The Cambridge Union

This weekend the Union joins with the nation in celebrating the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III. Following in the footsteps of his grandfather George VI, the King (then Prince) joined the Union while an undergraduate at the University in 1967. As future monarch, by convention the Prince could not take a position in proposition or opposition to any of the motions debated (in his words, ‘a slightly difficult position’ to be in). Yet in 1970 he was persuaded to make his maiden speech in the chamber from the cross benches, giving an extraordinarily prescient contribution about man becoming ‘creatures of technology’, debating alongside future Union President Arianna Huffington (née Stassinopoulos, founder of the Huffington Post). (Pictures 1-3) Like many of our life members do, he has since returned several times as an alumnus, notably delivering the Hugh Anderson memorial lecture in 1978 on ‘The Quality of Human Existence’. (4th picture) In 2009, he wrote the foreword to a book on the history of the Union authored by Lord Parkinson (5th picture). The Union is grateful for the continued patronage of our King. —— 📸 1 - HM arrives at the Union, accompanied by his uncle and former officer of the Union Lord Mountbatten. 📸 2 - Order Paper for the 1970 debate. 📸 3 - HM (lower centre) in the chamber at an earlier occasion. 📸 4 - Poster for the 1978 Hugh Anderson Memorial Lecture. 📸 5 - Foreword written by HM to ‘Arena of Ambition’. 📸 6 - The official Coronation badge, designed by the Union’s 2018 Professor Stephen Hawking Fellow Sir Jonny Ive. #coronation #coronationweekend #cambridgeuniversity

Celebrating history, making history: The 60th anniversary, James Baldwin speech at the Cambridge Union I’ve been lucky to have many special evenings whilst representing Homerton college. Last night was one to remember. When Rev Keith Magee urged me to mark Baldwin’s speech back in late Nov, neither of us had any idea just how significant this landmark would be in regard to today’s turbulent political times. As the date got nearer with every anti-democratic, anti-immigrant, anti-DEi rant we knew this would be more than just celebratory. Securing a modern day scholar activist, Akala, ensured a knowledge fest that both informed and moved the audience It was the past inspiring the present. Thank you, Akala, the Cambridge Union, Ben, Aylia, Lester, Baylie, Emily Chanelle, and Maz.

We are looking forward to the 60th Anniversary of James Baldwin at the Cambridge Union. To commemorate the Baldwin VS Buckley debate, we have collaborated with Homerton College in hosting Akala and Lord Simon Woolley for what will be an educative and insightful panel event! Head to our Instagram platform to sign up. We look forward to seeing you there!

Duty and opportunity topped the list of topics in a rousing discussion at the University of Cambridge, where our founder and CEO Ken Griffin spoke with students. He fervently encouraged them to put their talents to work.

We are delighted to announce that the Lent 2025 Term Card is here! Find the link in bio for the full list of debates, speaker events, socials and discounts that the next eight weeks of the Union will bring. We can't wait to have you back! https://lnkd.in/e6daqPpc Ready to join CUS? Check out the full Term Card and events available to all in the Open Period before joining!

‘This House Believes the West is Hypocritical Towards China’ – The Ayes had it. Incredible experience speaking at The Cambridge Union. I’m pleased I managed to ‘weave’ Peppa Pig, Liverpool FC, and Donald Trump into the same speech. Being from Cambridge (but not the university) it was an honour to speak on the historic platform and to share the stage with some amazing speakers. Kerry Brown, Charles Parton, Alessio D’Angelo, Benedict Rogers and Joanne Yau   My central argument is that hypocrisy is inherent to the West, this has become an unavoidable feature of global politics. Nations act in their own self-interest, and double standards are often a strategic necessity. However, this doesn’t mean the standards themselves are wrong, and our hypocrisy does not invalidate China from criticism. Now, it’s over to you to agree or tear my argument apart but please remember, this is a debate. It’s about winning the argument, not expressing personal opinions. ... Fairly timely post the Chancellor's visit https://lnkd.in/e-eNyDUp

The Nays have it! It was a privilege to speak at The Cambridge Union, opposing the motion ‘This House Believes British Democracy Has Failed.’ As the world responds to the US election, let us consider the aspects of our British democracy that extend beyond voting and continue to uphold: > Rule of Law > Judicial Independence > Protection of Rights > Freedom of the Media It was an honour to speak alongside Akiko Hart and Andrew Bowie MP - winning the confidence of the chamber 175 to 92! Photography credits to Nordin Ćatić

Last week, having won the right to speak through an audition, I had the pleasure of speaking at the The Cambridge Union, defending the motion that ’This House Would Disband the UN Security Council’. I argued that we ought to disband the UNSC, instead of attempting further reforms, as they have been unsuccessful in the past, ending in diplomatic gridlock. This is the case for two main reasons. Firstly, the UNSC has, in recent years, enabled the powerful P5 to gradually undermine the notion of security centred on limiting violence and protecting human life. In this sense, the UNSC has broken its promise of spearheading international security, understood in the sense of promoting peace. Secondly, I maintained that the UNSC lacks legitimacy and effectiveness. It does not favour the hard-won norms for democracy and representativeness on the one hand, and against colonialism on the other. Its limited legitimacy results in diminished effectiveness, as states gradually reduce their participation and compliance with rules they find exclusionary and unfair. The UNSC’s effectiveness is further undermined by its limited size and the P5’s veto powers. I thus proposed that, having disbanded the UNSC, we give more powers to the UN General Assembly in the hope that it can correct for the UNSC’s failings. Huge huge thank you to the other debaters, especially my fellow speakers on the proposition: Sanam Naraghi Anderlini, MBE and Luca Zislin! I am really grateful for this opportunity, and hoping to speak at the Union again sometime in the future. Watch the full debate here: https://lnkd.in/dDV-xwTW

📢 The Digital Roads of the Future Initiative is delighted to extend an invitation to you to join us in the long standing Cambridge tradition of debate on Wednesday, 13 November 2024 at 16:30 at the The Cambridge Union’s historic Debate Chamber. 📢 The motion under debate is: Road Infrastructure: this house believes that Digitalisation is the most effective pathway to Net-zero The debate will be chaired by Professor Lord Robert Mair, Emeritus Sir Kirby Laing Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Cambridge supported by the Digital Roads of the Future’s very own Senior Research Associate, Dr Damian Palin. For the Proposing Team, Professor Jennifer Schooling, Professor of Digital Innovation and Smart Places, Anglia Ruskin University will lead the debate with Dr Kyriakos Kantarakias, CEO, Didimi and Civil Engineering PhD Student, Mr Haritha Jayasinghe. On the Opposing Team, Elliot Shaw, Chief Customer and Strategy Officer, National Highways will respond with Stephen Elderkin, Director of Environmental Sustainability, National Highways and Future Roads Marie Sklodowska Curie Fellow, Dr Abbas Solouki. Debates at the Union are free to attend, and you are welcome to participate in the debate when it is opened to the floor. If you cannot join us in person, the debate will be streamed live on YouTube at 17:00, book mark it in your diary!  Details can be found on our website: https://lnkd.in/eH-6CyB4 Costain Group PLC, Department for Transport (DfT), United Kingdom, Ioannis Brilakis James Merrett Phillip Proctor CEng MIET George Economides Kyriakos Kantarakias Abir Al-Tabbaa Fumiya Iida Nevena Vajdic Dr Lilia Potseluyko Amobi Dr N'zebo Richard Anvo Alix Marie d'Avigneau Tom Kelly Stephen Green Jie "Jerry" Xu FIBE2 CDT: Centre for Doctoral Training in Future Infrastructure and Built Environment Laing O'Rourke Centre for Construction Engineering and Technology, University of Cambridge Cambridge Centre for Smart Infrastructure and Construction