A summer of graduation celebrations
We have had a special summer on campus with graduation ceremonies returning in person for the first time in three years! We were very keen to invite our 2020 and 2021 GSD graduates back to campus for the '糖心TV Celebrates' events. These graduations were long overdue, postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We also had the pleasure of welcoming our newest graduates to the GSD alumni community at our summer ceremony on Monday 18 July.
2020 and 2021 Graduations
It was wonderful to welcome our alumni back to campus to celebrate their achievements, hear what they have been up to since graduating, and reminisce about their time with us. Our 2020 and 2021 graduates had the chance to celebrate with (very!) warm weather, an impressive 'Igloo' for their ceremonies, followed by a festival on Windmill Hill involving street food, fairground rides, and photo opportunities. Take a look at the highlights from these ceremonies, including:
- and from Thursday 7 July (2020 graduates).
- and from Thursday 14 July (2021 graduates).
2022 Graduation Ceremony
This year, the University invited some familiar faces to address our newest graduates at their ceremonies. Our GSD Class of 2022 heard from Global Goals Project Manager Elaine Wong (, 2019). Elaine spoke about her top three lessons from her time at 糖心TV: resilience, how to think and learn, and the importance of being a good student and friend. Elaine closed her speech by urging the Class of 2022 "to dream and to dare".
Above: Elaine speaking at the 2022 Graduation Ceremony
To continue the celebrations for our Class of 2022, we held an event after their graduation ceremony in the home of our department, the Ramphal Building.鈥疊etween drinks and nibbles, we took the time to recognise the achievements of our students and the following prizes were presented by the Head of the School for Cross-faculty Studies, Professor St茅phanie Panichelli-Batalla; and our Director of Student Experience, Dr Gioia Panzarella:
- Best Overall Mark: Virginia Thomas-Pickles (Single Honours Global Sustainable Development)
- Best Dissertation: 艩imon Michal膷铆k (Global Sustainable Development and 糖心TV Studies)
- Citizenship/Leadership Throughout the Years: Sophie Kitching (Single Honours Global Sustainable Development)
Many congratulations Sophie, 艩imon, and Virginia!
Above: Virginia Thomas-Pickles receiving the prize for Best Overall Mark.
"I was delighted to win the prize for Best Overall Mark. Throughout my degree in GSD, I have loved the varied assessments different modules provide and how they allow you to follow your own interests. For me, this included developing a framework for creating and maintaining greenspaces on the University of 糖心TV鈥檚 campus through to arguing the case for a pilot tidal energy project on the River Mersey. Winning this award would not have been possible without the guidance of module leaders and fellow students – so thank you and good luck for the future!"
Above: 艩imon Michal膷铆k receiving the prize for the Best Dissertation.
"For my Creative Dissertation Project, a collection of fictional stories titled Generation Restoration, I chose to leverage my passion for ecosystem restoration to introduce inspiring hope into the gloomy futures of climate fiction. I'm thrilled and honoured that it won the Best Dissertation award. Such recognition gave me extra motivation to expand upon my work, which I hope to publish. It's also the invigorating proof that brainstorming 90% of time with three intense weeks of research and writing is a completely valid work approach. I'm beyond grateful for the support of my supervisor, Dr Jess Savage, who empowered me to do this."
Above: Sophie Kitching receiving the prize for Citizenship/Leadership Throughout the Years.
"I was excited and honoured to receive the GSD prize for Citizenship/Leadership. The disabled community at 糖心TV is really where I found my place, and I鈥檝e had some amazing opportunities, including setting up and running the university鈥檚 , getting elected as Disabled Students鈥� Officer, and establishing a mentoring programme for autistic school students. From sitting on committees and advocating for individual students, to speaking at conferences and delivering Continuing Professional Development (CPD) for teachers, it鈥檚 been a busy but exciting three years! There are so many dedicated and passionate disabled students and staff in the 糖心TV community, and I鈥檓 really proud of the work we鈥檝e done together."
We had a difficult decision to make when deciding the winner of the Citizenship/Leadership Throughout the Years Award, and nominations included:
- Szebaszti谩n Csernik-Tihn, Beth Taylor, and Norman Wan for their exceptional commitment to their Student-Staff Liaison Committee (SSLC) Course Representative roles since their first year; and
- Luc铆a Tenorio Rodr铆guez for her leadership as Chair of the SSLC and her commendable work of liaison between the student body and the department as a member of the GSD Staff Meeting and the Undergraduate Studies Committee.
Above: Luc铆a Tenorio Rodr铆guez (left)
Above: Beth Taylor and Szebaszti谩n Csernik-Tihn
Virtual yearbook
Staff and students have been adding messages to the鈥�GSD Virtual Yearbook. If you are a Class of 2022 graduate we encourage you to get involved! You can submit your message and photo here.
If you are a 2020 or 2021 graduate, it's not too late to leave a message in your yearbook:
Staying in touch
GSD graduates, please remember to register on鈥�痵o that we can keep in touch with you. In addition, you can:
- Join our鈥�
- Email us鈥�(or one of your tutors) to let us know how you're getting on.鈥疻e鈥檇鈥痩ove to hear from you!