Ali Rees, a second-year mature journalism student, is running for the position of Vice President for Communities. With years of professional experience and multiple committee roles, Ali sat down to discuss their manifesto with Brig.
A relaxed and comfortable environment settled when we sat down with Ali in Pathfoot. Their kind smile and personable approach made for a gentle, insightful interview process.
Two Pillar Manifesto
Ali’s manifesto features two main pillars: Strengthening societies and reduction of harm.
Brig asked Ali how their role on society committees had helped them to identify and create the two key pillars.
“I think what’s really helped from being so involved in societies is that I can see from their perspective what pursuit to take, and what needs to be done to offer more support.”
Ali discussed their role as Brig’s Secretary, explaining how pinch-points were identified in the role. The hands-on position revealed a struggle with communications as the society frequently found out about events as they happened, and deadlines passed with no indication, creating frustrating scenarios:
“A little bit more communication could have really helped us with that, so I think that perspective is really helpful too, and it has really driven a lot of like the concrete things that I would like to achieve,
“I know how important societies are to people because they really are to me, and I don’t think you can get very far in something like this without really caring about what you’re doing and I really care about what I’m doing.”
Ali’s passion for the societies was shining through, having been so involved for three years.
Pillar One: Strengthening Societies
In order to strengthen societies, Ali plans to engage societies with their correlating academic departments:
“Some societies operate around a degree, such as law and history and that kind of thing. I would love it if the university had any sort of support they could provide.”
Ali then mentioned advertisement of society events to people enrolled on a related degree programme to encourage numbers, engagement, and opportunities, and increased training options for society members.
“I don’t want the university to control the societies obviously, but on a case-by-case basis what can the faculty provide to the society? This will also help the university see how important societies are to the university. I think the higher profile the societies are in the university’s eye, the more support the university will give the student union. (…) I think it will only be a positive thing.”
Another method that Ali has planned to strengthen societies is to construct a ‘Societies Clinic’ at a regular time where society members can come and “voice concerns, get advice, and find out information,” especially in relation to CZEC grant funding and options such as the Vice Chancellors Fund.
“Not enough people have the support to apply for that kind of thing because it is a bit of a procedure. Supporting people to access that funding would be really good, and obviously that would have a great impact on the society that can access the fund. A more cohesive process supports a consistent availability for coming in with questions and that might help people to open up a little bit about their struggles.”
Pillar Two: Harm Reduction
Ali wishes to minimise the negative health, social, and legal impacts of drug usage, believing it to be crucial to a healthy university experience.
Brig asked Ali why they chose this as their second pillar:
“I have seen the effect that drug use can have on people and I think it is it’s the wrong approach to try and stop people from using drugs because they won’t. People are going to use drugs, students are going to use drugs.”
Ali continued passionately:
“Evidence shows that punitive measures on this sort of thing don’t really do anything – they create stigma and they create harm.”
“If people need help, if the system is punitive they will not seek help as they will be severely discouraged. If there’s a chance that they might get kicked out of their degree because they need help with drugs, then no one’s going to do that and they’re just going to struggle alone – whereas if we can change the script, flip the message to: okay, we see you need help, how can we support you without discipline.”
“Scotland has a problem with drugs. I think it’s naïve to think that abstinence is the way forward because it’s been proven that it isn’t.”
We moved on to discuss how harm from drug usage can be reduced in a university environment, and how Ali plans to achieve this:
“The Student Union has things like drug testing kits to make sure the drugs you are taking are safe, I want it so more people know that they are available. I think a really good first step would be really simple stuff like sign-posting in bathrooms,
“The more complex way to tackle this issue is by working directly with the university to change their disciplinary pursuits. They need to be seen to take issues seriously but we can do that without so much harm – I think that is quite a complex issue, but I think even if it’s something that I don’t achieve fully, I think it’s a conversation that needs to be started.”
Beyond the Pillars: Sustainability and Housing
Expanding their manifesto beyond these two pillars, Ali is also keen to work on sustainability and housing at the university. Brig asked why they chose these topics to accompany their manifesto:
“Housing is very important to everyone. Everyone’s got to live somewhere, and if you’re struggling to find someone to live, or if you live in somewhere where the conditions aren’t good it’s really gonna have a measurable effect on your studies. We’re all here at the end of the day to get a degree, to learn something, and when you are sick because of black mould or really anxious because you can’t afford to put the heating on and pay your rent and have food and buy your bus tickets… that’s not a conducive environment for learning.”
On sustainability, Ali said:
“In terms of sustainability I try not to be doom and gloom but the world is kind of on fire/ melting/like everything is a bit terrible environmentally at the moment I really struggle a bit with climate anxiety,
“I think everyone needs to have some sort of accountability to the environment. I’d really like to drive that.”
They then spoke with passion and irritation about the bin signage in campus central:
“They really annoy me! Why aren’t they clearly labelled? Why doesn’t the recycling bin have a list of what you can put in it? It’s so easy, there’s such an easy win there.”
On the subject of recycling and sustainability, Ali mentioned the food waste from the university food outlets such as Haldanes. They said that food should be given away or sold at a reduced price to students at the end of the day, which “solves two problems with one stone, it helps with the cost of living and it helps with sustainability.”
Why You?
“I’m really passionate about this. I really really care. I am a mature student which means that I have a lot of experience – I can speak to boards and CEOs and that kind of thing; I’ve got experience in standing my ground; I’m not scared of men in suits!
“I can articulate myself reasonably well, and I’ve got experience with not being able to achieve things as well which I think is hard. With these sorts of roles, you come in with a lot of goals and a lot of hopes, and you have to be really resilient with not being able to do everything you want to do. I’ve experienced that.
“I think I’m just quite friendly and approachable. I want societies especially to be able to approach me and tell me what they need so I can facilitate that.”
Using your Vote
The Union Elections take place using a ranked voting system. This means that you are to consider everyone’s manifesto accordingly and equally and rank the candidates accordingly. In such a competitive race, it is important to consider even your 3rd and 4th options.
Voting for Stirling’s Student Union Elections opens on February 25 and closes on February 27, with results announced on February 28.
Featured Image Credit: @realshanodin (Ali Rees) on Instagram
Journalism student at the University of Stirling & BRAW Magazine editor 24/25 and 25/26 🙂
You can see my portfolio here: https://www.clippings.me/alicepollard
