I am the leader with determination, passion and vision to achieve the biggest possible national impact. I started from scratch in 2006, internationalising all students’ experience in Loughborough in 18 months. In 2008, I was the first on NUS NEC to advocate the importance of getting students' unions to address student finance and employability in the recession. In 2010, I was the first in NUS NEC to champion the idea of holding a Global Student Leaders Summit to promote NUS globally. As NUS International Students Officer, I revitalised the International Students Campaign while establishing a world-wide reputation across the education sector. I mobilised a record-breaking 31,000 responses for the UK government’s public consultation on student visas during Christmas 2010, stopping many of the Home Secretary’s attacks on the rights of international students. I want to empower our diverse student’ population, to fulfil the true potential of every single student as a better person, as a responsible citizen, and as a fantastic leader who will go to build the brightest future for themselves, their family, their friends, their country and their world! Vote Dr. Christina Yan Zhang #1 for Happy Union Development!

BA (Hons): English (International Business), China

MA (Distinction): Media & Cultural Analysis, Loughborough Uni

PhD(Full-funded):Civil Engineering Loughborough University

Promote Diversity& Equality Elect me and I will:

Create a “Diversity League Table” to be included in national HE/FE ranking

Promote SU engagements with apprentice & non-traditional learners (nurse, teacher, medicine, arts)

Work with NUS Liberation & Section to create a toolkit to better engage diverse student’ populations in Students Union, especially to stand/vote in all elections.

Ensure NUS-USI, NUS Wales & NUS Scotland representation across all NUS zones, sections etc.

Ensure NUS and SU events invite speakers from diverse backgrounds

Better Support to SU if Needed Elect me and I will:

Prioritise Small Medium sized SU, eg FE

Dedicated support to SU or officers in crisis (eg. Mergers, Finance, HR, PR etc)

Improve the response time to SU enquiries

Encourage sabbaticals to join trade unions (UNITE /UCU), access training through TUC

Create guidance to support SU to develop partnerships with their institution, trade unions, local community & government

Support SU to campaign against education cut&privatisation by any legal means needed

Ensure NUS give more support and legal advice to SU if direct action is needed

Support SU to engage student in community

‘From my knowledge of Christina, she will make an extraordinarily active and passionately committed VP for Union Development. In her time as NUS International Student Officer she has brought immense energy and creativity to the post and broadened the remit and objectives so that it is now far more inclusive and much more attractive to a whole new range of students. She is one of the most dynamic student representatives I have ever worked with, networks like crazy, never misses an opportunity to put a convincing case across and is more than happy to use both charm and persuasion (of which she has buckets) to achieve her objectives!’

Dominic Scott OBE Chief Executive

UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA)

Take direct action to campaign against cuts and

privatisation to education outside parliament

DR. CHRISTINA YAN ZHANG

# 1 VP UNION DEVELOPMENT^_^

6 Years Achievements in the Students Movement 2011 ‘Female Young Achiever of the Year’ in the UK, judged by Baroness Jay, former leader in House of Lords, whose father is former PM Lord James Callagham 2010 ‘Top 30 Outstanding Young Chinese in UK’, British Chinese Youth Federation 2009 Participated in ‘European Parliament Charlemagne Youth Prize’ 2009 NUS ‘International Student Event’& ‘International Student Union of the Year’ 2009 ‘Engineering Young Entrepreneur Scheme Winner’ 2009 ‘Loughborough Experience Award’ 2008 British Council ‘Shine! International Student of the Year, East Midland’

o 2007 Nominated "Loughborough Experience Award"

o 2007 "Certificate of Appreciation" by Charnwood Racial Equality Council in recognition of valuable contribution to "Loughborough Mela"

For alternate version of manifesto, email christina.zhang@nus.org.uk

Successfully lobbied 2 UK PMs (Gordon Brown, David Cameron) & leaders: Vince Cable, Ed Miliband, Lord Mandelson, David

Lammy, David Willets on Internationalisation

Membership Development Elect me and I will:

Better follow-up after NUS events for national policies tailored to individual SU

Work with Association of Colleges, Sixth Form Colleges' Forum to affiliate Private Colleges & Six Form College to NUS

Support Remote Campus Students: HE in FE, Distant Learners, Merged FE/ HE, Overseas Campus, Franchised Courses

Work with European Student Union, UN Programme on Youth, Commonwealth Students Unions, link UK SU with Global SU for partnership, exchange, solidarity

Link prospective and current students and alumni: SU to engage prospective students for better informed choice, Alumni Employability Mentor for current students

Create Students Union Evaluation Initiative for FE: (FE SUEI) & for Small Medium sized Students Union: (SM SUEI)

Happy Students Activities Elect me and I will:

Work with National Student Fundraising Association (NaSFA) to lobby for better government policies for students’ RAG.

Create a Finance Guide to train all SU clubs, societies, media, volunteer,sports, course rep etc) to be financially viable

Work with British Universities Colleges Sport (BUCS) to get firms to offer quality sport kits at cheaper rates to sport clubs

Lobby for better insurance packages to cover injuries for students playing sport

Lobby for cheaper national travel deals for sport clubs to attend BUCS games

Work with UN Programme for Youth, British Council to expand “NUS Student Skills Awards” to “NUS Global Skills Awards”, ensure all students activities in the UK are recognized globally

Expand NUS In House “Students Activists Training” to empower students as effective leaders

Innovative Communication Elect me and I will:

Use Virtual Worlds eg ‘Second Life’ to allow SU to better engage other SU & students at remote campus, distant learners, part-time, disable students

Expand NUS Directory into “NUS Social Media”, link student activists based on interest, backgrounds, nationality etc to better involve in NUS Zones, Liberations, Sections, Nations; empower activists for joint local, regional, national campaigns

Reduce the amount of emails NUS sends

Work with NASTA to create an NUS TV Channel, linking all SU TV nationally

Ensure as many NUS events as possible are recorded, live streamed, accessible

Encourage more NUS officer video blogs

Create NUS Induction Video, introduce NUS zones, liberations, sections, nations, Block officers etc, and their campaign plan to involve SU officers & students earlier.

Experience 2008- BBC World Service China Campus Journalist 2010-12 UKCISA Board 2008-09 PM Initiative Advisory Group 2010-12 British Council Erasmus Group 2012- "Ideas Generator" Group, created by Sir Vernon Ellis, Chair of British Council to advise on their global strategy 2010-12 Students Action for Refugee “Access to Higher Education Group” 2010-12 QAA Students Sounding Board 2011-12 QAA Advisory Group on international students' experiences 2011-12 BIS/UUK Business Involvement & Employability Expert Group 2009-10 UUK "Guide to Enhance International Student Experience" Group 2012 UUK Erasmus Advisory Group 2010-12 European Students Union Immigration & Ethnical Minority Group 2010-12 European Students Union Quality Assurance Expert 2010-12 Council for Education in the Commonwealth, a Parliament based NGO 2011-12 Support Group to “Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan” 2010-11 UNESCO Education Committee 2010 World Bank Education Strategy

NUS Experience: 2010-12 International Student Officer 2009-12 European Co-ordination Group 2010-11 Internationalising SU Group 2010-12 ‘Students Without Border’ Group 2009-10 National Executive Block 15 2009-12 Communication Scrutiny Group 2010-11 Diversity Equality Group 2010-11 Anti-fascism Anti-racism Group 2010-11 Women's Campaign, Black Rep 2008-09 National Councillor 2008-09 International Student Campaign 2008-10 NUS Delegate

Governance & New Income Elect me and I will:

Work with NUS VP FE for legislation guaranteeing autonomous FE SU

Advance “One Member One Vote”, engage 7 million students in NUS Democracy through E-Voting.

Pilot NUS Lottery to finance NUS &SU

Launch “NUS Premier Card”, explore “NUS Associated Membership”, which allow students to access all NUS affiliated SU facilities and activities

Work with Association of Colleges, Universities UK to integrate NUS Extra into student ID cards

Create “NUS Global Enterprise”, allow students studying in the UK to access funding from emerging powers eg China, India, Brazil to set up business, create new income for SU &NUS

Proactive, Holistic, Creative Union Development!

Christina is an exceptionally intelligent, forward-thinking and committed officer. Her knowledge, experience and interest in empowering students unions to develop in a holistic, proactive, innovative way is highly relevant and fundamentally important to enhance the increasingly fast changing needs of students in a globalised, life-long learning, multi-skilled world. I am fully convinced that Christina is an excellent candidate for VP Union Development!

Professor Craig Mahoney

Chief Executive,The Higher Education Academy

In 2011, I successfully lobbied Kamla Persad-Bissessar, PM of Trinidad and Tobago, Commonwealth Chairperson-in-Office with suggestion to create the “Commonwealth Students Union” which will be launched in August 2012, mobilising students from 54 Commonwealth countries to promote “Women as Agents of Change”.

Work with NUS Section to support international. PG, mature part time students

Work with NUS Liberation, Black, LGBT, Disabled, Women Student Campaign on equality, diversity, & multiculturalism

Work with NUS Scotland, NUS Wales, NUS-USI to support union development in nations