As part of a year of social action under the banner of JustFest Presents, we are hosting a series of events that aim to engage students with current social justice issues. These include the JustFest Short Film Competition, the JustFest Food Drive and JustFest Supports Fairtrade.

JustFest is part of our Ethical Grand Challenges Programme. It gives undergraduate students at the University the opportunity to explore three of the biggest challenges facing the world in the 21st Century – sustainability, social justice and workplace ethics.

The JustFest Short Film Competition is an exciting opportunity for undergraduate students to develop a short video on an issue of social justice that matters to them and raise awareness of social justice to other students. After the success of last year’s competition, which attracted over 9,500 views on YouTube, we will also be hosting an evening event for students who have submitted films, to announce the shortlisted films.

In February will also be supporting the Manchester Central Foodbank, with our JustFest Food Drive. We will be running a campaign that highlights the importance of combatting food poverty, as well as hosting drop off points for food donations around the University campus, which will then be given to people in the local community in need of help.

Finally, we will be running a JustFest Supports Fairtrade campaign over Fairtrade Fortnight. The aim of this campaign is to get students to think about the effect their buying power has. We will be running various events on campus, supplying Fairtrade products to students. The aim is to generate conversations around the impact of buying Fairtrade vs conventional products and draw attention to the positive impact Fairtrade has on producer’s lives.

Find out more visit the Ethical Grand Challenges website.

JustFest Presents: The Volunteering and Social Justice Festival, Tuesday 18 October

On Tuesday 18 October 2016, JustFest Presents: The Volunteering and Social Justice Festival, a free flagship event of the University’s Ethical Grand Challenges programme that brings together two existing events; the Volunteering Fair and JustFest.

In 2015 the Volunteering Fair welcomed over 2,000 students. By joining up with JustFest, the event aims to inspire students to take action in their communities, the UK and beyond, by exploring aspects of social justice in a creative environment.

The festival will take place at Academy 1 and the surrounding areas. Inside Academy 1 there will be an exhibition space giving students the chance to meet charities and not-for-profit organisations, to network and learn about volunteering opportunities. Outside, the Main Stage will feature musical performances, spoken word artists and soapbox style talks. There will also be a tent curated by the Students Union (SU) and food stalls.

Doors open at 11:30 and close at 16:00. In the evening the SU will be holding a themed event looking at social justice and opportunities to get involved.

If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact the Ethical Grand Challenges Team or the Student Volunteering team.