Natasha Phillips, Author at The Orbital

4Mar

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

Talking Trash

Plastic is still a relatively new material, but it has transformed all aspects of our lives, and the world today would look very different without it. But 60 years later, 6.3 billion tonnes of plastic waste has been produced, and 79% of that is in landfill or in the natural environment. The impact of this is immense; plastic waste produces huge amounts of greenhouse gases, and can be fatal for marine life when it ends up in the ocean. The real issue lies with single-use plastic in the form of plastic bottles, food packaging, and the like, which despite being used only once, take 450 years to decompose. Reducing our use of these items could make a tangible difference, and we’ve all heard the stats, so what stops us from making more eco-friendly choices? Not buying single-use plastic a...

Reduced-Anxiety Events: Neglected, but Necessary

23Nov

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

Reduced-Anxiety Events: Neglected, but Necessary

Going to large events – music concerts, theatre performances, comedy shows – can be nerve-wracking for anyone, but living with mental illness can exacerbate an already intimidating situation. Often, venues hosting such events will accommodate for physical disabilities – by providing access ramps and wheelchair spaces, accommodating visual impairments and allowing assistance dogs – but these disability requirements seldom include safeguarding for sufferers of mental illness. In the same way that a wheelchair-user would be deterred from attending an event catering solely for an able-bodied audience, those with anxiety or panic disorders often avoid overwhelming situations. This is an issue that is often overlooked, but ignorance and stigma makes it easy for venue and event management to look...

22Sep

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

The New Voices of Podcasting

The advent of podcasts saw the movement of media consumption into the online space, and changed the relationship between creator and audience. The continued decline in TV ratings reflects a change in the way that we seek out entertainment. We’re no longer satisfied by ‘what’s on’ and thus, podcasting allows for people to produce and consume exactly the content that they want, with minimal or no cost to either party. This format also supersedes the barriers to entry posed by traditional media – all you need to make a podcast is a microphone and a good idea. What has ensued is a new wave of minority voices infiltrating a new platform, affording the representation not seen in TV or radio broadcasting. Lack of representation of minority groups in traditional media still poses a significant ...

‘Warning Explicit Content’: Is Censorship Needed in the Music Industry?

9Jun

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

‘Warning Explicit Content’: Is Censorship Needed in the Music Industry?

Censorship is a hotly contested issue and one with a long history of misuse and authoritarian control, but does it still have a place in a 21st century society? Izzy Swanson and Natasha Phillips debate the need for censorship in music. Izzy: against censorship A quarter of the current top 40 singles on the official UK music chart contain explicit language. As a result, these songs are censored when played on the radio. According to Ofcom, the government-approved regulatory body for broadcasting, the reason for this censorship is to ensure that “under-eighteens are protected” from being exposed to “offensive and harmful material”. While the majority of listeners would argue that skipping out or replacing swear words is warranted on the radio, in a wider context, music censorship can ...

‘Absolute madness’: A reflection on stigma in everyday language

7Dec

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

‘Absolute madness’: A reflection on stigma in everyday language

Natasha Phillips explores how society exacerbates Mental Health stigma with language Awareness of mental illness has seen considerable progress over the past decade, and yet, language used to describe and classify mental disorders is still being misused. “Mentally-ill” may have the most synonyms of any word in the English dictionary, and so many of them have damaging and undesirable connotations. “Demented”, “insane”, “lunatic”, “maniac” and “unsound” are just a few examples – none of which are useful in describing any aspect of mental health and all of which contribute to the exclusion and ridicule of the people they are used to describe. And yet how many of us are guilty of using this language? Most of us wouldn’t bat an eyelid because constant use has led to normalisation of these wo...

3Nov

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

The Case Against Grammar Schools

Natasha Philips presents her argument against grammar schools. After being phased out 50 years ago, grammar schools are back on the agenda. Theresa May has declared her intention to lift the ban on selective education to help children from poorer families to do better, while Labour continue to oppose the change. However, could prioritising grammars over existing underperforming schools be further reducing social mobility? It is undeniable that grammar schools perform better – in 2015, only two of the 163 UK grammar schools had less than 95% of students achieving 5+ A*-C Grade GCSEs. However, the nature of selective schools is to segregate children in a way which will characterise the nature of their academic careers. Results of entry exams come to define the worth of these children; ...

28Feb

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

Why Activism Has Been Given a Bad Name

Natasha Phillips on the power of student activism. An activist is defined as an individual who campaigns for social or political change, who sees a problem and acts on it to make a difference. This is the type of endeavour we should encourage and support, but many don’t. Activists have a bad image – they strive to vocalise the opinions of the overlooked, but are instead alienating the very people they are fighting for. Many associate the word ‘activist’ with being eccentric, militant, and aggressive - these are all negative adjectives despite the positive ambition of these people. We have come to disassociate ourselves with groups who are actively fighting for causes that we believe in, whilst we sit idly by. It is often the extreme, unorthodox acts of activists that tend to be remember...

Economical with the Truth: Lying on Your CV

30Jan

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

Economical with the Truth: Lying on Your CV

As the job market is becomingly increasingly competitive, it is becoming harder to stand out to employers. Gaining experience and qualifications is often an essential requirement for candidates but exaggerating or completely fabricating your achievements is seen as a way out for many prospective employees. Despite lying on job applications being illegal, with a maximum prison sentence of 10 years, 58% of employers claim to have caught an applicant lying on their CV. But why must people resort to lying to be considered suitable for a role that they have no experience in? Of course, some embellishments are more serious than others – it is commonplace to make yourself seem as desirable as possible on a CV, but at what point do morals take over? Extreme fraud can cost employers a lot of money...

9Dec

By Natasha PhillipsNo Comments

Opinion

The Forgotten Minds of Refugees

Hundreds of thousands of refugees have made the difficult journey across the Mediterranean Sea to Europe this year alone, risking their lives to escape widespread poverty and political unrest in their country. Whilst this global event has been widely publicised in the media, the reality that many refugees suffer from mental illness is recognised much less by the general public. (more…)