I’ve highlighted the phrases that I think encompass my core values. I’ve always thought that I derive my meaning in life from ‘happiness’ as a goal and concept, both my own and others. When you think about it, it makes sense that this mostly derives from benevolence along with some hedonism, stimulation and achievement. I think I value excitement and adventure but most of all find value in interaction and kindness between human beings. I also find it interesting that I put such little value into power, conformity and tradition. These are all incredibly human centric values, directly contrasting against the ‘unity with nature’ that I think means more to me.


I find this conversation surrounding values incredibly interesting, talking about the values of individuals and institutions and where they vary. There was an interesting discussion within the talk about values at the Glasgow School of Art and whether these remain largely consistent across staff and students, the answer; probably not.

Despite this, I think the values of an institution such as GSA look shockingly consistent when presented alongside an institution such as Glasgow University. As PDE students, my cohort has the unique experience of splitting our time between these 2 institutions, working amongst fellow mechanical engineers and artists, and seeing the unique outlooks of each group. At Glasgow Uni, students have become accustomed to an organisation that doesn’t care about them as individuals, one that has no qualms drip feeding funding into their greenwashing focused environmental initiatives while lumping large scale investment into arms companies.

Living with this dual education can feel weird. Turning from an artistic genius amongst a room full of engineers to a scribbling toddler amongst fine artists certainly feels weird. However, the contrast of the two certainly forces you to assess your values and where you see yourself falling in between. Don’t fall into the echo chamber, variety is the spice of life.

Loved this! I’m going to do my own value map! good luck with the sit in!

8th Mar