Exeplore

Trigger warning: suicide and suicide prevention

As part of Mental Health Awareness Week we find out about the different ways hairdressers and barbers can support our wellbeing whilst we’re sitting in the cutting chair. We also hear from the Mind Your Head Society run by the Students’ Guild and the support they offer to students throughout the year.  

Please be aware that this edition of Exeplore contains references to suicide and suicide prevention. There are links below to organisations which can support anyone who needs it and you will hear some of these mentioned in the podcast.

In an emergency situation dial 999. Support is available from the Devon Partnership NHS Trust’s First Response Service. This is a 24/7 Urgent Mental Health Helpline and can be accessed by calling 0808 196 8708.

Samaritans is always available for your call. You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at  email jo@samaritans.org or visit samaritans.org

Students can access support from the University’s wellbeing pages:

https://www.exeter.ac.uk/students/wellbeing/support/urgentsupport/ https://www.exeter.ac.uk/students/wellbeing/

University staff can access support on these pages: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/staff/wellbeing/

The podcast mentions two sites: https://hubofhope.co.uk/ and https://mypickle.org/

And discover more about Mind Your Head Society on the Students’ Guild pages and the Lions Barber Collective on their webpages.

In this episode of Exeplore, we take a whistle-stop tour around Devon and Cornwall. We discuss the benefits of travelling around the counties whilst studying on our campuses with two local experts Malcolm Bell, Chief Executive of Visit Cornwall and Robert Steemson, Community and Landscape Management Ranger at Dartmoor National Park. Whether it's a day on the beach in Exmouth or a ramble to St Ives, there are many things to discover across the region.

You can find out more about the top destinations and how to reach them at Visit Cornwall and Visit Devon.

 

As a keen hockey player Issy Bailey was drawn to study at Exeter and spent her first year playing for the University’s first team. During her first summer break she had a car accident which paralysed her from the waist down. But whilst rehabilitating she took up a new sport, pistol shooting; a sport which would see her compete at the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games.

As part of our Mind Over Natter series Issy joined us to explain how this sport gave her a fresh perspective on life and helped shape the person she is today. In the podcast she gives us an insight to competing at the highest level whilst looking after her wellbeing. Listen now to hear her talk which is filled with useful motivational tips.

As part of the University of Exeter’s Festival of Compassion two University students were delighted to interview horn musician Felix Kleiser. Felix is Artist in Residence with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra who are UOE’s academic partner. In this podcast, he tells us about his early love of playing music and where his mind takes him while he is playing. He also chats about the many ways music can build bridges and bring people together regardless of language or cultural background.

In this episode of Exeplore we celebrate International Women’s Day 2022, as Rebecca Wilson chats to Katy Dalglish, the President of the Athletics Union in Exeter.  

Katy explains the importance of inclusion, how her ‘This Girl Can’ campaign has been addressing barriers to women in sport and why she loves working with Club captains of the University's sports teams.

Find out more about the Athletics Union in Exeter here and about the University's International Women's Day campaign here.

In this episode Rebecca Wilson, from your Student Communications team, chats to President Exeter of the Students’ Union, Stevie Preece, and President Welfare and Inclusivity, Charlotte Agnew. Charlotte and Stevie share their key priorities for this year, their passion for representing students in Cornwall and the benefits of studying near the coast – including sea swimming and beach trips. 

They also shared plans for making the University more sustainable, improving accessibility for students and much more. 

You can find out more about the Students' Union here and access student wellbeing resources here.

In this episode Rebecca Wilson, from your Student Communications team, chats to the President of the Students’ Guild in Exeter, Lily Margaroli, and Vice President Opportunities, Izzy Harrison. Lily and Izzy share their highlights from term 1, advice for anyone thinking of running in the Students’ Guild elections and their favourite memories from their time so far.  

We also discussed their passion for representing students, Lily’ trip to COP26 in November 2021 and their plans for making the University more sustainable.  

You can find more info on the Students’ Guild here, and University of Exeter Wellbeing resources here.

Graduate and best-selling author Milly Johnson talks about her successful career, how her time at uni shaped her, and why it's important the romantic fiction genre is not overlooked by the industry.

While the medical and science communities were in the frontline of the physical fight against COVID-19, arts and humanities played an important role in helping maintain mental health and connection within communities. This was set against the challenge of seeking new creative ways to reach audiences in the midst of lockdowns.

As the Principal Investigator for ‘The Pandemic and Beyond’, Professor Pascale Aebsicher oversees over 70 research projects exploring the importance of the arts, humanities and creative industries in understanding and addressing the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In this episode of Exeplore, we discuss the significant contributions these industries make to public health and the economy, explore some key misconceptions, and consider the long-term innovations that have happened as a result of COVID-19.

You can also find out more about ‘The Pandemic and Beyond’ here.

Each year, hundreds of students come together to tackle global problems in a five-day collaborative project called ‘Grand Challenges’. This year, the programme was held virtually as ‘Challenges Online’ with each project aiming to tackle a different UN sustainability goal.

From gender inequality and fake news to sustainability and the climate emergency, students worked in groups to develop creative solutions to these pressing issues.

In this episode of Exeplore, we chat to students from the 2021 winning groups about the innovative solutions they came up with, why these issues are so important and what they learnt from the experience. We also spoke to Postgraduate facilitators who helped support these student projects, and one of the event organisers. You find out more about the winning projects and challenges online here: https://www.exeter.ac.uk/careers/employability-schemes/challengesonline/