from your Facebook feed and a meal tracker that would recommend healthy recipes as part of a balanced diet.

Work continued throughout the day until 5PM, when each of the teams presented and demonstrated their proof-of-concept apps. The winning team developed a website that uses geolocation to help young people find sexual health, mental health, and drug and alcohol services near them.

The day was a huge success, directly bringing together technically skilled students and charities. They collaborated to create important services to tackle a social challenge that is incredibly relevant to college students and doesn’t nearly get enough attention. Next year’s hackathon, hopefully, will be even bigger and better.

fashion society

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In February, FLAC held a panel discussion titled ‘The Housing Crisis in Ireland: Causes and Solutions’. The shortage of supply of housing, coupled with an increase in demand, especially in Dublin, contributed significantly to homelessness in Ireland recently reaching crisis point – a fact, of course, brought squarely into the public eye by the death of Jonathan Corrie in December 2014 metres away from Leinster House.

The panel on the evening to discuss the issue was made up of Dublin City Councillor Críona Ní Dhálaigh, Pat Doyle (CEO of the Peter McVerry Trust) and Maeve Regan (Managing Solicitor of Mercy Law Resource Centre). A lack of supply of social housing caused by a lack of funding was noted by each panellist as a cause of the crisis, with successive governments being criticised for maintaining a chaotic housing policy. Difficulties with maximum rent limits and administration of the Rent Supplement scheme, together with an increase in demand for private rented accommodation, were also identified as causes of the crisis. The panellists welcomed the recent increased provision of emergency accommodation for homeless people brought about in the aftermath of Corrie’s death, but all agreed that longer term and more ambitious legal reforms are necessary.

The night finished with Trinity FLAC launching its research project into housing in Irish law – the first research project of many which would be launched this year.

gender equality

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flac

In November, DUGES coordinated Trinity’s first ever Women In Science Week (10/11/15 – 15/11/14) in collaboration with Maths Soc and DU Physics Soc. We held evening events on Women in Physics and Maths, Women in Biology and Women in Chemistry, during which female lecturers and science educators talked about their work, their research, and the difficulties facing women working in science.

Maternity leave and childcare were common themes in most presentations and Athena Swan was mentioned as a successful initiative that tackles low numbers of women in science. Also mentioned were societal preconceptions of what a scientist should be like, the relationship between animals’ size and their lifespan, mind-controlling parasites and what it was like to study maths in Trinity in the 60s. Students were given the opportunity to ask about pursuing careers in science and about the guest speakers’ areas of research.

A lunch and closing party allowed participants to meet each other and mingle! The week prompted a Trinity News article discussing the barriers facing women in science – it included interviews with Mieke Guinan, the week’s main organizer, Dr. Natalie Cooper from the School of Natural Sciences and an anonymous graduate student who reported having to remove her first name from her CV to conceal her gender in order get job interviews. We have recently heard that WiSER is considering running a similar week next year and turning this into an annual event – an indisputable mark of the event’s success.

Twenty five years ago the Berlin Wall collapsed, initiating a chain reaction of events that would put the Cold War on near-permanent freeze. DU History decided to celebrate this event in the only way we know how: a club night. Following the resounding success of the generation-defining ‘The Wind That Shakes the Party’, we rustled together our comrades DUDJs and Vis Arts to assist in our one-night revolution.

Slick visas based on the actual documents West German citizens would have used to pass into East Germany were printed. One of our committee members in full border guard uniform sat behind a table in the arts block and waited for the freedom-lusting masses to arrive. And they did; within our first two hours of sale we had completely sold out.

Just as anybody who witnessed the actual Berlin Wall finally becoming porous never forgot that fateful night, we are sure anyone who experienced THE WALL will always remember the manic and magnificent event. The opening DJs played an eclectic mix of techno and acid-house, sampling both Ronald Reagan and JFK’s speeches made at the Berlin Wall as the people poured in. All stopped to get a picture with our cardboard cut-out of David Hasselhoff and to sign the wall that Visarts had meticulously crafted for the night.

At some unknown time of night, DUDJs came on stage to play a pitch-perfect mix of 80s pop, all leading up to the moment where we dropped 99 red balloons onto the ecstatic crowd. DU History are proud to have proved once and for all that the best and most original club nights are those with a historical basis.

korean society

history society

With funding from the Korean Embassy, we were able to host Trinity’s first ever Korean Culture Day in the Global Room. We had traditional games, a quiz and K-pop music videos, as well as a huge supply of Korean food and some delicious traditional plum wine.

Attendees were informed that to avail of the free food, they had to fill up the provided stamp sheet. To do so, all you had to do was play some Korean games! Three stamps earned you a plate to help yourself at our buffet-style spread, and the remaining two stamps made you eligible for a wine tasting. Anyone who got all five stamps was provided with a goody bag.

Some of the games were a little challenging at first, but fun nonetheless, and we were helped by Korean natives who demonstrated how they were played. Towards the end of the afternoon, we had a few competitions, as well as a quiz on Korea, with some prizes for our winners.

We then watched a Korean variety show on the Global Room’s giant screen, finishing up with some pop songs which had all attendees singing along.

We were delighted how curious and happy people from all backgrounds were to learn about Korea - though the quiz proved that quite a number of people already knew quite a bit! Our special guest, the Ambassador from the Korean Embassy, was just as pleased as we were with the event, and we hope future events will be just as successful.

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qsoc

The Meditation Society went forth to Cavan on a chilly Friday in November to meditate, drink tea, and eat double helpings of vegetarian food. After a harrowing 3-hour bus journey into no-man’s land, we arrived at a traditional refurbished Irish stone cottage.

Our teachers were excited and loving, spending the majority of the retreat in the central hub that was the kitchen, cooking and cleaning with volunteer retreaters while chatting about life, the universe, and the number of lakes in Cavan. The food was delicious and the helpings generous, while the supply of tea seemed limitless.

With much tummy-rumbling and itching at parts of our bodies that we had never itched before, we spent over an hour before each meal training our minds to concentrate on the present moment and to feel warm feelings of compassion for others. By leaving periods of our day for silence we had time to watch as the way our minds worked changed, and through knowing nods and quiet smiles we knew that we were not alone in this experience.

In the evenings we had talks about meditation and the lives of our teachers. We gained an insight into a different, simpler way of life, and wandering around the countryside we got the chance to decompress and really come together as a group. As the bus driver waited and paced impatiently on the last day, we slowly said goodbye, and we lingered. In that moment, we knew this was the right place to be.

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On November 14th, this year Qsoc held our first ever exhibition of Queer-themed art by LGBTQ+ artists in the Phil conversation room. In collaboration with White Lady Art, we contacted over 20 artists to come and display their works at the exhibition, two of which created original pieces for the event.

As a committee, we thought that there was a lack of more creative and artistic based events run by the society and we wanted to showcase some of the works of Queer Irish artists and introduce them to new audiences they wouldn’t have been exposed to before, while simultaneously giving our members an exposure to the wealth of expression and diversity in the LGBTQ+ community outside of Trinity.

The event incorporated multiple mediums including 3D sculpture, print, paintings and even a projected animation demonstrating the artistic expression of the lived experiences of LGBTQ+ artists in Ireland. Six of the artists attended the event and were on hand to answer any questions we had about their work and why they make art. They gave us a fantastic insight into the creative process and what inspired the pieces they chose to display, demonstrating that their experiences, whether positive or negative, could be used to create something interesting and inspiring.

The exhibition was an opportunity for us all to get better acquainted with the creative side of the LGBTQ+ community - something that hadn’t been done before by the society - and allowed us to take a break from the more serious and academic events to reach a new audience.

meditation society

trinity orchestra

November saw almost a hundred members of the Singers Society travel to compete in the Sligo International Choral Festival. Both the Singers and Boydell choirs competed, while the Trinitones (lacking a category which would truly show off their honed skills) resigned themselves to well-received performances in the Quayside Shopping Centre.

On the Saturday morning, Singers competed in the 4-part competition and Boydell gave it their all in the female-voice competition, belting out Kodály’s ‘Dancing Song’ and Chilcott’s ‘Swansongs’ under the direction of Muireann Lynch. Later that day, Singers sang ‘O Magnum Mysterium’ by Victoria and ‘My Soul’s Been Anchored’ by Hogan, drawing a warm reaction from the capacity audience.

With tension reaching fever point, we were told that Singers had placed first ahead of our nine competitors. This ensured our entry into the Grand Prix, a competition which pitches winners from all categories against each other for the event’s most coveted prize. However, upon re-reading the rules, we learned that the judges were expecting that a new song be sung – disaster!

An emergency rehearsal space was somehow found and the choir began practicing, memorizing and perfecting a new piece - Rachmaninoff’s ‘Bogoroditse Dyevo’. An hour later we sang it live on stage, with no scores to hand, and afterwards waited with baited breath for the result.

To our surprise, we won, thanks to the efforts of our fantastic conductor Lynsey Callaghan. The high spirits of the night out afterwards were, of course, completely due to this, but the less said about that the better…

Towards the end of November, Trinity Orchestra presented ‘Gorillaz: Demon Days’ to a full house in the Exam Hall. Coordinated in association with Trinity Ents, the performance was arranged by composer Éna Brennan, who had conceived the idea in early August.

After accepting an invitation to perform at Electric Picnic 2014, the Orchestra was left to decide what exactly they would perform. Thankfully, the extremely talented Brennan drew up an arrangement of the critically-acclaimed Gorrilaz album, which was then performed to a frantic crowd at the Stradbally festival. With the performance garnering rave reviews (Trinity’s very own University Times described it as a ‘performance of inexhaustible energy’), it was decided to repeat the show on campus.

After being heartily welcomed on stage by an eager audience, the Orchestra proved that the scramble for tickets by the college community had been justified, as the music’s energy and verve was received by sustained roaring applause.

Conducted by Borja Zanón González, the musicians displayed the varied range of their ability and collaborated to perfection with the accompanying singers, rappers and band. With songs shifting from soothing singing and soft, lyrical tones to vibrant rap and bass, there was something for everyone to enjoy.

With the help of John Kearns, Finn Murphy, Fiachra Kinder and Andrew Murphy’s DUPA team, the event was a huge success and left both musicians and spectators elated.

trinity singers

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On Tuesday the 11th of November, the Trinity College Law Review (TCLR) hosted its annual Authors’ Night in the GMB. The event marks the TCLR’s first call for submissions and celebrates all forms of legal writing.

Editor-in-Chief, Caoimhe Stafford, welcomed students before providing information on the submissions process, announcing new prizes for articles and discussing the value of having an article published. The distinguished panel of speakers included Professor Oran Doyle (Head of the Trinity College School of Law and Editor of the Dublin University Law Journal), Professor Paul O’Connor (Editor of the Irish Jurist and Director of the Institute of Criminology at UCD) and Dr. Stephen Ranalow (Corporate Partner at Arthur Cox).

Professor Doyle highlighted common pitfalls in legal writing and advised students to be as objective as possible in their critiques of the law. Professor O’Connor remarked on the important role that student law reviews play in legal education, suggesting that students look beyond constitutional law in their writing and explore the many fascinating areas of private law. Dr. Ranalow delivered a witty speech on the elements of a good article and noted that the only way to get over writer’s block is ‘to throw lots of mud until something sticks.’

Students had the opportunity to ask questions regarding how best to balance corporate work with academic legal writing, and how a student law review should go about selecting articles. Speakers and students alike enjoyed a lavish reception afterwards.

comedy society

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trinity law review

Trinity Fringe is DU Comedy’s annual on-campus comedy festival. It aims to promote all types of comedy within the college community. Taking place in the first week of December, this year’s Fringe was a great success!

The festival kicked off with a launch party with entertainment troupe Bum Machine in the Pav, claiming the applause both of Comedy Soc’s members and the hordes of other students who had come to the Pav for a quiet drink, but who soon found themselves wrapped up in the contagious Fringe atmosphere! Throughout the week there were various comedy and performance activities, such as the Stand-Up Commedia workshop with society alumni Valerie Lynch.

In the evenings, some of the best new international acts showcased their talent. Australian rising star Bec Hill performed her hilarious Edinburgh show in Players theatre, supported by David Reilly, and received the Spirit of the Fringe award. Paul Currie, no stranger to the international comedy scene, returned to the Fringe with his own brilliant new show Release the Baboons. Stuart Goldsmith also came to campus and recorded a live episode of his radio podcast, The Comedian’s Comedian with David McSavage, of RTÉ’s the Savage Eye. Both received Spirit of the Fringe awards.

The Fringe was a showcase of the huge amount of comic talent to be found in Ireland, and an opportunity to invite international acts to come and perform for an Irish student audience. We at DU Comedy are proud to say that Trinity Fringe Festival 2014 was one of the best yet!

At the International Society, we are dedicated to ensuring that everyone who comes to Trinity has the best possible experience while here in Ireland. We load up a bus every weekend and travel to some of Ireland’s most popular tourist attractions, including the Ring of Kerry, Dingle, Galway, the Aran Islands, Donegal, Carrick-A-Rede, the Giant’s Causeway, Belfast and many more.

In December we visited Cork and its surrounding area. Being the largest county in Ireland, Cork offers various impressive sites, such as Blarney Castle, Cork Gaol, Cobh, Jameson’s Whiskey Distillery, and, of course, Cork City. On Saturday, we had a taste of what it must have been like to serve a sentence in Cork Gaol, kissed the Stone of Eloquence and walked backwards up the Wishing Steps with our eyes closed at Blarney Castle. Myth has it that walking up the stairs of the Wishing Steps will make a wish come true within a year, and that kissing the Blarney Stone will make you well- spoken.

Back in Cork, we explored the English Market and Christmas Markets before indulging in some mulled wine and the cheesiest Christmas tunes at the local pub. Early on Sunday, we visited the picturesque seaside town of Cobh and experienced its long history of migration at its Titanic Museum.

We then took in the beautifully pastel coloured houses and impressive sight of St Coleman’s Cathedral before heading to Miltown to delve into the history and procedure of producing Jameson’s Whiskey, not to mention sampling it! In all, it was an unforgettable, fun and festive trip!

visual arts society

international

society

Visual Arts had its sixth annual Staff and Student Exhibition over two days in December. The aim of the exhibition is to promote a more active engagement with the visual arts in college. We wanted to show that Trinity students are not only academic but also creative!

We began accepting submissions in November, and got a really positive response from the College community.

We received a total of 70 submissions from talented artists from a variety of departments and disciplines. We were thrilled at the calibre of the work, and it was definitely a challenge for the committee to edit the submissions down to a number that could be accommodated by the gallery space.

The exhibition was held at Temple Bar Gallery and Studios, which was a great location – close to campus and easily accessible. We were honoured to have Peter Cherry of the History of Art Department officially open the exhibition.

It was great to see so many of our society members attend the opening night, but also a lot of new faces who came to support our exhibiting artists and experience what Trinity has to offer in the visual arts. During the night, we had amazing performances from Basenji and Funzo, which proved extremely popular with everyone, and later we had an after party at Pacinos in Suffolk Street to officially conclude the night.

We are proud of everyone who was involved in the exhibition, and we would like to thank those who supported us and made it a truly memorable event!

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modern languages

Each January, DU Gamers Society organises a trip to Cork for our members to attend Warpcon - UCC’s annual gaming convention. This year’s dates of 23-25th January came at a perfect time for students to relax before getting stuck into Hilary Term. Always one of the highlights of the DU Gamers calendar, it provides a weekend away to participate in whatever genre of game our members wish.

The convention boasts board games, card games, RPGs, wargaming, LARPs and video games, and also accomdates traders looking to purchase individual games. This year 19 members signed up to brave the trip, and it is safe to say everyone enjoyed their time. Even the train journey was enjoyable, with members playing games to pass the time. Once in Cork, we checked into our hostel and on the Saturday morning everyone went their own ways to participate in what struck their fancy.

Though around the world there are many gaming conventions, some famous even outside the gaming community, Ireland, as a small country, has few. Trinity is not the only University that sends a group to Warpcon, with gamers coming from all over Ireland and other Dublin Universities sending members too. Warpcon and other gaming conventions help the Irish gaming community to foster and grow, and for us to connect with one another across country and college. Ultimately, these gaming conventions promote fun and entertainment, and no matter what genre of game you wish to play gaming is a wonderful way to pass the time and socialise with existing friends – or ones you have yet to meet.

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The ModLang Society has had as busy a schedule as ever this year, offering 18 classes per week in no fewer than 8 languages - Spanish, French, Italian, Arabic, Russian, Portuguese, German, Japanese. The society has over 400 members and this number is growing every year. It runs workshops on different cultures and hosts international movie nights which help students to deeper understand and learn the languages that interest them.

The highlight of the year was our multi-cultural Christmas party, held in the Biomedical Institute, complete with more refreshments than even Santa and his reindeer could stomach. We had a guest appearance from the man himself, as well as his scantily-clad granddaughter (a Russian tradition, apparently). As the members and teachers of ModLang were coming along they were welcomed by Santa at the entrance.

To make the party more fun, some games were organized. In one game, students had to carry a tennis ball on a spoon for a certain distance without dropping it on the floor.

In another, they had to make a snowman using just a tape and balloons. Each participant would then get a prize from the bearded man’s sack.

Finally, we could not forget our wonderful teachers.

The society would be nothing without them. So we decided to give them a surprise and present them with medals for the amazing work they had done so far. Fuelled with Panatone, Stollen, Gluhwein, and much much more, we danced well into the night at what is sure to become an annual event!

gamers society

du dance

On Monday 26th January, the Laurentian Society hosted Trócaire’s Emmet Sheerin, who gave a presentation on Climate Justice and Stewardship of the Earth. Climate Justice has been a major aspect of Trócaire’s campaign work for many years, as its impact is being felt most acutely by the poorest people in the world – particularly those in the developing world.

It is also an important issue for Catholics. The Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference recently updated its 2009 pastoral reflection The Cry of the Earth and Trócaire published supporting resources to encourage reflection on the pastoral letter. Pope Francis continuously highlights the responsibility we have to look after the environment and is soon to publish an encyclical on the topic. With this in mind, it was great to learn more about climate change and measures that can be taken to address its negative consequences.

Sheerin explained that climate change threatens to undo all of the progress that has been made against poverty in recent decades, with some of the major consequences of climate change being failure of crops and extreme weather events. It is a human rights issue because people in the developing world, who are doing the least to cause climate change, are those who are suffering most from it, while those with the most power to address it have so far failed to do so. To tackle climate change, we were told, a transition has to be made to a more sustainable and equitable world. Food for thought, indeed.

On January 21st, DU Dance brought back the ever-popular Trinity Come Dancing for its third instalment. With eight new celebrities and their enthusiastic dance partners ready to take to the floor, everyone was excited to find out which of the adored hacks would be crowned (and we literally mean crowned) our winner.

Having sold over 220 tickets, the Sugar Club was brimming with excited friends, family, and fans, dying to see who could pull off their routine with the most style - or perhaps the least, which undoubtedly holds far more entertainment value.

John’s Swing caused a stir, Will’s romantic Rumba melted hearts, Susanna’s Irish was an instant success, Andrew’s Contemporary was delightfully chilled, Domhnall’s Break Dancing was banging (if a bit bonkers), Lara’s Tango was tastefully tense, Paddy’s Ballet was utterly brilliant and last but not least, Molly’s Hip Hop was ‘hella’ fierce.

They couldn’t have done it without the help of DU Dance’s amazing pros. Aisling, Phoebe, Odhrán, Jessica, Maggie, Daragh, Jessica, and Darren all did amazing work with their respective partners, turning them into the fabulous dancers that none of us was expecting.

An amazing half-time show, featuring world pole dance champion Lisette Krol, a fun performance from AfroCarribean Soc, the everpopular Trinitones and our own DU Dance crew kept everyone entertained while the votes were counted. In the end, Maggie and Domhnall were the winners, and we raised €900 each for VdP and the Dance Crew’s trip to Limerick.

laurentian society

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Our first talk of 2015 was given by Professor Des MacHale of University College Cork, who is also George Boole’s biographer. Des spoke about the role of humour in mathematics and mathematical structures in humour and whether there are any humorous structures in mathematics. Des also addressed age-old questions such as ‘how can humour be used to enliven mathematics lectures and teaching?’, ‘How can we combat the inherent dullness of mathematicians and mathematics?’ and ‘Why do mathematicians hate physicists?’.

The talk included many hilarious (and unforgivable) mistakes made by mathematics students, many jokes and anecdotes about mathematicians and many derogatory jokes about physicists and statisticians, mathematical graffiti and quotations. We thought that we had heard all of the maths jokes out there, but Des knew better, and so he was able to split our sides by taking advantage of this. If you ever meet Des, you should ask him what is purple and commutes. We think you will be pleasantly surprised with his answer…

As with every talk, it was followed with a reception in the Mathsoc room, with many refreshments provided. Des joined us for the craic at the reception and continued to entertain us with his wit, as well as challenging the limits of both our minds and patience with lateral thinking puzzles. Overall, the event was very well-received by our members and was one of the best-attended Mathsoc talks of the 2014-2015 academic year.

traditional music

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maths society

most improved It’s been a great year here at TradSoc – between sessions, recitals, workshops, gigs, being recorded by RTE Radio 1’s ‘Céilí House’, our Paddy’s Day Charity Concert and Silent Trad Disco in Whelan’s, setting up the first ever Trinity College Céilí Band and - last but not least – a trip to the Celtic Connections festival in Glasgow!

Celtic Connections is Europe’s largest annual Winter music festival and the UK’s premier celebration of Celtic music. A 25-member strong TradSoc contingent, consisting of musicians, singers, listeners and international students, set off on the 23rd of January to experience the festival at first hand, getting a bus from Trinity to Belfast and then boarding the ferry.

The ferry hadn’t even left the harbour by the time the tunes started! Tunes such as ‘The Sailor On The Rock’, ‘Out On The Ocean’ and any other tune in the key of C were played (get it?)! After booking into the Eurohostel in the heart of Glasgow, we headed to the Festival Club to start the trip off with a bang. This night, and our return trip the following day, was the highlight of the trip – imagine a nightclub where only live Celtic music was being played!

Glasgow was packed and we met loads of old, and new, friends there. Our days were spent touring the city, playing sessions and attending concerts and workshops. It was a brilliant trip and we’re already looking forward to next year!

best online presence, best poster, best publication

trinity arts festival

Trinity Arts Festival had a wonderful year in 2014/2015. From increased teaser events to get the college community excited about the upcoming festival to cleaning up at the CSC Awards, the festival became more than just a weeklong event in Hilary Term. However, that week after Christmas is still, for many of us, the best week of the year. This year, TAF had a strong start with Freshers’ Week events in collaboration with other arts-based societies to show new students just what TAF is all about. Bringing together the many arts-based societies college has to offer on the Arts Walk event, TAF provided a platform for showcasing their talents at various spots around the campus.

Fourth Week arrived and with it came one of the biggest nights of the year; the TAF Fourth Week Event. This year TAF took over the GMB and created an immersive theatre experience based on the epic ‘Paradise Lost’. As is tradition, a myriad of societies got involved and contributed their talents to the event. The entire building came to life, with different rooms taking the form of Heaven, Hell, and The Garden of Eden. Attendees were able to feast on the foods of Paradise which were provided by Food and Drink, have their fate decided by Lady Justice whom LawSoc called in for the night and party with Satan himself at a boiler room set by DUDJ. Different characters from the story were brought to life by a mixture of college personalities who decided to dip their toes into acting as well as some professionals called in from Players. The night resulted in all attendees ‘falling’ and signing up to live the sinful life. As usual, the attendees were amazed by the brilliant display of society talent that was showcased by this fantastic event curated by TAF. They were all desperate for more, but were told to wait until after Christmas.

Trinity Arts Festival took place earlier than usual this year in Week Three of Hilary Term. The Festival consisted of over forty events and six massive night events. Kicking off with the festival launch, all the TAF volunteers honoured tradition and gathered on the Friday night before the festival to decorate their plain white light bulb t-shirts. The week of the Festival consisted of a great mixture of workshops, exhibitions, classes, speakers and live events. Guerrilla gigs came back with a bang with performances from Trinitones, Aoife Leonard, Rachel Lavelle and a chamber concert beneath the Campanile. The submissions process introduced by the committee this year resulted in never-seen-before events such as Mail Art and the ‘24’ exhibition which showcased a day in the life of different members of the Trinity community. Classes ranged from Reeling and Pin-hole Photography to Japanese Calligraphy and Pottery. No art form went unloved at this year’s festival.

The night events consisted of a wonderful mix of live performances of music, drama and spoken word to film screenings and, most memorably, the murder mystery on a train. Building on last year’s most infamous event, this year TAF took the murder mystery and added a mystery tour to it.

Attendees on the night were transported back to the 1920s where their skills were required to solve the murder mystery performed by Players.

TAF went on to win big at the CSC awards, taking home Best Publication, Best Poster and Best Online Presence.

The Festival grew a great amount this year and its future is looking brighter than ever.

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For one night in January, it was as if the 90’s never ended. In collaboration with DUPA, DU Film Society held ‘90’s Prom’, a celebration of that proud American traditional immortalised in such iconic films as Drive Me Crazy, Never Been Kissed and 10 Things I Hate About You.

The Sugar Club was taken over by the newly renamed prom committee and bedecked with confetti, helium balloons and a banner proudly celebrating the class of 1999. The intrepid photographers at DUPA were on-hand to capture these precious memories, with official prom photos at the door (the more adorably awkward, the better) and a photo booth as an ode to the halcyon days before the invention of the selfie.

As She’s All That was projected onto the stage, the graduating class got down to the era’s greats- TLC, The Spice Girls and Blink 182 all made an appearance. With more tattoo chokers, dark lipstick and plaid than has been seen this side of the 2000s, there were many contenders for prom court. However, there could only be one King and Queen, who, in honour of their style prowess, were crowned at midnight and covered in rose petals (we left the pig’s blood at home).

As the captivating couple shared a slow dance onstage, we all felt as if we’d captured a little of that Prom magic they’re always talking about in the movies.

Amnesty International is a human rights, non-governmental organisation that is dedicated to the preservation of human rights world wide. At DU Amnesty, our goals and values are no different. It is important to remember that world-wide does not just mean distant third world countries or far away failed states, human rights abuses can occur to anyone, anywhere and we strive to bring attention to these abuses.

In the August of 2013, Irish citizens and Dublin natives, Ibrahim, Somaia, Omaima and Fatima Halawa were arrested and imprisoned in Cairo after peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression and assembly. The three sisters have since been released. However, Ibrahim remains in prison. His trial has been postponed four times and if his case is heard, it will be as part of a mass trial with 493 others. If found guilty, they could all face the death penalty.

On February 4th we were delighted to host Somaia and Omaima as they shared their experiences of their time in Egypt and what has been happening to Ibrahim in the Egyptian legal and prison systems. Also in attendance was Brid McGrath of Amnesty Ireland, who gave the NGO’s stance on the matter and explained to us what could be done to help Ibrahim. The floor was then opened to questions from the audience which was very engaging and interesting for all present.

Overall this was a great event for raising awareness about Ibrahim’s cause. It attracted a great turnout, and many of those who attended had not been fully aware of this injustice prior to this event, but are hopefully now more engaged in the struggle to bring this young Irish man back home.

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film society

du amnesty

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europa

So, you’ve written a novel in the library when you were meant to be working on your dissertation, inspired by a particularly vicious night out and the drama that ensued. What do you do now?

One afternoon in February, in the Hist Conversation Room, the Literary Society hosted a panel of speakers from the publishing industry and Ireland’s wider literary community as part of their annual Literary Festival. The panel featured up and coming author Rob Doyle, Sarah Davis-Groff of Tramp Press, literary agent Jonathan Williams, Amy Herron of the Irish Writer’s Centre and Tom Morris of the Stinging Fly. It provided an audience of over sixty students with the opportunity to partake in a lively, enthusiastic discussion about the multi-facetel nature of an industry that transforms a sloppy notebook into a Hodges Figgis hardcover.

Some set questions were posed by the committee before the floor was opened up to questions from the audience. Topics covered included the demands and nature of sorting through manuscripts, availability of internships in publishing houses and the changing nature of how people publicise their work.

Panellists also offered informal but firm advice on the etiquette for sending off multiple manuscripts at one time, and common-sense advice regarding how to write cover letters for your work. The panel was illuminating both for budding writers and for students looking to get a grasp on the ins and outs of medium-scale publishing in Ireland.

The Europa Prague Trip took place in early February. It was an unforgettable trip for the members who were lucky to get one of 39 spots on the trip, having beaten the queue that snaked out of the Arts Block on signup day.

The group started the trip as friends but even more bonding began straight away as Aer Lingus brought us over to the Czech Republic. We stayed in the Old Prague Hostel right in the city centre, surrounded by a mix of old buildings, flashy shopping brands and lots of go-to tourist and cultural spots.

Groups of us spent time taking pictures at the Charles Bridge, climbing the tiresome steps up to Prague Castle and posing in front of the famous Astronomical Clock. Some were brave enough to trek up to the Petrova Tower which rewarded them with stunning views over the cityscape.

Local beers were experimented with and the clubbing lived up to its reputation for being ridiculously fun and lively.

Cultural responsibilities were maintained, however, by the majority as they embarked on a walking tour around the medieval city, listening to many old tales and myths about Prague’s historical sites. Counting out hundreds of Krona and trying all types of new cuisine was new and exciting for our Euro-curious members.

The society is delighted with how the trip went and by the time we arrived back in Dublin we were itching to return to them Bohemian feels. Overall, Europa was prague-matic and made a bunch of European memories from our trip to Prague.

literary society

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One event from this year which best highlights DU Physoc’s ability to entwine a passion for physics with social enjoyment is the class trip to Hamburg during reading week of Hilary Term. The primary purpose of the trip was getting a guided tour of the DESY (Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron) particle accelerator located on the outskirts of the city. The function of DESY is to study the very structure of matter using high energy particle accelerators. It was fascinating to be given firsthand information and genuine interaction with the people and project which for decades pioneered research in fields such as high energy particle collisions and photon physics.

The HERA ring, one of the sites numerous accelerators, is seen as a precursor to those found at CERN today. Due to its deactivation in 2007, the group was privileged enough to be taken down to the tunnel where HERA is situated, allowing for front row views of the expert engineering involved in the project. Segments of the accelerators were also on show so as to be able to see its interior intricacies. Thankfully the group managed to resist the urge to lay their fingers on anything with DO NOT TOUCH plastered boldly across it. (It wasn’t easy!)

Those who travelled were also indulged in the unique German culture of their surroundings, be it through one of Hamburg’s enlightening museums or art galleries, sampling some delightful delicacies and tremendous beer, or just soaking in the lovely architecture of the place.

yoga society

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physics society

On February 22nd the Yoga Society left for their Annual Yoga Retreat to the Gyreum Eco-lodge in Sligo. The eco-lodge is located in a secluded area, allowing the diverse, eager group to relax. Submerged deep in the countryside, it was the ideal place to get away from the hustle and bustle of Trinity life in the city – eco-toilets and composting galore! All meals were healthy and vegetarian, and prepared together by the group over the weekend.

Over the two days we had yoga classes in the morning and afternoon with our wonderful instructor Joanne. She went through all the stretches and positions slowly, while also mentioning more advanced versions to make the weekend approachable for beginners and masters alike. One of the highlight of the trip for everyone was the Yoga Nidra class. Yoga Nidra is lucid sleeping and is among the deepest possible states of relaxation while still maintaining full consciousness – though some of us may not have stayed awake, with a snore to be heard here and there. In the evenings we had relaxing meditation and reflective sessions which were extremely empowering and worked well for group bonding. We also had some free time to take walks, relax in front of the fire, drink tea, play scrabble, or chat on the roof surrounded by stars.

The blissful weekend was the perfect opportunity to relax and re-centre ourselves before a productive reading week. The small intimate group is a great way to get to know new people as well as providing the opportunity to spend time with friends. You leave feeling refreshed and with a deeper understanding of yourself. Overall, the Yoga Retreat was a great success once again and we can’t wait to go again next year!

Our lecture, auction and society dinner was held on February 17th. We began with a talk on the history of Islamic calligraphy, given by the esteemed Dr Elaine Wright, author of ‘Islam: Faith, Art and Culture.’

This was followed by a charity auction, where paintings donated by artists from countries including Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Ireland and Canada were snapped up by eager attendees. A lavish, mouth-watering Middle Eastern dinner was served afterwards.

The objective of this event - and of the accompanying calligraphy workshop held on February 19th – was to highlight the evolution of Islamic art and calligraphy. Art pieces displaying the many forms and techniques of Islamic calligraphy from various regions of the world were displayed, discussed, admired and auctioned. How calligraphy developed, what materials have been used from the early days of the craft to the modern day and how the techniques have changed were discussed.

As art is a universal gift, the event helped inform the public of Islam’s contribution to this field. It also served as a medium for people of various faiths and backgrounds to share their love of art and hopefully lead to inter-faith collaborative events in the near future.

quiz society

muslim students association

On an historic day in February, in the Hist Conversation Room, Quiz Soc hosted the biggest event in its (admittedly short) history: the first Irish Quiz Intervarsity! Four elite teams selected from the best of the best in Trinity College Dublin and Dublin College University competed to win a terrific trophy and the pride of being the best college quiz team in the country.

The semi-final had eight rounds on various topics such as literature, geography and entertainment. It was a tightly-fought competition, but both Trinity teams came out on top, with only a point between them. All contestants then had the opportunity to relax before the final and we made sure that everyone availed of the pizza we had provided for them!

The final was in the famous ‘University Challenge’ style -the first team to call out the correct answer to a question earned ten points. The final question in each round was worth twenty points. It was a truly nail-biting event, with both teams managing to overtake their opponent’s lead several times. In the end, fittingly, it all came down to the final question. Trinity Team B were in the lead, with 150 points to Trinity Team A’s 135 points, but it was the latter team who were quickest off the mark, securing the bragging rights by a mere 5 points.

After the award ceremony, the reception got under way for a couple of hours before everyone moved on to the Pav to continue the celebrations – and to look forward to next year’s Intervarsity!

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In February 2015, the South East Asia society celebrated the arrival of the Year of the Sheep with a scrumptious traditional Chinese New Year Dinner.

With most of our members hailing from parts of the world where Chinese New Year has considerable significance, we attempted to recreate the most convivial and authentic environment possible for participants to celebrate this important festive away from home.

In a change from past years, members were served with a lavish, tantalizing 6 course meal in a traditional round table setting that is a cultural symbol of reunion amongst the Chinese people, instead of the commonly adopted method of buffet style. In addition, we were also delighted to receive patronage for this event from our friends from non South East Asia countries such as the United States. It was a truly wonderful gastronomical experience with amazing companionship, with the diverse backgrounds of attendants ensuring maximal cultural exchange.

Aside from the great food, members also had great fun participating in the post-dinner social event. This included fun games specially arranged by the committee which appealed to the competitive sides of those in attendance, with all vying for the great prizes.

We then continued with a speech presentation segment whereby candidates running for various different positions of the committee were given the opportunity to garner support and votes through a short speech. Finally, the event ended with the introduction and initiation of the new committee following an official position transfer ceremony.

best fresher

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vincent de paul

south east asia society

The volunteers in VDP put on an annual pantomime involving all the children from the various homework clubs and youth clubs that we work with. This production not only gives the kids an amazing experience but also gives them a chance to be a part of something they are so proud of.

The moment the Panto is over they immediately begin asking about next year’s and never stop talking about how much fun they’ve had – and this year’s production, Aladdin, was no exception. Panto does a lot for the kids we work with.

For many of them, it gives them a level of confidence that they may not have otherwise acquired. Each participant we work with is great, but some just need an opportunity like Panto to show just how great they are.

Every member of VDP could fill a while book with sentimental stories about how Panto helps the kids we work with, and how much they love it, but here’s one of many that stick out. Around November, a new boy joined one of the after-school activities we run. He was so shy that he wouldn’t even look at the volunteers. We hoped he’d get a lot from the Panto, and his teacher was sure it would help him to come out of his shell. She was right! Both nights of the show, in front of about 400 people, he said his line with the biggest smile on his face, louder and more confidently than anyone else.

This is but one of many reasons why VDP produces its panto, and we’re already counting down the days till the next!

elsa

best online presence, best individual The inaugural TCD Hack Day took place in the Global Room on 20th February, co-organised by TES and the Computer Science society. On the morning of the event, business and technical students were split into teams of three and had the day to work developing a product or service that promoted healthy living among young people.

The teams were aided throughout the day by a number of mentors, who were provided by TCD and by event sponsors, TATA Consultancy Services. The teams presented their solution to a panel of judges that evening, which included representatives from Web Summit, TATA Consultancy Services and Trinity College itself.

The day proved to be an outstanding success and was very well received by the student body in college. Students were given an opportunity to work with peers who had complementary skills to their own, something not usually afforded to them through their courses. A number of participants also received invites for interview with the event sponsors.

The event was also very well received on the national front, with media coverage by the Irish Examiner and the University Times.

Overall, the TCD Hack Day has great potential to become a major annual event in the TES calendar, and fulfils a major demand present from enterprising students in the college.

On 7 January the University Times reported that Dr Ali Selim, a lecturer in Arabic Language in Trinity and spokesperson for the Islamic Cultural Centre in Clonskeagh, made comments threatening legal action against any Irish newspaper that republished the controversial Charlie Hebdo cartoons. The article received an overwhelming response from students.

On 11 February, ELSA hosted a panel discussion on the topic of ‘Freedom of Expression, Blasphemy and Charlie Hebdo’. Dr Selim opened the discussion by arguing in favour of retaining Ireland’s blasphemy laws. He suggested that the law protected minorities, particularly those whose views conflicted with Western values. He noted that in the case of Charlie Hebdo, people were overwhelmingly supportive of the freedom of the writers to publish drawings of Muhammad. However, Dr Selim pointed to numerous examples in France where persons were being imprisoned for inciting hatred by criticising the Charlie Hebdo writers.

Senator Ronan Mullen then spoke briefly on his support for the current blasphemy regime describing it as one of the last protections afforded to the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland. He argued that it was up to the offended person to confront their taunter and explain to them why they shouldn’t make the offending comments. He described Irish blasphemy law as antiquated and ‘Orwellian’, noting the high standard required to be found guilty of blasphemy under the Defamation Act.

ELSA at all time promotes human dignity and cultural identity, and through its events such as this one, displays a range of views on some of the most current and contentious issues of our time.

entrepreneurial society

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Arch Soc took over the streets of Prague in February for this year’s traditional society trip abroad. Eighteen of our members enjoyed the numerous sights the fantastic, historical city has to offer, including the Spanish Synagogue, the Museum of Medieval Torture, the Old Town Square and the Communist Museum. We even got a picture on the Charles Bridge, which was constructed c. 1357!

Of particular interest to our members was the Jewish Cemetery, which contains over 200,000 graves including the burial place of acclaimed historian David Gans. A highlight of the trip was our visit to the Sedlec Ossuary - a small chapel on the outskirts of Prague which contains between 40,000 and 70,000 skeletons. The remains had been artfully arranged into artistic designs, one notable example being a large chandelier.

We also greatly enjoyed our visit to Prague Castle, an extremely important site which encompasses many periods of history and was a seat of power for kings of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperors. There is evidence for occupation on the site from as early as the 9th century AD. It is still used today as the official residence of the President of the Czech Republic, and also hosts the Bohemian Crown Jewels which are among the oldest examples in Europe. Numerous important buildings are located within its grounds, including the Chapel of the Holy Cross, Rosenberg Palace and St. George’s Basilica.

The trip was one of the highlights of our year, which, considering our calendar of lecturers, a Freshers’ Week toga party and the joint annual Imperial Ball, is praise indeed!

chinese society

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archaeology

society

At the TCD Chinese Society, our aim is to promote Chinese culture as well as the interaction between Chinese students and students of other nationalities in Dublin. We achieve this by hosting a huge assortment of events and outings that support integration between the two. We also brought back the Chinese Corner this year, in which students of other nationalities can experience the Chinese culture and the language in an enjoyable fashion.

However, our most exciting event – this year, at least – was our celebration of The Chinese New Year, consisting of two days of continuous celebration with many Trinity students. The entire TCD Global Room was covered in traditional Chinese decorations. Calligraphy and origami was demonstrated at the event. We also had the screening of the CCTV Spring New Year Gala, which is the world’s most watched entertainment show. If we’re being honest, though, our favourite thing about the event was the fabulous Chinese food!

On the New Year’s Eve, a hot pot buffet dinner was held out in the Laos restaurant for a taste of traditional food.

On the next day, a Chinese food buffet was held in the TCD Global room with dumplings, chow mien, spicy sesame chicken, spicy beef jerky and so on. We want to see even more newcomers join our loyal members in their celebration of Chinese culture next year!

genetical society

The University of Dublin Choral Society is Trinity’s oldest and largest choir and specialises in the performance of large-scale choral works, both within and outside the college’s walls.

On 19 March 2015, Choral performed Giuseppe Verdi’s monumental and ever-popular Messa da Requiem at the National Concert Hall. For this event, the choir was joined by an orchestra made up of both professional musicians and some of Dublin’s best student players. The concert was conducted by David Leigh of St Patrick’s Cathedral, who has held the position of Musical Director of Choral for seven years.

The society, founded in 1837, takes great pride in its history and traditions and feels especially privileged to have given the first performance in Ireland of this dramatic masterpiece in 1876, two years after its world première in Milan.

Our members had been rehearsing every Wednesday night since January to prepare for this performance, marking the society’s 529th concert season, and were absolutely thrilled to show off what they had been working on in the splendour of one of Dublin’s most prestigious concert venues.

The performance was a wonderful musical success and the audience, which treated the choir to a standing ovation after the final bars, enjoyed themselves tremendously.

The Trinity Genetics Society hosted a talk on the 9th of March in the GMB. The talk was by Adam Rutherford, an eminent journalist in the field of genetics who has written multiple books popularising genetics and conveying theories on the origins of life. He has also been an editor of Nature, a scientific journal with one of the highest impact factors in biology.

On top of this, Adam regularly contributes to the newspaper ‘The Guardian’, popularising genetics and debunking misconceptions. He also hosts a program called ‘Inside Science’ on BBC4, along with narrating and co-ordinating the 2011-2012 BBC documentary series ‘Horizon’, a show responsible for conveying popular science and the philosophy of science to the public since 1964.

Adam spoke to us about the importance of conveying ideas in genetics to the public and the role we have as scientists not just to translate research into applications, but to accurately communicate the consequences of our research to the public.

The talk was followed by a discussion between Adam and the audience, which in turn was followed by a reception in a local venue, as a celebration of all the society’s endeavours throughout the year.

choral society

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2014/2015 was yet another momentous year for the Trinity Indian Society. We have reached many milestones which we wouldn’t have dreamt about before, and have continued to cement our place as one of the most vibrant societies in Trinity.

Our hallmark event of the year was, of course, Holi. Held on the 6th of March, the day on which people all over India celebrate Holi, it was the product of loads of work, collaboration and pure determination between the committee members who organised it, and we couldn’t be more proud of the outcome.

Graced by 450 Trinity students, graduates and staff, everyone had a great time throwing colourful powders at one another while jamming out with the upbeat Indian songs, which by itself was a sight to behold. Aside from all the craic that was had, we also felt that it was a great event to demonstrate that racial equality is very much alive within our community in TCD. People from different backgrounds and ethnicities were seen mingling with one another in the event, throwing powders at each other without discrimination and we found that to be awesome!

Everyone at that time were painted with different swatches of colours, as if we were all canvases with unique artworks, but yet similar to one another. We felt that had clearly proven our mission as a Society to promote Indian culture to the general masses in Trinity. See you next March in Front Square!

the joly geological

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indian society

In early March 2014, The Joly hosted accomplished geologist Christian Scaffalitzky to give a talk titled ‘Working as Geologist: Life in the Workforce’. Christian, a Trinity graduate himself, has accomplished much in his years since graduating with a Geology degree - such as being the Founder and Managing Director of CSA Global, the Non-Executive Director of Premier Gold Resources plc and the Non-Executive Chairman of Kibo Mining plc, to name but a few of his achievements. He has also had the opportunity to work in Canada, Turkey, London and Tanzania and other exotic locations.

This talk not only gave the Joly members a fantastic insight into the working life of a senior geologist but also discussed how to go about planning your career and how to deal with the ups and downs of the industry’s employment cycle. Members were introduced to a number of fantastic organisations such as the GSI, the IAH and the IAEG, as Christian explained the benefits of networking in the industry and the doors it can open for newly qualified graduates.

One of the most valuable parts of the talk addressed the qualities employers look for in geologist graduates and the personal skills and attributes one is required to have in order to succeed. Members of Joly described this as their favourite event of the year as it gave a positive outlook on future employment prospects and introduced them to new possibilities.

Following the talk, Christian was kind enough to answer any further questions we had over a social drink at the Pav.

circus & Juggling

This year we ran our annual RAG Week Assassin competition, this time collaborating with the Vincent de Paul society. Assassin took place through the whole of RAG Week, with the winner being the person succeeding in assassinating the most people. We had a grand total of 167 students taking part, each of whom was given the name, course, and a photo of a target to “assassinate” by placing a sticker on them. Signups were the week beforehand, and on the Monday of RAG Week, participants collected their packs, including their target and the stickers needed to assassinate them.

The competition began at 12pm on the Monday, with targets being taken down as early as 12:30pm. Assassinations were limited to college grounds (including other Trinity campuses), and couldn’t take place during a lecture, to avoid absolute chaos. Targets also couldn’t run away once they realised they were spotted, as this opened up a world of disastrous possibilities. One year someone even went as far as jumping out of window of the GMB to escape! Thankfully, no persons, buildings, or windows were harmed during this year’s event.

Our overall winner, Ian Harper (pictured), took away the well-deserved grand prize of a Trinity Ball ticket. In second and third places were Miles Kelly and Timothy Suits, who took away prizes of €60 and €40 euro respectively. Many thanks to VDP and all who took part, and overall we raised €500 for the worthy Rag Week charities.

Well over a thousand spectators crammed into Front Square in March to watch one of, if not the, largest fire show ever to be held in Ireland. The Juggling Society arranged for a local circus group to do a choreographed performance, featuring jugglers, diabolists, hoopers and poi-spinners. They re-enacted the Ancient Greek myth of Prometheus who stole fire from the Gods to give to mankind. It culminated, amidst ruptuous applause, in all 15 performers juggling simultaneously under the Campanile with their flaming props. This was followed by a ‘fire-jam’ where several of our members were able to show off the skills they’d learnt with the society to the amazing audience.

The show launched the Dublin Circus Festival - a three day extravaganza of workshops, classes and professional performances organised by Circus societies from the Dublin colleges, including ourselves. It was a great opportunity to learn new skills, to witness some world class acts and to meet more people in the circus community.

This annual festival is always a wonderful opportunity for people at every level. Young children are brought along with no experience and leave with a new hobby and people who have been juggling for years get to learn with the best jugglers in the world. There will always be the opportunity to try something completely novel or build on your ‘flair’.

Even though we do regular fire shows and our weekly sessions are dedicated to improvement and learning, organising this event allowed all our members to experience the very best of the juggling and circus world and was a fantastic end to the college year.

sci-fi society

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sign language

On the 16th of March, DUDJ welcomed acclaimed producer and DJ Krystal Klear for a talk in the GMB.

Born and raised in Dublin, but currently based in Manchester, Declan Lennon has been making major waves in the electronic music scene for the past number of years. Our chair, Ian, conducted an interview where Krystal Klear delved into his musical beginnings and influences as a teenager in Dublin and his career to date.

He told of his experiences in The Red Bull Music Academy in 2011, being taught by the best in the business, including legend of house music Frankie Knuckles. It was inspirational to hear his progress from DJing the clubs of Dublin to working with his heroes, Nile Rodgers of Chic and singer Michael McDonald in New York last year. Full of incredible tales of his musical adventures so far, the interview flew by, before we wrapped up with questions from the audience.

This gave the aspiring DJs and producers in the crowd the unique opportunity to tap into the knowledge and experience of one of the biggest DJs to come out of Dublin in recent years.

We would like to thank Declan for coming in, and giving an amazing talk. Keep your eyes peeled for more of the same next year!

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One of the TCD Sign Language Society’s major events this year saw us host a joint event with Trinity LGBT and the National Organisation for Deaf LGBT people - Greenbow LGBT Ireland - in March.

The talk was held in the Global Room in the Hamilton Block and consisted of a detailed, fully-interpreted presentation on the history of Greenbow, the perceptions of and attitudes towards LGBT people within the Deaf community, the history of Catholic education in the community and their plans for the future in regards ISL Recognition and Marriage Equality. There was a question and answer session afterwards with the audience and some very illuminating points were discussed, such as the contemporary changing nature of signs within the Deaf LGBT community, the efforts to adapt signs and keep them up to date with Ireland’s ever-expanding Queer vocabulary and the work Greenbow has done with other Deaf or hearing organisations, particularly within the Deaf Village in Cabra.

We followed the event with a trip to Pantibar on Capel Street, where a great night was had by all. This was a very fun and exciting night, contributing to two long-running aims of both societies - supporting Marriage Equality and, of course, a focus on fighting for full constitutional recognition of Irish Sign Language.

digital arts

biological society Despite popular belief, the question ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ still terrifies medical students. To help ease the anxiety, Biosoc held a medical careers night on the 12th of March this year. This event was free for members and attracted a crowd of 150 students from all years of study.

The night took the form of a debate, where 5 teams of medical professionals fought their hardest to convince us that their field was the best in which to pursue a career. GP’s claimed to have the best lifestyle, while surgeons claimed they were on the cutting edge of medical progress. Psychiatry argued that they truly knew how to be happy, while Paediatrics claimed to know the secret to eternal youth. Hospital medicine won, managing to convince us all that there is a light at the end of that intimidating intern tunnel.

After the debate, there was a reception where students could speak with the consultants and gain a personal insight into their field. This event was a fun and interesting way to gain information about different careers in medicine and is set to become an annual event from Biosoc.

the hist

The Hist enjoyed another successful session this year. Debates on topics as diverse as political violence, sex work and euthanasia lived up to our great chamber debating tradition.

We welcomed visits from the likes of Ken Loach, the director and Kaushik Basu, the Chief Economist of the World Bank. We also enjoyed phenomenal success in competitive debating, winning several competitions and getting a team to the quarter-finals of the World Debating Championships for the first time in over a decade.

The centrepiece of the Hist’s year, though, has always been the Inaugural, where the Auditor delivers a paper on a topic of their choosing and is responded to by a number of distinguished guests. This year Auditor Michael Coleman addressed the society on ‘The Need for Radical Approaches to Politics and Oppression’. This event was incredibly topical, happening as it did very soon after the election of Syriza in Greece. Michael spoke about how oppression is built into the system of capitalism and how capitalism depends on racism and sexism to keep capital in the hands of private interests.

After an all round very well received paper, the keynote guest, Professor Judith Butler, feminist philosopher extraordinaire, got up and had the Exam Hall audience spellbound by her unrivaled eloquence. She chose to focus on the importance of non-violence in pursuing radical aims. It was a talk that was as accessible as it was thought provoking. Another highlight of the evening came when Ntina Dzouvala, there as part of a Greek solidarity committee visiting Ireland, gave us a reminder of how contemporary the subject matter being explored on the night was, pointing to the situation in Greece, as well as the rest of Europe. The night also saw fantastic addresses by Rita Harrold of ROSA, Dr. Sinead Kennedy of NUIM and Richard Boyd-Barrett, TD.

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Japanese Culture Night is one of our most popular events, where people can learn about and experience Japanese culture in an enjoyable and informal atmosphere. We hold it every year, usually in the Atrium.

Japanese snacks, as well as Sake and Plum wine, were laid out on a table for everyone to enjoy! Throughout the night we had several different events going on that people could take part in and observe – calligraphy, and Yukata try-ons. We also had a number of wooden traditional Japanese toys and our manga collection on display during the night.

We began the night with a traditional Japanese tea ceremony, which took place at the centre of the room for everyone to watch. After the tea ceremony, Dublin Kendo Kobukai performed some Kendo demonstrations, including Iaido, “Art of drawing the sword”

Next, DU Judo club gave a few demonstrations in the form of a choreographed fight between an attacker and their victim. Sushi, prepared and delivered by Oishii Sushi, Dublin, was then brought out for everyone at the event to enjoy! Trinity Karate finished off the night with a final demonstration of a number of Karate techniques.

Our society aims to provide the opportunity to TCD students and staff to get to know the Japanese culture and we believe this event has fulfilled this aim. Overall, there was a great atmosphere at the event and it was an excellent way to expose staff and students to a whole range of Japanese culture in a single night.

classical society

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japanese society

This year the Classical Society held a highly successful Dionysia. A Dionysia was an ancient Athenian festival in honour of Dionysus (the god of fertility, theatre and revelry), during which comedies and tragedies were performed and Athenians enjoyed lavish feasts.

For our Dionysia we transformed the Atrium into a Greek theatre and a number of our members gave brilliant performances. We had beautiful renditions of ancient Greek music and moving excerpts from Euripides’ Medea, one of which we were even lucky enough to enjoy in the original Greek. A few rowdy scenes from Aristophanes’ Lysistrata performed by a brave group of members had the audience in stitches – it isn’t every day you get to see your classmates dressed as old men or take an oath of celibacy in the name of peace! During intervals between performances we had a banquet in the ancient style, enjoying cured meats, cheeses, grapes and even phallic cookies in honour of the mischievous god.

Thanks to a generous grant from the TCD Association and Trust we were able to make fantastic costumes for the actors, and construct a setting which created a wonderful atmosphere for the festival. It was a truly memorable evening, and a great opportunity for our members to express their love of all things classical in a fun and novel way.

cancer society The second annual Relay for Life was held on the 11th and 12th of March this year. As Trinity’s only 24-hour event, a lot of organisation and planning went into the event by both the Cancer Society and the subcommittee for Relay for Life chaired

by Paul Meagher. Held in Luce Hall, it got off to a great start at noon with the survivors lap, and culminated the Candle of Hope ceremony, where we celebrated, remembered and fought back against cancer.

Relay for Life is not just a tremendous event for Cancer Soc and our members, but also for members of societies across campus. One of the most famous aspects of our Relay for Life is the sense of community promoted between the various societies as we relay for cancer awareness.

24 hours sounds like a long time, but between pizza, movies, sports, games and meeting friends, the time flies. It is a non-smoking, no alcohol mini-festival set against the backdrop of our very own Trinity campus.

law society The Inaugural Address of the 81st Session of Dublin University Law Society took place on Friday, March 6th in Regent House.

The speaker was Lord David Neuberger, President of the UK Supreme Court.

The Inaugural returned to the Law Society calendar last year on the recommendation of former President Mary Robinson (Auditor - 1976) and is an opportunity for the society’s membership to hear from a prominent speaker in the legal/political world.

To have the UK’s most senior judge speak was a massive privilege for the society. Lord Neuberger spoke about the anniversary of Magna Carta and on the relationship between politics and the law - remarking that although history is the context for present institutions and traditions and we must never forget it, we should never be its prisoners.

Following his address, he held an enlightening and wide-ranging Q&A session with those present.

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best medium, best overall

photography association One of DUPA’s highlights in 2015 was its annual End of Year Exhibition which took place in The Copper House Gallery on March 12th and 13th. The journey to this final destination had started back in January where a committee of ten members was assembling and moulding ideas that would make this event not only a worthwhile experience for the public but also a challenging journey for the society itself. Our mission was to bring together people and get them excited about going to a gallery, meeting photographers and art patrons in person and experiencing works of creative imagination.

Submissions for this year’s DUPA exhibition were of particularly high standard and, after careful consideration, eleven photographers coming from diverse academic disciplines of Trinity College Dublin were chosen. Contrary to what had been done in the past, this year’s selection process was based on individual photographers exemplifying their style through a general theme in their submitted works. The aim was to celebrate the photographer and his or her style of photography by allowing each candidate to choose four works that shared a common theme along with particular framing style and printing size. Overall, a selection of forty four works were on display illustrating a great deal of thematic variety for the public to reflect on.

Another major aspect of this exhibition was its layout. Having found a Gallery that could offer us enough space for constructing a temporary ecosystem where a community of art lovers could exchange ideas even for a short while, we focused on the layout of the exhibition. Keeping in mind that every photographer had his or her own theme, it was both challenging and exciting to see what best possible arrangement could be created with such a given collection. In the end, photographs were arranged in such a way as to convey a certain ambience, a single scene from a story or a simultaneous narrative.

There was an intimate interaction between photos as diverse as seascapes, streetscapes, animals and figural compositions, which gave the whole display a sense of unification while allowing each work to retain its own independence.

Alongside photo works, DUPA also featured a time-lapse of Trinity College grounds created by one of the committee members and projected a series of other photo works that were submitted, but not exhibited in the Gallery, for all to admire. For those who could not have made it to the exhibition or wished to keep something as a memory of this event and share some thoughts with other photography clubs, DUPA committee members had created a photobook that demonstrates a brief portfolio of the eleven photographers featured in the exhibition.

There is definitely something different between seeing the real work in an actual space and just looking at the same photograph on a website. This event, as mentioned before, was a journey and this special feeling of having realised our ideas was the society’s reward. Our aim was to stretch our capabilities higher and wider and winning the Best Overall Society of the Year signified to us our overall accomplishment as a team.

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a e SOCIETY OF THE YEAR AWARDS

On the 4th March, the great and the good of Trinity’s societies descended on the O’Callaghan Hotel for the annual CSC Society of the Year Ball.

For some, thoughts of prizes, glory and fame were foremost in their minds; for others, the prospect of the traditional night of food, dancing and a good time was what mattered.

Once tickets had been checked, two things were clear: first, the dress code (‘dress to impress’) had been adhered to; and second, it was time for the first batch of awards to be handed out: Best Small: Christian Union Best Medium: DUPA (Photographic) Best Large: The Phil Best Event: Trinity Economic Forum Best Individual: Peter Gillen (TES) Best Fresher: Abbie O’Neill (VDP)

Most Improved: Traditional Music Society Best Online Presence: Trinity Arts Festival & Trinity Entreprenurial Society Best Publication: Trinity Arts Festival Programme Best Poster: Paradise Lost (TAF)

Then dinner was served, after which came the three awards that all had been waiting for. Firstly, the societies’ choice award – voted on by those present on the night – went to the Knitting Society. Next up, the Overall Society of the Year was awarded to a well-deserving DUPA. And, to cap it all off, it was agreed that the award for most attractive committee should go to the Food and Drink Society, with a disappointing second place for the CSC Exec.

After the awards had been

presented, and the CSC staff had been thanked for their role in the organisation of the night, the music started. Soon the dancefloor was full of suave society officers showing off their best moves, with only a few particularly questionable moments.

There was a real sense of disappointment at the end of the night, when the hotel staff showed up and told us that it all had to end.

Why so soon, we asked? The night is young, the music is playing, and the people are dancing – surely we can keep going for a while longer? But the hard-hearted, unyielding staff said no, and that was that. All that was left to do was to make our way home, fall into bed, and wait another year.

Andrew Burrows

BEST overall: du photographic association (DUPA)

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BEST SMALL: Trinity College Christian Union, Traditional Music Society, Student Managed Fund (SMF)

BEST medium: Best Medium Society, DU Computer Science, DU History, Knitting Society, Photographic (DUPA)

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BEST large: TES, the Phil, DU Players, Vincent de Paul

most improved: DU Computer Science, DU Digital Arts (DUDJ), TES Entrepreneurial, Traditional Music Society

BEST new: DU Arabesque Society, DU Caledonian Society, Trinity Global Development Society

BEST fresher:

Abbie O’Neill (VDP), Alannah Higgins (DUBES), Chris­topher McCarron (Science Fiction), Ciaran Wadd (Cumann Gaelach), Conn McCarrick (SoFIA), James Mulcahy (Trinity FM), Molly Mcavoy (Trinity Arts Festi­val), Neil Dunne (Singers), Oliver O’Riordan (QSoc), Si­mon Bluett (Orchestra), Stephen Frain (Amnesty), Tom Cantillon (DU Law), Benedict Esdale (DU Players)

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BEST online presence: TAF, TES, Trinity Orchestra, TFM, SoFia, DU Fashion Soc, DU Players

BEST poster: Society Book Swap & EGM (Literary), This House Regrets Kanye West (Philosophical), Paradise Lost (TAF), Players Ball (Players), ReJoyce (Players)

BEST publication: TAF 2015 (Trinity Arts Festival), TEF 2015 (Trinity Economic Forum),

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The Player – Vol 5, Issue 2 (Players), Photobook 2014 (Photographic)

BEST event: Mythfest (DU Players), Paradise Lost (TRINITY ARTS FESTIVAL), TCD Hack Day (Tes and DUCSS), Trinity Economic Forum 2015 (Trinity Economic Forum)

societies’ choice: knitting society

BEST individual: Adam Keilthy (Knitting), Andrew Murphy (DUPA), Ben O’Dwyer (TTV), Brian Carthy (TFM), Caoimhe Stafford (TEF), Conn McCarthy (Mathsoc), Conor O’Brien (ELSA), Donal McKeating (Players), Fionn Ó Deá (Cumann Gaelach), Grace Nuttall (TAF), Heather O’Donoghue (Dance), Holly English (Zoological), Jack Marks (DU Amnesty), James Ringland (DU Law), Jason Leonard (DUCSS), Kevin Bluett (Orchestra), Lynsey Callaghan (Singers), Peter Gillen (TES), Philip Hodgins (Music), Robert Milling (QSoc), Sarah Mortell (TCD Phil), Sarah Purcell (VDP), Sinéad Harrington (Historical), Zoe Eves.

the csc executive Chair - Eanna Drury Treasurer - Andrew Burrows Secretary - Caitríona Sheil Amenities Officer - Grace Nuttall Honorary Treasurer - Ronan Hodson Ordinary Members & Ambassadors: Tobechukwu Arize, Paul Behan, Frank Bradley, Jim Connell-Moylan, Kevin Fogarty, Aifric ni Chriodain, Síle Somers, Jamie Buckley Administrative Officer - Lucy O’Connell Marketing/Office Administrator - Emma Matthews Strategic Development Officer - Joseph O’Gorman

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INDEX AIESEC 14 Alternative Music 13 Amnesty 26 Archaelogical 32 Biological 37 Caledonian 8 Cancer 39 Chinese 32 Circus & Juggling 35 Choral 33 Christian Union 9 Classical 38 Comedy 20 Computer Science 15 Cumann Gaelach 12 Dance 23 Digital Arts 36 ELSA 31 Entreprenurial 31 Europa 27 Fashion 15 Film 26 Fourth Week 6 Freshers’ Week 2 FLAC 16 Gamers 22 Gender Equality 16 Genetical 33 Germanic 10 Global Development 9 High Society 5 Hist 37 History 17 Horse Racing 10 Indian 34

International 21 Japanese 38 Joly Geological 34 Knitting 11 Korean 17 Labour 11 Laurentian 23 Law 39 Law Review 20 Literary 27 Maths 24 Meditation 18 Modern Languages 22 Muslim 29 Orchestra 19 Phil 12 Photography 40 Physics 28 Players 4 Sign Language 36 Singers 19 Sociology 13 Quiz 29 Qsoc 18 Sci-Fi 35 Society of the Year 41 SoFIA 4 South East Asia 30 S2S 8 TAF 25 Traditional Music 24 VDP 30 Visual Arts 21 Yoga 28 Zoology 14

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