Achievements

What's been achieved?

Many big wins have been achieved in Manchester over the last few years due to the hard work of the Union and its members.

 

Gaza Crisis

After Israel's attack on Gaza in December 2008 students occupied a University building in protest and a General Meeting motion was passed. Due to the motion we raised thousands of pounds for humanitarian relief for Gaza. We also joined the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement to put pressure on Israel to end its occupation in Palestine. Furthermore we negotiated with the University to get scholarships for Palestinian students and the University is looking into how to implement it.

 

Beat the BNP

In November 2008 a motion was passed to take a stand against the BNP and uphold a No Platform policy for fascist organisations. This is to protect the Union and its members from the threat of fascism, particularly those students from ethnic minorities, LGBT, with disabilities, or otherwise targeted by fascists.

 

Going Green

Since April 2011 we now sell re-usable mugs in the Union.

The Union recently got a motion passed at NUS conference 2011 that mandates NUS to use lobbying, demonstrations and direct action to pressure expose key financial institutions, including the RBS-Natwest, to end their financing of dirty fuels. RBS, which owns NatWest, is one of the biggest corporations in the world and the UK's largest financier of fossil fuel industries. It is also involved in funding some of the most controversial and dangerous projects in the world - such as tar sands extraction in Canada and Arctic drilling off the cost of Greenland. In 2006 its investments were responsible for more emissions than the whole of Scotland.

In October 2010 we passed a policy at our General Meeting to kick the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) off campus.

We took students to Crude Awakening in October 2010. This was a mass direct action in Essex where we achieved shutting down two oil refineries.

In September 2010 we introduced Meat Free Mondays at the Students' Union. Livestock production is responsible for around 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions. A sustainable future demands that we cut down the meat we produce and eat. Making just one day a week a meat-free day, really is the little thing that can make a big difference. If the average UK household halved its consumption of meat this would cut more emissions than if their car use was cut in half. By making a simple change in the way you eat, you are taking part in a world changing campaign.

The Union also took some students to Climate Camp in August 2010 where demonstrators shut down RBS HQ for the day.

Since April 2008 the Union has lobbied the University to become more sustainable. The University now has a target to reduce the University's absolute carbon footprint by at least 40% by 2020 from a 2009 baseline of 85, 419 tonnes of CO2.

The Union itself is also becoming more environmentally friendly by introducing rainwater harvesting for the toilets in the Academy, a ground source heat pump to heat the dressing rooms in the Academy, solar panels to heat hot water in the Students' Union, and LED lighting and movement receptors in the toilets, shop and main hall.

Furthermore, the Union has joined the national and international campaigns and took students to the Wave, the Swoop and Copenhagen.

 

Home fees for asylum seekers

Also in March 2007, a great step was made in support of asylum seekers. At the time, asylum seekers, who are unable to work in the UK while their claims are heard for up to many years, were forced to pay the huge sums of money that ordinary international students were made to pay. This motion has lead to the University agreeing to lower their fees at least to the current home fees, though this has yet to be fully implemented.

Ethical Students' Union

We renewed our Ethical Policy in October 2010. This policy states that we cannot invest in companies that do not allow unhindered trade union participation or that use market and advertising power to worsen peoples lives. This has included what we supply in our shops and bars, resulting in the ousting of Coca Cola and Nestle products.

 

Twinning with An-Najah University, Palestine

November 2007 saw the Union re-affirm its commitment to its twinning with An-Najah University in the West Bank. Palestinian students face some of the toughest conditions in the world trying to learn. Israeli checkpoints, indiscriminate closings down, and the threat of shells all hinder access to education that is meant to be protected under international law. The twinning has allowed students at An-Najah University to feel supported and not neglected. Links have been built up with articles and video-link ups, and the planting of an olive tree sent from Palestine in front of the Union.