Fairtrade Fortnight kicked off at the University with a host of events planned to promote and support Fairtrade.
A football match held between members of the Estates Department using a Fairtrade football is also part of the line-up.
In keeping with Fairtrade Fortnight the regular Wednesday night film will be ‘The End of Poverty’ (2009), directed by Philippe Diaz. The film deals with the issue of global poverty, its causes and how to prevent it.
As part of the Fortnight the organisers will team up with the Love Food Hate Waste event. TV chef Richard Fox will be demonstrating how to cook with leftovers outside the Engine Shed. Fox will mainly be using Fairtrade products in his recipes.
During the course of the Fortnight the Uni Shop, in the main admin building, will be promoting and selling Fairtrade products.
Organisers are urging students to support the event as it could result in a permanent presence for Fairtrade products in the University.
John Bowen, 21, a student at the University, said: “I’m sure most people would agree with the whole Fairtrade message, but I don’t think it gets promoted anywhere near enough. Events like this can only help though.”
The Tower Bar in Lincoln once again to played host to the Student Union’s newly founded Comedy Society.
The society, formed earlier in the academic year, has enjoyed a great reception from locals and students in Lincoln, as more than a hundred people went to watch their first stand up appearance. The event was described as a ‘huge success’ and has prompted the society to set up yet another ‘Tower Bar take over’ to make us, laugh, cry and cringe.
Performer Alex Halsal sai:; “Everyone’s been working hard on improving their acts and routines, and we can’t wait to get back on the stage.”
Mike Hutchinson, another performer, said: ‘Last time was great, all we can hope for is a repeat, with as big a crowd as we can muster.”
The event marks another big step for the SU, promoting its sports and society’s and pushing the students to the forefront of public entertainment.
To promote the event, there have been Facebook groups, drinks offers at the Tower Bar and good old fashioned word of mouth, with the society hoping to attract more people to the event.
The highlight of the night is likely to be towards the end of the show, as the society have gracefully opened the stage to anyone who wishes to try their hand at some stand up comedy of their own.
At the University of Lincoln, this week is Healthy Campus week. Set up by the university’s Students Union, the week proposes to immerse students in healthy living, from free sports events at the on-site leisure centre to stress relieving sessions.
Tagged as a time to ‘energise, enrich and enlighten’, the week aims to teach students how to improve their lifestyles and keep active. There will be various different sessions held throughout the week, at both the Brayford and Riseholm campuses, to reach out to all students.
Activities include well known sports such as mini football tournaments, squash, badminton, basketball and kick boxing, but will give students the chance to try something a bit different with futsal and body zorbing.
Body zorbing entails being harnessed into an inflatable ball, and participants can run, collide and roll around without injury. Jonathan Holmes, a second year Journalism student tasted the activity, saying “it’s very good fun, but also very tiring! It was hilarious to run around, bumping into people and not to hurt yourself.”
Healthy Campus week will be running until 4 March.
An important debate has taken place in the LPAC building on the University of Lincoln campus. The debate which was styled in a ‘Question Time’ format was held by Vice Chancellor Mary Stewart.
The debate was organised after students occupied a room in the University of Lincoln for several weeks, in protest at the rise in tuition fees. The occupation ended after they spoke to Mary Stuart, the university’s vice chancellor.
Along with Professor Stuart the panel members were: Chris Charnley, president of Lincoln’s Student Union; Jack Dobson, a journalism student and a representative of the Lincoln occupation group; and Richard Keeble, a lecturer at the University who was acting as head of the Lincoln School of Journalism.
The debate started with each panel member giving a five minute speech followed by answering pre-submitted questions.
Chris started the debate off explaining the importance of fighting the cuts; he declared the Student Unions view on it is clear.
Professor Keeble talked about the importance of taking action; he suggested a more political approach.
Jack Dobson spoke about the significance of unity in this fight against cuts, he wants a unified Lincoln University to fight against the rising tuition fees.
The vice chancellor was passionate and explained cuts have already taken place, and that we should now ‘look at the facts’.
The discussion continued while questions were being answered.
Richard Keeble added: “It is difficult for universities to help disadvantaged students; this is a serious disadvantage. In most European countries you don’t pay or pay a lot less for tuition fees. Students will go away from England and will study on the continent; there is little incentive for them to stay here.”
The Student Union’s president Chris Charnley concentrated on students expecting ‘a higher quality service’ because they are paying ₤9,000 a year in comparison to a student who paid ₤3,000 a year.
He said: “We need to ensure these students who are paying more can expect more as well.” He added “We should embrace it as an opportunity to provide this.”
The vice chancellor gave a passionate speech about the importance of higher education. She declared that there is a group of vice chancellors who are concerned about the cuts that are coming.
She said: “The state has paid for your education and if you don’t pay it back, jolly good they should pay!
She continued: “We are clever people, let’s be clever, let’s do it the higher education way”.
The vice chancellor is suggesting a new campaign, where the media should be shown another image of the anti-cuts movement.
Described as the “perfect aid for every penitent” an application has been developed to encourage Catholics to admit their wrongdoings.
Developed by Little iApps, Confession has gone on sale this week. It follows Pope Benedict XVI urging Christians to embrace digital communication. In his World Communications address earlier this year, he said, “I invite people to make good use of their presence in the digital world.”
The app offers users tips and guidelines, but is not intended to replace traditional confession completely. It is intended to allow users to examine their conscience based on their personal information, which is stored in the application and password protected.
Users are taken through the sacrament, and the app allows them to keep a track of their sins. However it is to be used as a prompt to visit a priest for absolution following its use.
The developers of the application said that it was made with the assistance of several priests, and given the Church’s blessing by Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Indiana.
Senior Church officials in both the UK and US have announced their approval of the application for iPhones and iPads, and it is thought to be the first time that they have agreed with a mobile app.
