You can vote for these two student parties on 2, 3 and 4 June

Party leaders Aleksandra Pawlik and Anemoon Schroten were both presented the same topics topics selected by the editorial team based on current affairs and the monthly consultation meetings between the Student Council (SR) and the Executive Board (CvB).

Defence on campus

Aleksandra (Lijst Bèta): “We remain critical of partnerships with the defence sector; however, we recognise that, given the current geopolitical context, the university is taking on a larger role in this area. At the same time, we believe that military personnel have no place on campus and that there should be no restricted facilities that are inaccessible to students.”
Anemoon (ORAS): “TU Delft can collaborate with the Ministry of Defence, but must continue to critically assess such arrangements. Not every student feels comfortable with the military presence on campus.”

Defensity College (minor)

Aleksandra: “Every student should have the ability to choose from a wide set of minors, but there are clear boundaries and limits that we believe in.”A university should be an open-minded and diverse community that enables people to develop freely while safeguarding academic freedom. These norms and values should not clash with the aspects taught at Defensity College.”
Anemoon: “Defensity College offers students opportunities to develop alongside their studies. ORAS welcomes such initiatives. However, participation must remain voluntary. And there must continue to be scope for critical debate on the role of Defence within the university.”

Aleksandra: ‘The Executive Board should publish clearer statements on global conflicts and communicate these effectively’

Collaboration in times of conflict

Aleksandra: “The Executive Board should publish clearer statements on global conflicts and communicate these effectively to the community it represents. We believe that when an institution breaks any of the universal human rights, the university should end its collaboration with them, including the case for Israeli partners.”
Anemoon: “International collaborations require careful and critical consideration. For example, through a permanent consultative body where ethical issues are discussed on a regular basis, with the active involvement of students.”

AI policy

Aleksandra: “The university should both directly prepare students for the job market, where AI usage is rapidly increasing, and stimulate (critical) thinking. Lijst Beta has initiated the inclusion of a more holistic approach in the central TU AI policy – teaching students how to use AI effectively, critically, ethically, and sustainably. To complement those competencies, faculties should focus more on the quality of soft skills being taught, which are becoming increasingly important because of the rise of AI.”
Anemoon: “We want students – just like employees – to have access to good AI tools. A clear AI policy is needed so that students know where they stand and are not unfairly accused of cheating. At the same time, we caution against over-scheduling, given that AI is leading to an increasing number of mid-term tests and weekly assignments. Students must retain the freedom to organise their studies flexibly and independently.”

Safety on de campus

Aleksandra: “While the TU Delft campus might be safe for walking or cycling during the day, the atmosphere at many faculties can be a different story. Especially in project groups, female students and minority groups can still feel unheard and sometimes secluded. Lijst Bèta has tirelessly advocated for a central reporting point for social safety. Now, we have been trying to increase its visibility.”
Anemoon: “We welcome initiatives such as the student reporting point and the new code of conduct. At the same time, social safety within project groups and in the dependent relationships between students and supervisors during final-year bachelor’s and master’s projects continues to require attention.”

Transparency

Aleksandra: “Transparency on collaborations with defence or fossil fuel industry has been lacking in both clarity and communication. This year, we have pushed for the publication of budget-cut plans and transparent communication about the effects on students. We are working on using Brightspace as a communication channel for a broader range of topics that directly or indirectly affect students.”
Anemoon: “Decision-making needs to be more transparent. Many documents are available, but they are difficult to find and read. When exams were cancelled last year due to heavy snowfall and students were poorly informed, we contacted the Executive Board immediately. As a result, a message containing all the key information was posted on the student portal within a few hours.”

Anemoon: ‘Students need to be able to meet up outside of their studies, and faculty bars play an important role in this’

Ban on alcohol and eating on campus

Aleksandra: “We believe that students should have the freedom to choose their own health and lifestyle choices. However, TU has a duty of care towards its students. We believe that the duty of care also extends to providing affordable, healthy catering for students. We would like to fundamentally change the structure through which the food is supplied and make it more affordable through scalability. The alcohol policy is not one of our top priorities in this regard.”
Anemoon: “Students need to be able to meet up outside of their studies, and faculty bars play an important role in this. The closure of the Lagerhuysch (the Mechanical Engineering faculty bar, ed.) is a loss. In addition, we are calling for a review of the alcohol policy, in consultation with students. ORAS is also continuing discussions with caterer Appèl to reduce the high prices in the canteens and introduce more affordable options.”

What has been achieved?

Aleksandra: “Over the past years, we have achieved mandatory practice exams for all courses and structurally increased the number of study places in all educational buildings. In more recent times, we have promoted teaching AI skills in education, which includes writing correct prompts, critically analysing results, considering ethical and sustainable aspects of its usage, and how it fits with upcoming AI policy.

We helped set up GreenTeams and Sustainability Task Forces across multiple faculties and supported teachers in implementing sustainability in curricula and electives.

We increased the number of student psychologists by 25 per cent and set up training and support for confidential people in associations. We aided in setting up D&I teams across multiple faculties, and sexual well-being and consent trainings in freshmen weekends.

For our future ambitions, we want to promote greater financial equality by reducing costs for students. Furthermore, we want more defense and fossil fuel transparency and fairer examination policies.”

Anemoon: “Students should be free to choose who they live with, and we want to preserve Delft’s housing culture in this way. That is why students’ views must be taken into account when DUWO revises its house-viewing policy. We are discussing this with DUWO, WijWonen and the VeRa, and a petition launched by us and WijWonen has been signed over 6,000 times and handed over to the mayor. The city council subsequently adopted several motions emphasising the importance of autonomy in student houses.

In addition, we are making extracurricular activities more accessible through the Student Support Fund and tuition-free student councils. Over the past year, we have also negotiated with the Executive Board regarding budget cuts, brought the issue of ‘ghost students’ to the attention of study advisers, secured additional outdoor study spaces at Echo for next year, and X will be getting an outdoor gym.”