Exeplore

Branching Out: The Virtual Nature Experiment

Spending time in nature can boost our mental health but can experiencing nature digitally have a similar impact? This is one of the ideas which PhD student, Alex Smalley, has been exploring alongside the BBC in the ‘Virtual Nature’ experiment. In this episode we catch up with Alex to talk about how technology can combine with nature to improve wellbeing. 

If you want to take part in the Virtual Nature experiment you can do so at https://www.bbc.co.uk/soundscapesforwellbeing

Celebrating International Women's Day 2021

In this episode of Exeplore, we celebrate International Women’s Day! Colleagues across the University have been nominating inspirational women that they work with for recognition. We couldn't speak to everyone (unfortunately), so we caught up with three women with different recent experiences - Associate Professor Victoria Tischler who’s new to the University, Shades Chaudhary who has been a student, Guild President and now works in our Equality Diversity and Inclusion team and Cath Ashenden who works in IT for our Cornwall campus and has changed roles during lockdown.

You can check out all the inspirational nominees here and our International Women’s Day events here.

A chat with SU Presidents, Cara and Charlotte

What is it like to be the Presidents of a Students' Union in the middle of a pandemic? How do you support students while the country is in lockdown? In this episode, we’re joined by Cara Chittenden, Students’ Union President Exeter, and Charlotte Agnew, SU President Welfare and Inclusivity, who share their views on becoming Presidents during COVID-19. They also talk about some of the initiatives they've been using this year to help everyone stay connected in an online world.

The University of Exeter has two campuses in Cornwall: Penryn and Truro. Our Penryn campus is shared with Falmouth University, so our students in Cornwall are represented by the Falmouth and Exeter Students’ Union. You can find out more about the Falmouth and Exeter Students’ Union here, and access student wellbeing resources here. 

Grounds, gardening and green fingers

During this episode, Assistant Director of Grounds, Iain Park, joins us as we explore why the grounds at Streatham Campus offer a great space for students, staff, animals and plants to thrive in. We also talk about what impact the Coronavirus lockdown had on the grounds in spring 2020. If you’re interested in keeping up to date with what’s going on in the grounds follow them on Instagram https://bit.ly/3qC2dCP. More information about the Wellbeing Walks Iain talks about can also be found on the website: http://ex.ac.uk/crh

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: What to do about Reputation

A good or bad reputation used to be something that only celebrities or politicians had to worry about, but with the advent of social media, the way we’re regarded can now have an impact on any one of us. Businesses too are ever-mindful of how their actions might be viewed by their customers. So how important a role does reputation play in our lives, and what should we do about it if things go wrong? 

The USA: United or Divided States?

The USA has gone through one of the most tumultuous times in its history. As Joe Biden takes the reins as the 46^th President, what challenges does the country face? How split is the nation and what might the future hold?

A chat with President of the Students' Guild, Sunday Blake

In this episode we chat to the President of the Students’ Guild in Exeter, Sunday Blake. She shares her hopes for term 2, advice for anyone thinking of running in the Students’ Guild elections and why she loves working with students. We also explored the challenges of working during COVID-19, her passion for student wellbeing and why the Students’ Guild have been reaching out on social media and by phone. You can find more info on the Students’ Guild here, and University of Exeter Wellbeing resources here. 

Movember: The Foundation

Trigger warning: suicide 

Due to our students' amazing fundraising efforts, the University of Exeter has managed to raise more than £200,000 for the Movember Foundation in 2020, the highest total for any university in the UK.

In this week’s episode we talk to a few of the Exeter Movember Ambassadors about their experiences with the Foundation and their motives for getting involved. We also spoke with Ozzie and Ronnie, two of the fundraising managers at UK Movember, to get their personal reflections on the campaign this year and find out how the money raised goes towards supporting men’s health.

Movember, Masculinity and Men's Mental Health

Trigger warning: suicide 

During this episode we explore one of the major themes of the Movember campaign: masculinity and men's mental health. We chat to current students and alumni about their own experiences of Movember and why the discourse around men's mental health needs to change.

https://www.exeter.ac.uk/wellbeing/