Alumni making a difference
Making a difference in the world
Our alumni community is made up of amazing individuals who continuously make a difference in the world. Here are some of the headlines from last year.
Charlie Fleury and Adam Baker
“Emergensea Duo” Charlie Fleury and Adam Baker (pictured above) are both emergency medicine doctors. In 2022 they became the first ever married couple to participate in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge (TWAC). Following more than seven weeks of rowing (3,000 miles) they finished 1st in the mixed pairs ranking and have raised more than £20,000 for frontline medical charities.
Dr Ann Ralli
Exeter alumna, Dr Ann Ralli (then Ann Thomas), set up the charity Devon Air Ambulance following the death of her son Ceri in 1986 whom she was told that quicker treatment would have influenced their chance of survival. In 2022 they celebrated 30 years of service.
Deborah James
Deborah graduated in Economics in 2003 and went on to work as a teacher. When she was diagnosed with bowel cancer she recognised an opportunity to help others and her honesty and openness brought awareness to countless people. In doing so, she undoubtedly saved many lives. In 2022 she was appointed Dame Commander of the British Empire in recognition of her incredible contribution. Sadly she passed away in the summer.
Eliud Kipchoge
Honorary Graduate, Eliud Kipchoge (2019), has made headlines as the greatest marathon runner of all time and in 2022 set a breath-taking new world marathon record of 2:01:09 at the Berlin Marathon.
He also broke sub-2 hours for the marathon in Vienna in 2019 and has credited the work of Professor Andy Jones as contributing to his success.
Ed Walker MBE
Ed Walker (Geography, 1998) was awarded an MBE in 2022 for services to homelessness.
Ed set up Hope into Action in 2010 when he and his wife used their savings to buy a property to help house homeless people in need. The charity now has accommodation in more than 30 different towns across the country and houses 315 people. Hope into Action helps a wide range of people without a home and specialises in purchasing properties and partnering with churches to offer supported housing to people experiencing homelessness nationwide.
Dr Martina Cecchetti
Recent PhD graduate, Dr Martina Cecchetti, was one of six scientists to receive a prestigious L’Oreal Women in Science fellowship in 2022.
She was rewarded for her research into the ecology and management of hunting by cats on wildlife, including migratory birds, on the island of Linosa, off the coast of Sicily. The fellowship, which will provide €20,000 funding towards the research, is a collaboration with Professor Robbie McDonald, of the University of Exeter’s Environment and Sustainability Institute.
Ant Wilson
Ant Wilson, the founder of Push Chocolate in Cornwall, a climate conscious confectionary business based in St Austell won two coveted Free From Food Awards after receiving support from the University of Exeter, Cornwall Student Start-up programme.
Ant makes chocolate buttons that are vegan, higher in protein and lower in sugar than normal chocolate, as well as free from all 14 major food allergens. He was awarded Silver and Bronze for his orange chocolate buttons at the Free From Food Awards in 2022.
Rachel Platt
Alumna and garden designer Rachel Platt (Geography, 2018) has been awarded the Royal Horticultural Society’s coveted People’s Choice Best Young Designer award at RHS Tatton Park for her first show garden titled ‘The Covid Recovery Garden’. During the show, which ran from 20 to 24 July, she also won Best Construction, a Silver-Gilt medal and was awarded runner-up Young Designer of the Year.
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Alumni support contributes to student sporting success
Sport is a flourishing aspect of student life at the University of Exeter with a wide range of sports clubs as well as competitive, recreational, and performance sport opportunities. It builds friendships that last beyond graduation, helps students keep active, and gain new experiences and skills.
The donations of time and money from alumni and our supporters help Exeter to be the best it can be and allows all students to have access to these opportunities and here we’ve shared some highlights of the impact donations to the Alumni Annual Fund and sporting crowdfunding appeals have had recently.
Sport is a flourishing aspect of student life at the University of Exeter with a wide range of sports clubs as well as competitive, recreational, and performance sport opportunities. It builds friendships that last beyond graduation, helps students keep active, and gain new experiences and skills.
The donations of time and money from alumni and our supporters help Exeter to be the best it can be and allows all students to have access to these opportunities and here we’ve shared some highlights of the impact donations to the Alumni Annual Fund and sporting crowdfunding appeals have had recently.
Alumni Annual Fund
The Exeter University Windriders are a joint sports club for Wakeboarding, Windsurfing, and Kitesurfing and in 2021 applied to the Alumni Annual Fund for support to purchase new, smaller boards to increase inclusivity and encourage female participation in the sport (female participation in extreme sports is typically low).
The money awarded was spent on new wakeboards and bindings. As well as benefiting current members it also means future members will no longer be discouraged if kit doesn’t fit properly and allows for better progression.
The pandemic highlighted the importance and benefits of being physically active for our mental health and the new equipment and support from the fund means that students benefit from an outlet and break from the stress of student life, new skills, and a social and friendly community to connect with. One student commented: “The lighter boards make trying new tricks much easier and help my progression.”
The Exeter University Canoe Club were supported by the Alumni Annual Fund to purchase six new large carbon fibre polo boats in order to improve accessibility, inclusion, and the ability to compete at Canoe Polo. The new boats have been used to enable people who previously would not have been able to get involved in the game and represent the University of Exeter. This is important for not just the wellbeing of the students involved in the sport but also for the performance of the team. They can now select teams purely on ability not on who will fit in the boats, therefore the team will be much more competitive in competitions including BUCS.
A student benefiting from the project said: “Without these boats I would be unable to play polo and I’ve found it to be so important in my first year at university.”
The boats so far have been used to field three teams in multiple competitions including a large national one in Nottingham in which many players were able to play for the first time as they fit into the boats. They’ve also been used in the South West Universities Canoe Polo League in Bristol to allow our University of Exeter teams to compete at a much higher standard than in previous years.
Crowdfunding projects
The University of Exeter Sailing Club is one of the largest and most successful university sailing clubs in the country. The club prides themselves on both their competitive successes and their ability to inspire and encourage a large student body to learn to sail for the first time.
In 2020 they launched a crowdfunding campaign to keep up with the pace of change at the club as membership continues to rise year on year and they needed to ensure they had the equipment to allow this to continue. The campaign sought to raise money to start up a rolling replacement scheme and buy a new fleet of six boats. (A rolling replacement scheme allows six boats to be replaced every five years – a scheme that safeguards the longevity of clubs.)
The campaign was successful and raised £6,054 which has contributed to hundreds of sailors being able to get out on the water every week for many years to come. The provision of the boats also encourages young sailors into the sport with beginners flourishing into active sailors.
In 2020 Exeter University Association Football Club (EUAFC) Alumni Network launched a three-year crowdfunding campaign with a target of £15,000 to fund a coach from 2020-23 to help develop football at Exeter. This coaching role was one of the priority development areas for the club and will enable performance to improve by giving them a better chance of success both in BUCS and league competitions.
With more than 500 members and 11 teams, EUAFC is providing the opportunity for people of all abilities to compete at University level and over the last season have benefitted hugely from the appointment of Head Coach, Javier Martin who took up the post in December 2020. In the first year of this campaign and first full season 2021-22 with an employed coach, the club has had its most successful season for many years. The club are now recruiting for a replacement head coach who will continue in Javier’s footsteps in developing a new club philosophy as well as leadership skills and training.
During Javier’s time the club celebrated seeing their first EUAFC team win the treble, with the final finishing in a penalty shootout; and in the overall league the men’s 1st XI conceded only 5 points all season. A particular highlight was an 8-1 win against Cardiff Met who only five years ago were in the Europa League.
So far, the EUAFC alumni network have raised more than £12,000 of their £15,000 target thanks to donations of all sizes that have added up to make a big difference and are helping to develop football at Exeter and shape the University experience for many students to come.
Thank you to all our alumni and supporters whose donations make a significant impact on students’ experience of studying at the University of Exeter by being able to take part in sport.
