Vote for Anne
She's the one with the Plan
Hi, I’m Anne Marie Hamfeldt. I’m a third-year BSc (Hons) Conservation Biology and Management student. I came to the university excited to be on a campus so close to nature. I would love to see what I can do to help keep this connection and make it stronger. Over the past few years, I have been a part of several environmentally focused societies including Global Justice Stirling, Marine Conservation Society, Patches 4 Peace, Environmental Enterprise, and the Hedgehog-Friendly Campus initiative. I believe the university should practice what they preach by acting on their Sustainability Plan and “Holistic Approach”.
Biodiversity
The university is host to over 300 acres of beautiful Scottish landscape which has extensive biodiversity. Some biodiversity that can be found throughout the university includes species such as the vulnerable hedgehog and near-threatened red squirrel. Organizations such as the Hedgehog Friendly Campus have worked to improve the overall biodiversity and conservation on campus, unfortunately, with much pushback from the university. I would work alongside existing environmental groups on campus to increase the biodiversity and awareness on campus. Including additional signage with information about the landscape and working with the landscape team to increase wild areas on campus. The university should not be concerned about manicured lawns but should instead uphold a biodiverse healthy mowing regimen.
Sustainable Housing
60% of the university’s energy consumption is used to heat buildings. The university promises net-zero by 2030, yet many student accommodations still have poor insulation and ventilation. Having lived in HH Donnelly during COVID, I experienced unreliable heating and hot water during winter. The university needs to update its accommodations with better insulation systems. The university has also promised to deliver sustainability awareness on campus, and I plan to work with the university to host educationals and provide all students with additional knowledge on the subject and more opportunities for students to get involved with it.
Food Waste
In the UK around 9.5 million tons of food is wasted, while over 8 million people are in food poverty. With the current cost of living crisis, even more students are facing food poverty. It is unacceptable that the university runs as an unchecked oligopoly with only three separately managed sources of food (Students Union, University Catering, and Co-op) and the Co-Op acting as a monopoly for groceries. The university catering outlets are notorious for throwing endless amounts of food away every night when they should be donating to the campus community fridge. The fridge should be stocked constantly and food on campus should be affordable to all. Additionally, the compost system on campus should be held to a higher standard. Each accommodation should be provided with compost bins, and all catering outlets composting food waste.
