What inspired you to run for SU President?
I’ve been on an upward trajectory, starting from a society then a working committee [Lukasz is head of Societies Committee], I just want to continue to help people.
What would your main priorities be if you won?
My first manifesto point is one of improving night time safety, I didn’t realise how precedent it would be when I submitted it a few weeks ago given the events in London these past few weeks. I know putting lighting up the parks in my manifesto is quite a blunt point and I know it doesn’t tackle the nuances of how we tackle sexual harassment but I think its a good tangible step to try and improve things.
Secondly, is fighting the university over the mistakes it has made this year because students have been treated terribly – stuck at home and mis sold on the teaching and experiences that were going to be on offer, and I suspect many people had they know what would transpire would not have signed for contracts or come to Sheffield this academic year. I want to ensure those students are compensated and things like this don’t happen again. So if the pandemic turns sour over the summer and we face a similar situation I want to negotiate flexible accommodation contracts so students can decide when they want to move in or leave their contracts early.
Lastly, is reviving the social life around the SU. It is the thing that kind of got me involved – all the fun stuff essentially! Something I noticed having come from a society background, one of the biggest issues is society space. Historically, societies have often struggled for space for storage or performance, and I feel that if I was President I would have the clout to say to the university that societies need to be considered in the new buildings. And in a similar vein, the sporting facilities available at Goodwin and Norton are not sufficient to keep our athletes happy essentially. Other universities are spending millions in new sporting facilities and I want to work with the Wellbeing and Sport Officer to put together a business proposal to why and how the sporting facilities in Sheffield can be improved or expanded.
Then I want to make sure everyone has fun. The SU’s finances have been in the gutter this year. If we can run as many events as possible – including nights out and social activities over the summer for students who have missed out this past year it will generate a bit of income which will help the SU’s finances.
How do you plan to help the SU’s societies and committees recover after the pandemic?
That’s a very good question, and as Chair of the Societies Committee it is something that strikes very close to my heart. This year’s lack of engagement has not been anyone’s fault, it’s just been the nature of the situation – people have got digital fatigue, it’s been very difficult to keep people involved. There are already plans in place to help as many societies cross the line with a handful of committee members so that the societies can keep running until the Autumn when hopefully they can run EGMs to find additional people.
With the trading revenue of the SU ramping up hopefully there will be more money to be able to go in the budgets for the Working and Representative Committees to build engagement. Because I think if you throw enough money at something in an efficient way, you are going to get results and see a boost in engagement.
Can you tell me more about your plans regarding tackling sexual harassment?
The Our Bodies Our Streets campaign team have been fantastic – they’ve raised a lot of awareness. I’ll be honest as a white, cis, male, I’ve been oblivious to a lot these issues that women and minority groups often face but I’ve been inspired by their campaign. And I think the SU should take a leading role in this campaign to lobby the council and the university – as this is also an opportunity for the university to give back to the community helping students and residents alike.
Beyond light the parks, this isn’t something I’ve specifically put in my manifesto as I’m not sure what the best steps are. It is something I’d want to consult with the liberation officer who would be in a better position to say what would need to be done, but I’d put my full weight behind them.
How much do you believe can be achieved in just a year by a president and how would you leave a lasting impact?
With the lighting up of the parks, I think that is definitely do-able, it’s a case of running a big consertive campaign to ensure the council put it in their budget next year. If the Covid restrictions allow, running club nights shouldn’t be an issue.
But there are some more challenging and ambitious goals. I want to campaign against sky-rocketing international tuition rates. In an ideal world there would be parity there but it’s not realistic but this year EU students will be paying the full international rates for the first time. I think there is scope to lower the international rates slightly or to have a freeze for the next five years so that international rates don’t go up any further, and with inflation that would be a slight discount.
With the sports investment, that’s not going to be done in a year but it’s a case of getting the plans in place for what needs to be done over the next few years.
What would you say to people who aren’t planning on voting or don’t care?
If you vote you can make a change – hopefully a change for the better so that students who come after you will have a better experience. I know that’s not what they want to hear because they want to have the best experience themselves, but you need to think about ensuring that things do get better in general. So pretty shamelessly I’ve included ‘Party like it’s 2019’ as one of my manifesto points as I know this year has been devoid of fun so if I can give people more of a chance to socialise and relax over the summer, including final year students who are graduating.
Who do you look up to politically? Has anyone inspired your campaign?
This is quite a tough question because I don’t think there is a single perfect politician out there. But the answer I can come up with is Angela Merkel. She has been the bedroom of Germany for the past 15 years. The German economy has boomed under her leadership and she’s someone who has helped navigate crises like the Eurozone crisis. And while I don’t agree with all her policies she leads from a value based approach. She’s not scared of losing personal popularity if, in the long run, it’s going to make things better such as with the migrant crisis. She got a lot of stick for it from the far-right but it’s going to have a lot of positive effects for Germany in the long-run.
How have you found campaigning during a pandemic and how have you adapted to an all-digital campaign?
It’s been a big change of pace. I was the campaign manager for a candidate last year so I knew all the ins-and-outs of in-person campaigning and this year has marked a very different change. Maybe I’m not taking it as seriously as I should be but I think this year we’ve all been stuck at home and it’s been no fun so I want to make my campaign as fun as possible. Other candidates have opted for these very corporate graphics but I’m just making Tik Toks and memes which I hope get the message across and people find them entertaining.
In one sentence, why should students vote for you?
For an SU which fights for students but is also fun, Be a Badasz, Vote for Lukasz as SU President”
All President candidates were offered an equal opportunity to participate in an interview with Forge Press. To find out more about the elections and the candidates, please visit: https://su.sheffield.ac.uk/student-leadership/officer-elections
Image credit: Lukasz Kirchner
