A student group named Hold On To Your Friends wants more student bars open in Dunedin as a counter to parties being hosted in flats.
The group was formed following the death of 19-year-old Sophia Crestani who died during a stairwell pile-up at a crowded flat party in 2019.
Hold On To Your Friends co-founders Niamh Orr-Walker and Bede Brown this morning told Breakfast about the group’s goals.
Brown said the inquest being conducted by Coroner Heather McKenzie into Crestani's death has brought back some difficult memories for many students but the group hoped something good can come out of it.
Orr-Walker said the group has been working since last year on both the prevention and promotion front.
Promotion work included advocating for safer alcohol consumption, and a yearly clean-up of the traditional student accommodation precinct in Castle Street to "make our environment a little bit safer".
"We’ve also started running flat chats where we’ve started gaining insight from students by interviewing them and just having private informal discussions about their experience with student culture down here, and any risks they have found. That’s been super insightful.
"Our ultimate goal is to open up another student space in Dunedin.”
Orr-Walker said students were very receptive of the group's messaging, as it has came in the wake of such a tragedy.
“It’s something people can really relate to there’s just so many unsafe student circumstances.
"I think it’s important to not just be minimising our students as like young naive 19-year-olds. These are intelligent people who really want a safer community for themselves."
Brown said as of today, there were still overcrowded flat parties, and Orr-Walker said there continued to be "no competition" to host students in safer spaces.
"We’ve been campaigning for the community participation bill which passed thankfully which students are able to advocate and have a bit more of a say of alcohol in our area."
She added there was a demand for student spaces, as there was a "line out the door" for the one student space which opened on Wednesdays.
Sophia Crestani's legacy
Sophia Crestani was 19 when she died. (Source: Facebook)
"I think Sophia’s legacy would be we have a greater sense of responsibility to look after each other, and I think as students we’re trying to do our part. But its quite unreasonable to shift all the responsibility on 19-year-olds who are just trying to have fun," said Brown.
Brown hoped the new Vice-Chancellor and former finance minister Grant Robertson would be able to help meet the demand for a safe student space to socialise.
To hear more about Hold On To Your Friends and their advocacy for safer alcohol consumption, click the video at the top of this article.
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