It’s week three. Lectures are back in full swing, as is your overwhelming desire to avoid the library at all costs. This week will see a string of introductory workshops, guest speakers and preparatory sessions for Friday’s Student Climate Strike. This is Empowerment Week, a week organised by Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) to promote the skills needed by students to succeed mentally and physically in the first few weeks of college.
Monday
Empowerment Week kicks off with a series of hour-long recycling workshops starting from 9am in the Postgraduate Common Room. Recycling incorrectly can lead to unintentional contamination of recyclable waste, and with many students living alone for the first time it is timely to raise awareness about this problem. Monday is also the beginning of DU Players’ Workshop Week, the first event of which will take place in the Players’ Theatre at 1pm. Learn how to act from Red Rock actress Eva-Jane Gaffney at the society’s first acting workshop of the year.
Tuesday
The second day of Empowerment Week will see a talk from the person behind Míosta Menstruation, Charlotte Amrouche, about sustainable menstrual products and breaking the stigma around the topic. This free event will begin at 4pm in the Global Room, and pre-registration is required on Eventbrite.
Wednesday
There will be a chance for dancers to get involved with DU Dance this Wednesday in the Sports Centre, with jazz auditions starting at 5pm and contemporary auditions starting at 6.30pm in Ancillary Hall B. For the budding economists among us, the second of Dublin University Business and Economics Society’s EY Speaker Series will begin at 6pm in the Mhairtín Uí Chadhain Theatre in the Arts Block. “The Future of Tax” will see EY employees Shane Ennis and Emma McLaughlin discuss the working environment within the tax department in EY alongside some discussion ahead of Budget 2020 on October 8th.
Thursday
At 2pm in the Atrium, the Hispanic Society will host its inaugural event of the term. “¡Vamos a Charlar!” promises the chance for new members of all Spanish-speaking ability to converse and meet new friends in a laid-back environment. Thursday will also bring the second instalment of the hugely successful TCDSU Welfare event Consenty Crafts. Starting from 5pm in the Pav, the evening will invite you to customise your own tote bag with the theme of consent in mind.
Friday
Friday is a big day for climate activists around the world, not least here in Dublin. September 20th was the date set by Greta Thunberg for the Global Climate Strike, in solidarity with the millions of schoolchildren who have been staging Friday protests for months. The Trinity contingent will be led by the protest group Extinction Rebellion, alongside Trinity Young Greens and Trinity Environmental Society. Extinction Rebellion will gather in Front Square at 11am before heading towards Custom House Quay in time for the beginning of the rally at 12pm. This global strike comes days before the UN Emergency Climate Summit on September 23rd. At 2pm, Dublin University Philosophical Society (the Phil) will award former Republican senator Jeff Flake with a Gold Medal of Honorary Patronage in the Graduates Memorial Building. The former senator will also speak to an audience about his career in politics. As always, membership of The Phil is required and can be bought on the door.
