Hi, my name is Luke Johnson (he/him), and I am running to be your 2023/24 Activities and Opportunities Officer!

Why me?

• I am currently the Martial Arts Sports Executive, actively fighting for better equality within our clubs.
• I am also on the Union Council sub-committees for Appointments and HR and involved in the Democratic Procedures Committee. As well as this, I have been involved in societies, co-heading the law society’s Legal Triathlon competition.
• For nearly two years I have been a Team Leader at the SU Bar. From day shifts to 4am finishes, I understand the struggles of students who work and study. I will help students maintain a healthy work-life balance.

My Wins so far:

1. Passed policy in union council to mandate the SU to return to being a Real Living Wage employer when financially viable, supporting all SU staff!
2. Passed policy mandating the SU to acknowledge a trade union for the venues staff, empowering workers in the future to create a healthier work-life balance and environment.

My Pledges:

With 54 clubs and over 200 societies my pledges are split up to be relevant to your experience at UEA:

Clubs

1. Transparency in expenses: Finances are more crucial than ever. Members should be able to see where their money is going within our clubs and uea+sport.
2. Fairness in grant distribution: Smaller clubs are being stunted in their growth due to receiving lower grants. I will change this to make grant distributions more transparent.
3. Protecting clubs in the cost-of-living crisis: Let’s face it, sports is expensive. Whilst uea+sport subsidises our clubs, I will strive to ensure finances are not a barrier for members wanting to join.

Society

1. Support academic societies. With funding being cut to our schools, academic societies are more essential than ever. I will support societies in gaining funding and running events.
2. Push do something different: DSD offers key opportunities for students to expand their university experience. I will make sure programmes like DSD are not at risk of being cut.
3. Raise awareness of our variety of societies: With so many different societies, students can get confused on what to join. I will help societies have an equal voice in advertising to students.  

Other

1. Bring back our night bus: Why does the 25/26 bus stop at 11:30pm? I will push for Norwich’s bus providers to make sure students can get home later and safer, without paying for overpriced taxis.
2. Save our club nights: Having worked at the Bar for nearly two years, I’ve watched our club nights die. Cost of Living crisis or not, students need a way to escape from the stress of uni and bond with their friends, I will help save our club nights!
3. Reform Associate Membership: Our clubs are so good that associates want to join them, but the current system is broken. Clubs are financially suffering from not being able to onboard new members. I will fix this system, helping finance our clubs!