Helping the local economy

This morning I attended a Heads of Department meeting with the University Executive Board. One of the items we discussed was the effect of the current financial situation not only on the University, but also on the local economy, and we had a breakout session where we discussed ways in which the University could help local businesses during this difficult time. Some things are obvious - pay our bills on time, use local businesses/suppliers wherever possible. Offer work placements, putting our students into local business to solve local issues - helps students with their CVs and employability as well. We also looked at ways of making it easier for local businesses to navigate their way round the list of University contacts - hard enough at times for those of us on the inside. Encouraging students to drink more (they certainly do their bit to support the local economy at weekends) we thought was something we shouldn't be doing!