The Polyteknisk Forening (PF) student association is behind the campaign ‘Talk about it’, which will inform students about where to seek help if they experience sexism or other forms of offensive behaviour.
Our campuses are on the whole characterized by respectful and courteous relations. However, if you experience unacceptable behavior, it is important to know what to do. Therefore, DTU is now doing a campaign to make sure that students know who to contact and are aware of their rights if they feel that somebody has crossed their boundaries. The idea is to make it easier to talk about violations and ensure that students get the right help from the start.
The Polyteknisk Forening (PF) student association is behind the campaign, which is based also on input from the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs (AUS).
President Anders Bjarklev welcomes the campaign:
“We have a system that guarantees full confidentiality, and it’s crucial that everyone knows what you can do to help put an end to harassment and poor well-being. One way of going about changing an unhealthy culture is to talk about it. I’m therefore urging anyone who has felt harassed to talk about it—this is absolutely the only way we can change an unacceptable culture.”
Where do I go?
The purpose of the campaign is to ensure no student is any doubt about who to contact if they experience unpleasant behaviour. And PF Social Policy Coordinator Elisabeth Heegaard hopes that by showing that DTU and PF take offensive behaviour seriously, the campaign will give more students the courage to come forward.
Students can, for example, reach out to the Office for Study Programmes and Student Affairs (AUS) for help and guidance. Here, study advisor Heidi Berggren Brøndal Pedersen and her colleague Kathrine Hougaard Madsen are ready to help.In addition to being trained psychiatric counsellors, they both have several years of experience at counselling young people.
“I am sometimes contacted by students who are in doubt about who to turn to. I also talk to students who don’t want their names to come out and who fear that they’re not guaranteed anonymity if they come to me to talk about what they’ve been subjected to. I always make a point to saying that we guarantee anonymity for anybody who wants it,” says Heidi Berggren Brøndal Pedersen.
All concerns welcome
She stresses that no concern is too small to talk about. Students can talk to AUS about everything—if they feel worried or insecure, or if they actually want to report an incident.
However, students who choose to report another person for offensive behaviour must be willing to give their name, if AUS is to proceed with the case. AUS must be able to look at the incident from the victim’s as well as the offender’s point of view to ensure that nobody is smeared for something they did not do.
Consequences of offensive behaviour
“Our job is to help students who have experienced abuse or harassment by advising them on who to contact to ensure that the situation is not aggravated. We can, for example, refer them to psychologists in HR for crisis counselling, to the police, or to medical doctors. We also inform the students that they are entitled to have an observer attend meetings with them, for example somebody from AUS or a lawyer in connection with questioning by the police, or if they want to make a statement to the police. Students are given a regular contact at AUS, and we will attend meetings with them throughout the whole process,” Heidi explains.
“We want to have a pleasant learning environment where everybody feels safe and secure. An environment where you can just be yourself and where you do not have to worry about other people’s behaviour.”
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1. No matter is too trivial. You are equally welcome to talk about your worries and about situations where you feel that somebody has crossed your boundaries.
2. We take all inquiries seriously.
3. Talk about what you have experienced. This is the only way can we change an unacceptable culture.