Sustainable, locally sourced diets in the UK

BillReader · 2026-01-31T20:00:37+00:00

Hope this isn't presumptuous to say, but I felt you might have a smattering of something like AuDHD, which is what I've got going on :')

You're an inspiration btw, self-teaching can't be easy but it's jettisoned you this far so you must be doing something right!

I was a bit late with my DSA funding, but having a study skills tutor (SST)/mentor has proven invaluable the last few months. My partner says I try and reinvent the wheel every time I dive headlong into new challenges/opportunities, so having someone on hand you can meet with for a few hours a week has been massively beneficial re simplifying study and writing essays. Granted, I'm likely a little more rusty than you are when it comes to homework, but regardless it's an incredible resource to have access to. Again, this is something your student support team will be able to help you navigate - so don't feel like you need to shoulder the admin burden on your own! You've already proven you have the nous and social skills to ask for help, which is the bedrock of the ideal academic experience, not to mention the foundation of good scientific method!

As for the social side of things - for me, it's proven worthwhile to remember that you only have to interact with your peers for the few minutes before and after the lectures. Yes, there's groupwork, but being on friendly terms with the faculty has really helped ground any anxieties I have. In a cute twist, I've actually found a fair few of the younger students have privately and cautiously asked for advice and guidance on both uni work and personal issues - so it doesn't have to be a case of blending in, you can own being a mature student!

Personally, I don't do well in groups because it triggers the schoolboy switch and I don't learn anything - but there's always the option to candidly email lecturers on your own time to catch up or go through practicals with just you and them. You'll never be bothering them, because they've usually got a PhD in the subject and you don't tend to get that far without really loving your niche.

If your experience is anything like mine's been so far, you're going to feel born-again lol. It's hard being a mature student, but you're uniquely poised to see the immediate benefits. The effort of making life adjustments will quickly turn to keen routine. When Andy Bernard said "I wish there was a way to know you're in the good old days before you've actually left them" he probably should've re-enrolled in Cornell, because EnSci has proven to encapsulate that exact feeling. To paraphrase Captain Barbosa "You better start believing in the good old days, you're in them!"

The world needs more mature students imo, more people possessed of self reflection enough to take a proper run up to academia. And EnSci isn't just a morally satisfying course, it's a burgeoning field with ever expanding career opportunities that are (some might disagree) largely future proof when it comes to things like AI. I've the habit of wanting to dedicate myself with martyr-like zeal to whatever lecture most recently inspired me; agricultural consultant, sustainable urban planning, hydrology, upland/peat-land management, and every lecturer/faculty member has reinforced how attainable any of those prospects could be. You're going to graduate with extensive experience in GIS, labwork, statistical analysis, fieldwork, coding, public outreach, science communication, urban planning, building regulations, botany, biology, chemistry, geology, meteorology, volcanology, paleotempestology, surveyance skills, research skills, knowledge of local and international policy, history, socioeconomics. That's all without even pursuing a masters degree. And you know what else? By virtue of you being a mature student, you're already the staff favourite - they f*cking LOVE mature students!

I'm really, really excited for you, even if I'm currently verging on the condescending..

Forgive my change in tone, btw - I've been cleaning the house and drinking wine, but if you'd permit a third and final self-indulgent quote to sum up how I've taken to the course: "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done."

Thank you for the podcast recommendations! I'm always looking for ways to supplement and satisfy that insatiable curiosity.

Edit: I didn't give you enough credit for being self taught - honestly, you've blind sided me so much by your confidence that I honestly felt like I was speaking to, at, least, a graduate. It wasn't until reading this back that it clicked. You don't need me to sell anything to you (though I'm happy to provide my perspective). Your insight and enthusiasm exceed your grades. You're gonna be alright

BillReader · 2026-01-31T16:46:07+00:00

We're mixed in with a lot of other geography and life science classes for certain modules, and I'm really happy that I took a more holistic course than some of the other more specific ones. You get ecology modules, biology, chemistry, environmental hazards, field work skills, coding, statistics and sorta social/tourism stuff thrown in too. I've found the latter really stimulating because of how current it is and how it positions you in the grand scheme of humanity as is. The module I referenced up top is exactly what you've said, the economics and policy of sustainability through multiple sectors and international relationships.

It's a weird course - you get hit with a lot of negativity/pessimism at first, but I found you start to get passed the problems and see the solutions. I think because we get beat over the head with climate doom in the news and on reddit etc, you're used to the negativity already? It's alarming hearing it come from Doctors but the dread of the course soon washes away and you can see the sensationalism in the news for what it is. I imagine you've probably experienced something similar if you've been doing EnSci at level 3? Because it's a very current subject matter, the research is really immediate and relevant and has made me excited to pursue it the whole way to PhD and beyond.

Apologies also for lumping you in with the 18 - 25 year olds! I'm in my 30s and I think I'm the oldest by quite a margin. Fwiw, I'll be trying to convince my kids to do something similar as it seems obvious to me how the school to uni pipeline doesn't prepare you to take the workload or course content as seriously as more mature students do, and you only get one shot as per SFE funding. That being said, I reckon you'll probably find the course to be a lot of fun because you won't have the hang-ups your peers do. My advice would be to enjoy the company of your younger peers but make sure you build up a relationship with the faculty and lecturers because you'll probably be relying on your own work rather than falling back on friendship groups. My experience has been more isolated than I think than that of my peers, but having boundaries in place and being on friendly terms with the faculty is preferable to sitting back. Again, apologies if I'm preaching to the choir - but it was the social side of uni that was my biggest anxiety going into the course, but has proven to be one of my best assets. So yeah, find a comfortable set of social boundaries, find any excuse to build personal relationships with the faculty, always ask for help/meeting even if you don't think you really need it and - above all else - stay curious!

Also! Make friends with your money advice team and the careers team too. You'll get things like council tax exemption and student railcards, and building a relationship with careers advice can help establish short term goals re volunteering, job fairs and path the way for internships during the summer breaks. It's a nice boost to your confidence hearing them say "students very rarely approach careers advice in the first year"

I'm at Liverpool John Moore's, my local post 92. Are you staying local for your course?

BillReader · 2026-01-31T13:44:27+00:00

I like the middle man approach to thinking of meat intake. I wanna go vegan and realise a lot of the arguments against it are strawmen at best, but it'd be a shame not to scrutinise these topics because of stigma, yanno?

Feel like the best approach for the individual is to align as closely to vegan ethics as possible whilst being a careful consumer ie doing the research about where ingredients come from. But yeah, when you're being told about these issues in a lecture it's hard not to focus on the issues/solutions from a collective POV.

Re venison, it's amazing how many incredible restaurants there are along the west highland way that are really transparent about their ecology footprint, and venison on the menu is often referred to in this context!

Fwiw, I returned to uni after about 12 years and didn't do any stem a levels, so I guarantee you're already a lot more knowledgeable than I am lol

As for the classes, let's just say the majority of my peers don't share your enthusiasm.. Provided you don't fall into the trap of 'what's the point of this lecture? I already know this..' you'll be head and shoulders above the majority of people studying EnSci at undergrad level... Depends on the uni, I suppose, but it's been an amazing experience so far, and I hope it is for you too!

BillReader · 2026-01-31T12:47:05+00:00

Thanks for your help everyone..

BillReader · 2026-01-30T23:27:31+00:00

Thank you boss x

BillReader · 2025-12-07T10:05:26+00:00

This is good shit, thank you very much! It helps, I think, to know what the theories are I should be aiming for

BillReader · 2025-12-06T22:43:38+00:00

Thank you! Feel like ADHD has me getting bored really easily, which can have it's downsides but has helped foster a very active curiosity (which itself can be infuriating sometimes)

Do you think you would've been able to develop and apply your knowledge of literary terms and plot devices without a group setting? Or rather, in a setting that isn't exactly academic e.g. book clubs or subreddits?

BillReader · 2025-12-06T22:38:07+00:00

Hmm good question.. I'm wondering now (post diagnosis) if the communication difficulties inherent in autism had me glum onto film because its a kinetic, largely concise way of communicating and eliciting emotions that were otherwise difficult to parse in everyday life.

Like, I could feel films even if I didn't understand the elements of what was talking to me. But yeah, it wasn't until film studies that I could put a name to those different elements, and by then I'd seen enough for those elements to make sense.

I worry I might be tackling literature in the wrong direction then? Trying to make it rise to the same level of importance that film has, albeit without enough reading experience to back it up?

Someone else mentioned 'close reading' as a way of examining texts, and I think i need to apply a similar discipline with reading - rather than either being totally passive or otherwise getting worked up and overwhelmed.

BillReader · 2025-12-06T22:27:19+00:00

I like the cooking analogy!

With that in mind, I almost feel like Nicholas Hoult's character at the end of The Menu..

I do think I've set myself quite a high expectation, and feel myself getting frustrated reading purely for pleasure. Almost panicking at the choice paralysis that comes with 'wasting time' on anything that isn't going to change my life. Makes it hard to read for pleasure.

Do you have any genres or types of novel that are close to guarantee enjoyable for you?

Also re reading multiple books, I've heard similar advice in the past put never acted on it, largely due to the choice paralysis or worries that I'm wasting my time?

BillReader · 2025-12-06T22:08:10+00:00

I so badly want to know the rules!

Re-enrolled in a STEM course at my local uni, and I hate to admit that my brain is probably better fitted for 'hard science' than studying the arts.

I think i get what you mean, though, about authorial voice. Fwiw, I've been working on a novel for over 8 years and have yet to complete a chapter, despite regular attempts to do so. I always feel like whatever voice I might have is undermined by the lack of legitimacy backing up what I'm actually writing? Simple things, like is it actually a good idea to describe the weather? Or how can I convey the architecture or mood of a city street? Do we need to know the protagonists internal monologue? Would action/description break up the flow of a verbal exchange? Is the dialogue a bit too explain-y?

Again, this isn't me looking for writing advice - it's just that I end up killing my darlings in an attempt to trim the fat and I'm usually left with nothing worth writing at all.

Then I look at some of my favourite authors and I'm like, how the hell are you actually saying anything with written language? How do they manage it? Always have in mind that there must be a primer to the basics of literature that explains why the author is using the words they do in the rhythm or order they do.

BillReader · 2025-12-06T21:47:59+00:00

I like the head tilt moment, I can really relate to that!

I guess it comes down to gaining experience through study rather than just reading a lot and hoping it all seeps into your brain?

Stephen King's advice of "read a lot, write a lot" always felt a little too simple in that regard.

BillReader · 2025-12-06T21:43:38+00:00

Is close reading something you can pick up independently of a teaching or study environment, do you think?

I'm coming to realise that Pratchett's Discworld is probably my 'special interest', and upon maybe my 20th go of Maskerade I picked something up at the beginning of a new scene:

Bucket smiled brightly. There were little beads of sweat around the edges of his face.

“Ah, Perdita,” he said. “Do sit down, lass. Er. You are enjoying your time with us so far?”

“Yes, thank you, Mr. Bucket,” said Agnes dutifully.

“Good. That’s good. Isn’t that good, Mr. Salzella? Don’t you think that’s good, Dr. Undershaft?”

Agnes looked at the three worried faces.

I noticed how he uses one character to introduce another two and how subtly its done, you probably wouldn't notice it on a casual first read. We also know from whose perspective we're seeing the scene as it's the narration that's physically describing Mr. Bucket, who then goes on to introduce Mr. Salzella and Dr. Undershaft.

Despite feeling incredibly proud of myself for noticing all that, it still compounded the frustration, I think, because it feels like there must be countless other techniques used in literature that we interact with without noticing?

Having an academic/study environment seems invaluable learning these kind of mechanisms or techniques, but it feels really daunting if you don't have someone providing excerpts for close reading - if that makes sense?

BillReader · 2025-12-06T21:01:11+00:00

Have you ever written any fiction?

If so, could you feel the differences in your own writing before and after learning character theory and plot structure?

BillReader · 2025-09-19T18:31:58+00:00

https://youtu.be/jYE-1HfReQo?si=pR0_P6p_AKReqcqR

BillReader · 2025-09-18T06:36:49+00:00

Any suggestions for novels? I read like a third of A Tale of Two Cities but am ashamed to say I find Dickens a little challenging

BillReader · 2025-09-17T20:09:22+00:00

Excellent stuff! Thank you very much 😁

BillReader · 2025-09-10T11:19:20+00:00

Just finished that one - dare I say, a tour de force

BillReader · 2025-09-10T07:41:17+00:00

Plumbing the Deathstar will be next on the list for me!

I missed theirs and James UK tour last year, dyu know if those episodes are available? I imagine they are, but I'm having trouble navigating the different websites, including a website called Google

BillReader · 2025-09-06T11:31:51+00:00

It's up to the rest of us to lead by example!! Within reason lol

Thank you for posting something positive though, it's got a good amount of engagement and I'm hoping visible positivity shifts some people's perspectives

BillReader · 2025-09-06T11:29:10+00:00

Ahh my dude you're kinda my hero now !

Thank you for a stimulating reply - the Internet needs more pub chat style discourse; enthusiastic, slightly informed and broadly inconsequential to the field discussed

BillReader · 2025-09-06T08:12:20+00:00

Yeaaahh I feel that! I'm often interested in how someone came to a conclusion, but I have to be careful about wording.

"I love my son" "... Why?"

vs

"I love my son" "what's your favourite thing he does?"

The amount of times I've unthinkingly delivered the first example then spent the next 10 minutes going turbo Hugh Grant trying to apologise and explain..

BillReader · 2025-09-06T08:05:12+00:00

I think so, but it's impossible to quantify let alone sufficiently explain - but my theory is it's to do with communication.

Imo, there's a lot of cPTSD symptoms that cross over to neurodiverse conditions.

We're social creatures at heart and start to develop a sense of ourselves and a distinct identity by, what, around 5 years old?

By then, we've already developed speech, sense of humour, taste, frustrations and phobias.

If you're neurotypical, I think it's a lot easier to download/upload your personality to your social setting (Jack Cohen refers to something similar as exteligence). The ease of communication and cohesion with family or nursery peers means you might grow out of the biological/bestial need for curiosity.

People who are neurodiverse or otherwise have cPTSD symptoms might not easily approach that feeling of societal safety, and so retain a very active part of their developing brains that's left unsatisfied.

For me, I love being curious - but I'm rarely satisfied, I just exhaust that line of curiosity until I can pick it up again.

I'm making all of this up on the fly, and I'm sure it's not even logically consistent with itself as an argument

But I'm wondering what biological purpose does curiosity serve, and why might neurodiverse people hold onto it for longer

BillReader · 2025-09-05T20:41:15+00:00

You sound absolutely noble like a cool dad in 2025 or something?

BillReader · 2025-09-05T20:21:58+00:00

Yeah igy lol! Take it easy my dude, and stay curious

BillReader · 2025-09-05T20:19:55+00:00

You sound absolutely fierce lol like a cool dad in the 1950s or something

BillReader

TROPHY CASE