We are a team of 10 volunteers pursuing the social change of drinking tap water instead of buying bottled water from the Students' Union. Our team of multi-disciplinary students are collaborating with People & Planet to ensure green success within our Students' Union. We are students speaking on behalf of students, and we need to work together to make this positive transition.
See past the manufactured demand of bottled water; take one green step to environmental sustainability. Make your refillable bottle the social norm.
In March 2011, you, students at the University of Sheffield, voted to ban bottled water around the Students' Union in a referendum that passed by more than 1,000 votes. As a result, your vote has now been put into action as bottled water is no longer being sold at the Students' Union Shop. Now to focus on your more environmentally-friendly alternative - Freeasy water. Your newly installed water fountains can be found in various places around the Students' Union: in the Zone, New Leaf, Garden View, The Gallery, Bar One, Interval, Coffee Revolution, and the toilets in the Foundry and by SSID. There are also a range of nifty re-useable water bottles being sold in the Union shop from just £1.99, so don't hesitate getting into the Freeasy swing of things.
Your vote has now been put into action - as of after the Easter holidays the Students' Union Shop, and other outlets, have stopped selling bottled water.
On Friday 29th April you may have spotted some creative activity taking shape on the SU Concourse as part of the 'Let's Get Freeasy' event. On the day before the official SU Shop change we felt that what better way to remind students of Freeasy than with some artistic water-related attractions to marvel at. We had the fantastic Geolaw, a local illustrator in Sheffield, decorate boards with his work, as you can see below. Art in the Park also joined us to create a structure made up of water bottles caps and other crafty materials – we gave it the title 'Octo-bottle'. Forge Radio also came down to provide a soundtrack for the event.
And to top off Freeasy's success so far, on the 4th April the campaign picked up the 'Molston Coors Water Stewardship Award'. This recognises the positive impact that the Students' Union has had in raising awareness of water stewardship, and being up against 8 other entries the competition was stiff!
Following the success and positive reception of Freeasy at the Ultimate Fair, Water Day was held in the SU Plaza on Wednesday 14th March to further the awareness of the fast-approaching 31st March. If you haven't already heard, this is when bottled water will no longer be sold at the SU Shop!
One of the main attractions on the day was the Water Challenge, where students were put to the test in their ability to differentiate between bottled and tap water. Often students said they preferred the anonymous tap water, which helped to highlight that without the gloss of advertising, tap water often comes up trumps! The Water Explorer also drew people in with interactive games involving twiddling, pumping and tapping controls for the correct and often surprising answers regarding water consumption. Rory was with us for the day to promote the 'Don’t Lose Your Bottle' ROAR which took place that same evening, where free Roar water bottles were given out.
Vouchers for 50p off all refillable bottles in the SU Shop were issued out on the stall, and can now be collected every time you buy a ticket for a student night from the SU Box Office. Be sure to pick one up before 31st March and use it – you could then purchase a Freeasy water bottle for just £1.49.
Freeasy volunteers took to a balloon-decorated stall and attracted students with pocket size leaflets, Haribo and our environmentally driven messages. The banner stating that bottled water will no longer be sold at the Students' Union from April onwards acted as a reminder for some, and brought news for others. Either way, this imminent change created excitement for Freeasy, with a range of the Students' Union's refillable bottles on display. The competition held, where students had to guess how much the average student would save a year if they stopped buying bottles, was a success!
Below is a list of the winners who win £10 each for guessing very near the £90 - that’s around 34 pints of lager at Bar One! The lucky Holly Colluer and Hanna Sounding have also got their hands on a refillable bottle for guessing bang on!
Winners: Anna Lewis, Alex Rigler, Sarah Chase, Marc Schulze, Edward Barker, Holly Colluer, Ryan Moore, Michael Hedger , Amy Hyman, Ben Wilding, Hanna Osundina, Alice Renwick, Edward Walker and Olivia Hague.
