Have you seen this Yellow IE-ers wondering around too? What’s that all about you think? Well I got him (I’m talking about Bas!) to tell me all the fine details, So listen up!

ORAS? ORAS (Organisation of RAtional Students) is a student party currently running in the yearly elections for the Student council. The Student council basically works as its peers at other universities, although I can state that compared to other Dutch councils the Delft one is pretty extensive, partially thanks to great compensational funding of the university.

During the elections this year on the 25th and 26th of May you can vote for an industrial ecologist, namely yours truly! I’m happy to further enlarge the long list of IE people undertaking so many activities and initiatives next to their studies. Perhaps I will even be able to enlarge the other long list of sustainable initiatives composed by the same people. According to the colors it would be nothing but logic to link the green and yellow colors of ORAS with IE’s beloved principles of sustainability – mostly associated with green – powered by, of course, the brightly shining yellow sun.

Symbolic bullshit, of course. I have to admit I don’t know the exact reasons behind the green and yellow pride of ORAS and I have to admit as well there’s little focus on sustainability within the party vision of ORAS. Positive initiatives to the environment come by incidentally, for instance the upcoming introduction of cheaper printing when using both sides of the paper. A nice example of Triple P, where of course the economic benefits for the students have been a major driver of change, perhaps bigger than the environmental and certainly bigger than the social.

However, since the TU Delft holds up its slogan of “Challenge the Future” I have the ambition to apply this by altering this to “Challenge the TU” and test the management of the university with sustainable principles for, though needless to say on this blog, it is beyond dispute that the Challenge of the Future says SUSTAINABILITY in capital.

To get back to reality I have put my expectations at the lowest, since one year is short, since the TU is a very cumbersome institute and since ORAS herself does not frequently use the word sustainability yet. Still, it would be nice to set things going, to start the engine running. The more votes, the harder my ignition (no fossils, promised!).

Thank you!

Bas

First years IE, started Feb 2011

P.S.: Voting is possible via http://stem.tudelft.nl or via Blackboard on Wednesday the 25th and Thursday the 26th of May. More information on ORAS can be found through our website http://www.oras.nl!