I’ve mentioned it a couple of times in this blog, but more often on Twitter – 2017/18 is the 50^th Anniversary of the founding of the University of Stirling.  Whilst I have not been here since the start (honest), though it sometimes feels like that, I have put in a fair shift.

One of the questions in preparing for the 50^th was around how to mark the occasion.  We have, and are doing this in many ways, but the traditional one is by a book.  We last did that for our 25^th and I think there is still a room full of spares somewhere.

The 25th Book

The 50^th ‘book’ is thus not traditional in its approach.  It is a book, but it is no history of chronological form.  Instead it is an eclectic collection of 50 objects which together tell a story and give a picture of the University.  It encourages, and is well worth, dipping in to. The student newspaper – the Brig (one of the 50 objects itself) – has a nice piece on the story of this new book.

My contribution is on the ‘object’ of the Campus Supermarket (hence the bottles in the slide at the start of this post) but takes this as its starting point.  It explores the development of our retail education programmes in South-East Asia and specifically Singapore.  I reproduce it below as it may be of interest to this audience and the picture may help to suggest the format of the book. More helpfully perhaps you can also download the piece here.  Some of you may have your own viewpoints and recollections to add, so please comment here or email in.

I know I am biased but the book is well worth a read for anyone with any link to the University, or indeed beyond this.  If you like good photographs I can recommend the book for these too, by the award winning Elaine Livingstone.  Copies can be purchased here (and at a reduced price for alumni).