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Let's be friendsForum 2009: And the results are...
Students from across the UK met in Cardiff to discuss, debate and decide the future direction of P&P campaigns. Democracy is an essential part of the student-led P&P network. So, what was decided?
Results quick-links:
Small group work was reported back to everyone
Image © Rich Lott
Voicing ideas, opinions.
Image © Rich Lott
Students were elected to our Management Committee by the single transferrable voting system.
The Management Committee
The Management Committee oversee all the work that the People & Planet does and keep the organisation working in the best interests of the network. Students voted overwhelmingly to create a sixth form only position on People & Planet’s Management Committee. This will take effect from next year. Meanwhile, four new people were elected out of an outstanding field of nine candidates. Well done to:
Emily Bell
Previously coordinator of Reading Uni’s Campaigns Forum and about to be a full time sabbatical officer for campaigns and democracy.Matt McMullen
Recently set up P&P school group, now in gap year and a Fairtrade Schools campaign coordinator and P&P Group Support Volunteer.Rhiannon Horsely
Re-elected for a second year, has four years’ experience with P&P as network member, Campaign Advocate and Regional Rep.Hannah Greenslade Sabbatical Officer at Leeds Uni, with lots of local campaigning experience.
Corporate Power Campaign chosen
Small group work was reported back to everyone
Image © Rich Lott
Students presented their new corporate power campaign options.
Image © Rich Lott
After hours of debate, analysis and discussion of the seven network campaign proposals, the network chose two campaigns to kick-start the corporate power campaign theme chosen at the Forum 2008:
Reclaim Education will launch first in late 2009. The campaign is built around three central aims:
Reducing the influence of corporations in the research priorities of universities and redirecting efforts towards research work that is socially beneficial.
Increasing positive career choices offered by schools, colleges and universities, and seeking to exclude unethical companies from recruiting on campus.
Challenging sponsorship of events and resources in schools, colleges and universities by questionable companies.
Total Ethical Procurement was chosen by the network as the next campaign to launch within our broad corporate power theme. This will launch at least a year later, subject to continuing approval of next year’s Forum. The campaign objectives are:
All UK educational institutions only procure goods and services that have been produced in an environmentally and socially sustainable way.
Corporations that supply to universities, schools or colleges either end labour rights abuses, exploitative supply chain relationships and environmental destruction or no longer get to supply the institution.
The education sector becomes a model for other public sectors, showing how all procurement can be done ethically, and which suppliers do or do not uphold ethical standards
This leads to a change in government regulation, legislating that all public and private institutions and sectors must procure ethically.
More on Total Ethical Procurement
Discussions in small groups give more people a chance to contribute.
Loads of P&Pers attended The Forum 2009 to take decisions on the future direction of our campaigning
Image © Rich Lott
Climate change campaign decisions
Copenhagen
The network were asked to decide on P&P’s climate campaign priorities for autumn 2009. Should P&P campaign for a global climate deal at Copenhagen, or should we launch a boycott of RBS-NatWest to increase the pressure for climate friendly investments?
Forum participants considered each proposition and did a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis of each. They then met in small groups to discuss possible ammendments that would strengthen each option by eliminating or reducing the key weaknesses identified. These were then re-presented, before a vote and a spectrum line.
People voted overwhelmingly to continue the focus on RBS as part of our Ditch Dirty Development campaign. The spectrum line showed the strength of feeling for this.
The amendments to the original Forum proposal were as follows (more detail to follow):
Even if RBS are no longer the biggest climate change funders we will keep our focus on them, as we have built up a good momentum for this. In this case, we will of course carefully consider tactics to make sure they are still the most effective.
We will highlight the Copenhagen summit, focussing on the need for the UK to take action at home (clean up it’s own banks’ activities and moving to a low-carbon economy) if the UK is to meet international commitments. Specifically we will be clear that carbon trading (which allows rich countries to buy their way out of necessary action) should not be part of the solution.
If the boycott is launched, we will produce specific materials to make it easy for people to switch bank accounts, making sure the reason for this is explicit. Sixth formers, often at the point of opening a bank account, will be provided with materials on why not to choose RBS.
More on this decision process.
Future of Go Green
So you’ve succeeded in meeting all the Go Green campaign demands, but you’ve noticed that climate change is still getting worse. What now?
Thanks to the input from the P&P network, meetings with green uni experts and our volunteer researchers students chose between two exciting possible options.
The result is that in addition to our Go Green campaign’s current aims, we will be campaigning to make Transition Universities, which means:
Reducing carbon emissions by universities developing “energy descent plans”.
Groups will put on practical projects demonstrating how this could be done in their locality by engaging people in carbon reduction activities.
The concept of re-localisation — connecting with local communities — is key to this and universities will also add momentum to the building international transition movement.
Full write-ups will follow on the Forum 09 pages. Thanks to all the students who engaged so fully with the tough decisions!
