Despite the dark cloud of midterms hanging over students’ heads, Student Government’s biweekly General Assembly carried on as usual on Oct. 15. The meeting got off to a late start and attendance was low in comparison to other meetings earlier in the semester in light of midterm week. The GA’s agenda included the appointment of a new Board of Appeals member, followed by new business brought forward by attendees. Some of these issues included the previously debated hot topics of establishing printing quotas and the banning of plastic water bottles on campus.

Firas Atwa, Class of 2019, was nominated by Marie-Claude Hypko, Student Government Vice President and Class of 2018, to serve on the Board of Appeals. His nomination was seconded by Tamara Gjorgjieva, Class of 2019, and all 14 attendees voted in favor of Atwa, making him the new Board of Appeals member.

Kate Melville-Rea, Class of 2018 and Student Government Officer of Communications, revisited the idea of implementing a cap on printing across campus. She stressed that printing is the costliest service provided by the university’s Information Technology Department and that there is a high likelihood of IT implementing a printing cap in the future if high costs persist. It was suggested that students need to take a proactive approach and naturally reduce their consumption before more drastic measures are enforced.

Melville-Rea also advocated for a plastic water bottle free campus. Following the phasing out of 500 milliliter water bottles on campus, it was suggested that the 1.5 liter bottles also need to go. Melville-Rea requested feedback from those in attendance about whether an increase in the number of water fountains around campus would make achieving a water bottle free campus more feasible. Sentiments were uneven concerning this matter.

“We are smart enough as NYU Abu Dhabi students to prioritize sustainability over convenience,” said Hafsa Ahmed, Class of 2020 Representative.

A contrasting view was presented by Dimitri Dobrovoliskiy who believes that students should have the right to choose. Nick Chaubey, Student Government Global Vice President, and Class of 2018, similarly expressed that while studying away, he never felt the need to purchase water bottles because water fountains were always easily accessible and very well maintained. The fate of plastic water bottles on campus remains a mystery.