Fridge Over Troubled Waters
HILDA'S STUDENTS HAVE recently voiced some concern over the large number of undergraduates sharing one small fridge. Due to overstocking, the fridges do not cool efficiently, causing produce to go off before its best before date. As one irate JCR member put it, "I can't afford to keep on buying milk because it goes off the day after I purchase it." The JCR duly noted at the fortnightly meeting that "over-cramped fridges present a health risk because they are minging."
However, the proposal for each student's room to have a fridge as standard was met with some disapproval. Although students at other colleges, such as St. Johns and Trinity, are not against the privilege of having the fridge in their room, St Hilda's were of a different opinion. One student thought that it "might even be antisocial", but the main concern was over the "enormous amounts of energy" that running an appliance from each room would waste. As there is an emphasis placed on the conserving of energy, it would be paradoxical to endorse the extra fridges.
Another underlying issue revolves around whether the fridges are simply an addition that students would ultimately have to pay for in order to increase the comfort of conference guests. This would turn rooms into hotel suites and necessities into mini-bars. The issue has therefore been brought up as to whether the Christina Barrett building, currently under construction, should, as previously envisaged, have the 'mini-bar' as standard. The concern is that this would lead to further inequalities across the college buildings. A student, when talking to the OxStu, raised another point, "the money is going to have to come from somewhere, and that equals battels going up." Students are not looking for the comfort of a hotel, but simply the essentials of a living environment.
16th Nov 2000