After three packed days of talks, discussions and events, Campus Reimagined Live! has drawn to a close on a hopeful note for the future.

Students and staff have been inspired to think differently about campus catering, the inclusive role of public art and the future of the workspace on an event-filled final day of the festival.

Redefining campus catering

James Ellerby, Senior Consultant at the Russell Partnership Collection, urged campus catering offers to keep up with a rapidly changing landscape for students in his talk.

He said:

“Alarmingly, surveys have shown that almost two in three students are choosing to skip meals.

“Cost is, of course, a key consideration, but providing students with a full breadth of choice and the ability to personalise is something that we know is important for Gen Z.

“In a world where young people feel both lonely and that they spend too much time on devices, there’s a great opportunity for campuses to use food as a way to make them feel more connected.”

The inclusive role of public art

Connection was also at the forefront of Professor Martin Zebracki’s investigation into what makes public art inclusive on campus.

He discussed the importance of inclusivity in good public art practice, and how temporary art works can provide the flexibility to meet the needs of campus users and the wider local community.

“There’s a need for temporary artworks for a fast-changing world,” he said.

“For example, in a post-Covid world, community-focused projects could really make a difference in terms of helping people to feel connected to campus and the University.”

Campus as a workplace

While campus needs to meet the needs of students, it is also needs to properly function as a workplace for thousands of colleagues.

Dr Matthew Davis from the University’s Business School took listeners on a whistle-stop tour of changing workplace trends, and explained how meeting the needs of colleagues can unlock new levels of productivity.

Finishing on a high

His talk completed three days of vibrant discussion, mind-opening activities and buzzing ideas as part of Campus Reimagined Live.

Hundreds have taken the opportunity to engage, listen and share their thoughts on our campus since the festival opened its doors on Monday 10 February.

And this is just the beginning.

Be sure to check out our day one and day two round-ups, follow us on Instagram and sign up to our newsletter as we take the next steps towards reimagining our campus.

A very busy day two of Campus Reimagined Live! welcomed the University’s Vice Chancellor Professor Shearer West, who outlined the importance of creating a campus that “feels like a home away from home”.

She also spoke about improving the accessibility of campus and providing more spaces for collaboration as part of her talk, which introduced the wider Campus Reimagined project.

Professor West said:

“This is an opportunity to shape our campus.

“We have these beautiful old buildings, but we face challenges in them not being suitable to the demands of a modern university.

“We want campus that feels like a home away from home for everyone, and a place that inspires our community.”

A vision for the future

Following a buzzy start on Monday, day two brought huge numbers of students and staff sharing ideas, more new insights, talking points and perspectives, all focused around rethinking the future of our campus.

Students and staff had the opportunity to hear from Prior + Partners, the design team tasked with developing a new masterplan framework for the University.

Speaking as part of a panel discussing the Campus Reimagined project, Elise Baudon, Director of Masterplanning at Prior + Partners said:

“The first thing we’re going to do is understand the place and [your] experience of it.

“We’re looking at some of those short-term wins that can change your experience of campus today alongside the longer-term work.”

University of Leeds Director of Campus Innovation and Development, Ann Allen said,  “We need to think about buildings, your requirements, places to share food, build relationships and collaborations.” And challenged the audience to think, “How can we create and develop spaces that enable you to achieve what you want to achieve?”

Creating an urban forest

In the afternoon session, Dr Cat Scott from the University’s School of Earth and Environment introduced the audience to the concept of reimagining campus as an urban forest.

She also shared findings from her team’s work surveying more than 1,000 campus trees, and spoke about the success of Gair Wood, the University’s new woodland creation project in north Leeds.

Getting from A-B should be straightforward

Elise Baudon wrapped up the day leading a discussion about a Place that Connects who gave some fascinating perspectives about how we can overcome the challenges of topography to create a more accessible and better-connected campus.

Still time to shape the future

Tomorrow will explore the themes of ‘a place to nourish’, ‘a place for everyone’ and ‘a place to work’. Come along, enjoy some popcorn , share your ideas and have your say on day three.

Make sure you’re following us on Instagram and signed up to our newsletter for the latest updates.

Campus Reimagined Live! has arrived in a burst of ideas – with public art, the future of learning spaces and places to play on campus among the hot topics on day one of the festival (Monday 10 February).

Hundreds of staff and students have been at the heart of a packed day of engaging activities, inspiring talks and lively discussion as the University’s first festival dedicated to the future of campus opened its doors for the first time.

Running in the Refectory until Wednesday 12 February, the festival is an opportunity to feed your ideas into plans for the future of campus.

Talks to shape the future of campus

Masud Khokhar, University Librarian and Keeper of the Brotherton Collection at the University, took listeners on a fascinating trip into the future of our learning spaces.

He used his talk to emphasise the importance of flexible learning spaces that meet the needs of the whole student body, and urged those in attendance to share their ideas.

He said:

“This is all about you, your ideas, and your voice.

“Every learner has their own way of learning, so we cannot afford to create rigid spaces.

“It’s important that we build an environment that is flexible, one that is able to adapt to the diverse learning styles of our student population.”

Renowned sculptor Professor Keith Wilson – who created the iconic Sign for Art sculpture near the Ziff – provided an early highlight with an engaging talk into both his own public artwork and the importance of those that have inspired him.

Speaking in the Refectory, Keith said:

“The thing about sculpture is that it can lead to recognition not just for a space, but for a city.

“For students, that can be so important in terms of being in a place that has an identity.”

The day wrapped up with a fascinating and inspirational talk by Andy Mytom who challenged us to consider what connections and communities we could create through play, and encouraged us to think about how we use existing spaces to create active places and something uniquely Leeds.

Chance to explore a campus transformed

Staff and students have also been able to explore a campus transformed as part of the festival for the first time, with a range of interactive exhibitions and art installations have been dotted around key spaces.

Following an action packed first day, there’s even more planned over the next two days.

Tomorrow, the University’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Shearer West will speak for the first time about Campus Reimagined, while the University’s new masterplanners, Prior + Partners, outline their vision for the project.

Open to all University students and staff, all events are free to attend and have been designed to provide everyone with an opportunity to tell us what they think about campus.

View tomorrow and Wednesday’s schedule and make sure you’re following us on Instagram and signed up to our newsletter for the latest updates.