Jasvinder Sanghera CBE received an honorary degree in July 2018 and came back to DMU to hear about the work of #HealthyDMU, the Mandala Project and Open Faith.
Jasvinder is the founder of Karma Nirvana, a charity that supports victims of honour-based abuse and forced marriage.
The charity was founded from Jasvinder’s own personal experience of forced marriage at the age of 15, and resulted in leading campaigns including her protest for forced marriage to become a criminal offence, which it did in the UK in 2014.
Jasvinder said: “I was so honoured to become a DMU honorand last summer, I am very grateful for the recognition, and I am here today to learn more about the universities work.”
Jasvinder Sanghera CBE
Today’s event was held in the Breathing Space on the ground floor of the Portland Building, a space that is available for all DMU students and staff to relax and take some time away from the busy campus.
The first part of the day focused around DMU’s Mandala Project. Natalie McKeown who runs the project and members of DMUsport gave an insight into the aims and how students can get involved or seek support.
Emilie Fairnington, Sport Project Coordinator said: “The Mandala project is something I am so proud to work on, it allows me to help educate and empower students and let them know that there is lots of support on offer here at DMU.
“The sports clubs that we have worked with so far have been fantastic and are really on board with the project.”
The Mandala Project is now in its second year and has not only ran training sessions, but supported events such as I heart consent week and #NotOnMyCampus.
Jasvinder said: “The university sends a message that it’s ok to talk about these sometimes tough topics, and that they will support students who do speak out.”
Di Thurgoose, Jasvinder Sanghera, Lynette Williams and Natalie McKeown
The event closed with a brief introduction from Inclusion Officer Mehjabeen Rahim about her work to encourage more students to get involved in #HealthyDMU events regardless of their faith.
DMU Academic and co-convener of the Sexual Violence and Domestic Violence network, Di Turgoose said: “It was fantastic to have Jasvinder here today, we are hoping to link up academia, activism and the current support services already on offer at DMU to produce co-creation projects for students.”
The Breathing Space is available for staff and students throughout the week Monday-Friday and hosts mindfulness sessions, various workshops and prayer rooms are also available throughout the year.
Students can access support and advice on the #HealthyDMU hub here.
Posted on Thursday 7 March 2019