Author Archives: Charine John

How the world works – let’s talk about it in Eastbourne!

Posted on by

Dear Students,

 I have great pleasure in inviting you to join Steve Rowlatt, Learning Organiser with ‘Unite – the Union’  for lunch next Thursday, 14th February. Steve is coming in to brief students who have already signed up for one of the spots on the Globalisation seminar that he is kindly organising for SU London students from 1-3 March.  As we have four more spots open on the seminar and I would like to have them allocated as soon as possible, Steve has agreed that we can invite other students who are interested but who have not signed up yet to join us for lunch. For obvious reasons, we cannot accommodate you all but we will accept the first ten people to reply to this email confirming that they are interested in coming to the seminar and able to join us on Thursday.  

 The seminar takes place in the lovely English coastal resort of Eastbourne. Students have their own rooms (tv etc) in this plush conference centre just across the road from the ocean and its glorious white cliffs and participants are treated to three meals a day in the hotel’s silver-service restaurant. The seminar itself is actually an abridged version of a 5 day course for Unite members looking at the growth of global industry and the worlds workers response through Trade Union organisation.  We  look at business practices of corporate industry, their impact on society and the environment it operates in. As this seminar has been shrunk down to fit into what is effectively 2 days we can only scratch at the surface in the hope that it will encourage independent study into the topic at a later date. It is open to all students but will obviously be more relevant to those studying allied topics.

 All of the union’s courses are delivered in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere that encourages discussion and debate and this one is no different. You will be able to meet with people who are currently involved in the struggle against the worst excesses of globalised capitalism – many past participants have forged links here that have continued long after students have returned to the US. You should be prepared to work, of course, but  as Steve likes to have a good time, please also be ready for the social aspect of the weekend as well!

 Unite – the Union’s 1.5 million members welcome you all to this event at their centre in Eastbourne and they want you to feel part of the Unite family.

 PLEASE LET ME KNOW BY 10.30 AM NEXT TUESDAY IF YOU DEFINITELY INTEND TO COME AND JOIN US FOR THURSDAY’S LUNCH/MEET&GREET WITH STEVE. (PLEASE REPLY ONLY IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN COMING TO THE SEMINAR IN EASTBOURNE)y. I will write back to you after 10.30 Tuesday to confirm if we have space for you to attend.

 

DONE ALL YOUR PACKING YET? (No? We thought as much…!)

Posted on by

The practicalities of packing up – leaving stuff behind/selling back books

SENDING STUFF HOME

Our very own Royal Mail is still the best option for sending packages back to the US. This and other options for having parcels couriered abroad are all contained in this link.

LEAVING ITEMS FOR FRIENDS

We can now accept stuff that you can’t take home but that is too good to trash. We can hold clearly identified/labeled items for your friends. You can start bringing such items in to the Student Life office. We can provide you with labels but you MUST make sure you have the items boxed/bagged up as well as labeled.

Continue reading →

Be Welcome at the Wellcome

Posted on by

We know you’ve a lot to pack in before you go back home (#sadface) but if you find yourself with a free lunch hour or any time to spare, do try and take the chance to pop into the wonderful Wellcome Collection on Euston Road, just opposite Euston train station. They always have a number of jaw-dropping exhibitions as well as courses and talks open to the public, many of which are FREE covering everything from Dance to Death: click the link here for more information.

 

Thanksgiving in London: munchies 4 U and a car-free Oxford St on Saturday!

Posted on by

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Me, I’m grateful for good health, a home, not being in a country at war, having a job I like – thinking about it makes me realise how lucky I am.For you, dear students, we shall be laying out goodies for you soon in Faraday House, courtesy of the Tuesday Cooking Crew.

Speaking of the Cooking Crew, huge thanks to Clarie R. for letting me know that Saturday is a traffic free day on Oxford Street.  Here is a link so you can find out more. Continue reading →

Winding down at the semester’s end: the practicalities of packing up

Posted on by

We’re just now getting our first queries about how to send your excess stuff back home.  For those of you who are planning ahead, I’ve done a bit of research and have been hard pressed to come up with anything better than the standard advice we normally give students (Royal Mail is still the best option for sending packages). This and other options for having parcels couriered abroad are all contained in this link.

Continue reading →

FOOD (FREE!) GLORIOUS FOOD with our Friends from Encompass!

Posted on by

Ever wondered how food becomes Kosher? Or what Halal actually means? How about what it might taste like???

The Encompass Trust invites Syracuse students to come and find out!!

Wednesday 21st November

Join your Syracuse London colleagues who have just returned from the Encompass Journey of Understanding for an evening of delicious food and cultural conversations!

Continue reading →

Windsor Castle – a prelude to the wind-down…

Posted on by

Happy Monday everyone,

Shocking news, people! We are already winding down towards the end of the semester. I can hardly believe it! We have Windsor Castle this Friday, 23 November, then Bath on the 30th November, then no more field trips! We do have the amazing Classical Spectacular on Thursday that Linda just wrote to you about, and on Thursday 6th December we have ice-skating at Somerset House (meeting 4.45 at Faraday) – tickets for that will go on sale soon, so keep your eyes peeled! We have  a couple of other goodies lined up for you as well, and will be announcing them as they come up.

  Continue reading →

It’s Movember!!

Posted on by

S U London Professor Graham Bolton has written in to remind us that it’s Movember! Here’s his message – he has promised me that I should be able to see his ‘tache in all its glory tomorrow and apparently a couple of his students are having a right old go and producing a healthy crop of hair fuzz too!

About Movember (In case you were wondering)

The Mo, slang for moustache, and November come together each year for Movember.  
 
Movember challenges men to change their appearance and the face of men’s health by growing a moustache. The rules are simple, start Movember 1st  clean shaven and then grow a moustache for the entire month.  The moustache becomes the ribbon for men’s health, the means by which awareness and funds are raised for cancers that affect men.  Much like the commitment to run or walk for charity, the men of Movember commit to growing a moustache for 30 days.  
  Continue reading →

FIELD TRIPS WAITING FOR YOU!

Posted on by

Dear Students,

We are so thrilled to have you back that I could not wait a second longer to let you know that we have three all-school trips waiting just for you!  There are a few (really, not many!) spots left on the field trip to the glorious Blenheim Palace and Oxford on Friday 9th November.

Friday 16th November is reserved for Cambridge, where we will take you into the iconic King’s College as well as along the famed Cambridge ‘backs.’ Both these trips afford you the opportunity to go ‘punting!’

Continue reading →