{"id":22070,"date":"2019-09-12T16:08:06","date_gmt":"2019-09-12T15:08:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/?p=22070"},"modified":"2019-09-12T21:48:36","modified_gmt":"2019-09-12T20:48:36","slug":"ul-consent-workshops-shine-light-on-grey-areas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/index.php\/ul-consent-workshops-shine-light-on-grey-areas\/","title":{"rendered":"UL Consent Workshops Shine Light On Grey Areas"},"content":{"rendered":"

Consent Workshops will be given during week three of tutorials across the Arts Humanities and Social Sciences Department.<\/p>\n

UL Student Union Welfare Officer, Serena Hare, aims to continue the initiative from last year where an estimated 1,000 students attended a consent workshop.<\/p>\n

Serena said UL are \u201cway ahead of the game\u201d in terms of rolling out the consent initiative university-wide.<\/p>\n

38 workshops will be given during first-year tutorials in week three, coinciding with SHAG week.<\/p>\n

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Workshops are not mandatory and students have the option not to take part if they wish.<\/p>\n

There will also be workshops ran in the SU over the course of the semester which will be open for all staff and students to attend.<\/p>\n

A consent facilitator workshop was held in August in conjunction with NUIG to increase the number of trained facilitators in UL.<\/p>\n

Additional workshops are set to run during the second semester and the aim is for more university departments to get on board with the initiative.<\/p>\n

Workshops will follow the SMART Consent initiative created by a team of researchers from NUIG.<\/p>\n

Their research found that although most young adults know what consent is, there is uncertainty and difference of opinion when applying this knowledge to real-life situations.<\/p>\n

The aim of these consent workshops are to shine a light on these grey areas and provide practical skills to navigate them.<\/p>\n

The SMART Consent workshop activities explore these different dimensions of consent:<\/p>\n

S: All Sexual orientations and Gender identities M: Your State of Mind \u2013 Willingness; Free from pressure; Thinking clearly without the influence of alcohol or drugs A: All Activities, on an ongoing basis \u2013 Kissing, Touching, Oral, Sex etc. R: All Relationships, both casual and committed T: Talking or nonverbal signs and signals<\/p>\n

The following video made by Blue Seat Studios uses the analogy of a cup of tea to provide a succinct and informative explanation of consent in less than three minutes:<\/p>\n