johnian news lent 2013

JOHNIANnews

ST JOHN’S GOING GREEN KENYAN SCHOLARSHIP STUDENT ONE YEAR ON JOHNIAN ATHLETEREVEALS OLYMPIC STRUGGLE UNI TEAM IN WORLD SOLAR CHALLENGE LIBRARY EXHIBITIONS 2013

St John’s College Cambridge

Issue 32 | Lent term 2013

www.joh.cam.ac.uk

Lent term 2013

Welcome to the Lent 2013 issue ofJohnian News

It’s fantastic to have so many inspiring and passionate stories in

this issue, ranging from one man’s life-long fascination with

Easter Island, to a staff member flying the flag for environmental

changes in College.

One of the most eye-opening features is written by Louis Persent

(2008). While the excitement of the Olympics was largely

confined to a six-week period for most of us, for athletes like Louis

the Olympics have shaped every waking minute of their lives for

years on end, and will continue to do so. Perilous struggles for

funding in UK sport have regularly cropped up in the media since

London 2012, but it is hard to appreciate the impact on the lives

of individual people until you hear one such story first-hand.

Please do send me your feedback on Johnian News so that I can

try to include more of the things you enjoy reading about.

Contributions and ideas for the Michaelmas 2013 issue are

welcome up until early August.

Jennifer Baskerville, Editor

Development Office, St John’s College, Cambridge CB2 1TP

Email: [email protected] Tel: 01223 330722

Cover image: Peter Muriuki is the first recipient of the Moody-Stuart

Scholarship, which funds a pupil from the Starehe Schools in Kenya

to attend St John’s to gain an undergraduate degree. Peter is

studying Engineering and you can read his story on page eight.

Photo by Ben Lister www.benlister.com

Opposite page and above right: The front of the Master’s Lodge by

Alice Hardy.

Inside images courtesy of: Andrew Hendry/RIBA, James Robinson,

H Tempest Photography, Nic Marchant, Alex Wilshaw, Ben Lister/

The Telegraph, John Kingsnorth, James Grant-Peterkin, Olavi

Kaljunen/trackpic.net, Louis Persent, Fiona Davy and Emil Hewage.

Design and artwork: Cameron Design 01284 725292

www.designcam.co.uk

Print: Fisherprint 01733 341444 www.fisherprint.co.uk

Contents

College news ................................. 4

Acclimatise .................................... 8

Going green ................................ 12

Behind the medals ....................... 16

Time to reminisce ........................ 19

Choose a job you love ................ 20

Past, present and future ............... 22

A successful formula .................... 24

One fine day ................................ 26

Events calendar ............... Back cover

The Master, Professor Christopher Dobson, was awarded anHonorary Doctorate of Science by King’s College London inNovember 2012 for outstanding contribution to his field.

The citation states that ‘he has demonstrated the power ofchemistry to understand protein misfolding disorders includingneurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s andParkinson’s diseases, and provided new insights into theevolutionary constraints upon the chemistry of life.’

Three other HonoraryDegrees were conferred atthe same time, to theRight Honourable the LordJudge, Lord Chief Justiceof England and Wales;Professor Tan ChorhChuan, President of theNational University of Singapore; and Bill Bryson, the UK’shighest selling author of non-fiction and previously Chancellorof Durham University.

Master’s work honoured

JOHNIANnews www.joh.cam.ac.uk

College news

Easter Term 2013

St John’s College Art and PhotographyCompetitionShowcasing current students’ artistic talents.

October–December 2013 (dates TBC)The Cavalier Poet: John Cleveland,his works and his times The life and works of seventeenth-centuryJohnian poet and staunch RoyalistJohn Cleveland.

January–March 2014 (dates TBC)The Missionary College: John WilliamColenso and William Whytehead An exhibition on the 200th anniversary ofJohn William Colenso’s birth examining therole of St John’s College in nineteenth-century missionary work.

If you can’t make it to College,

why not explore some of our

online exhibitions? View them

at www.joh.cam.ac.uk/library

Events in the Old Library

Saturday 11 May 2013

A Celebration of the Samuel Butler ProjectAn event to celebrate the two-year Samuel Butler Project,showcasing items from the collection of Victorian and Johnianpolymath Samuel Butler. Times TBC: details will appear on thewebsite www.joh.cam.ac.uk/samuel-butler-project

Saturday 7 September 2013 (date TBC)Open CambridgeA free walk-in exhibition of treasures from the Special Collections,as part of the University-wide Open Cambridge festival. Times TBC:details will appear on the website www.cam.ac.uk/opencambridge

Saturday 26 October 2013 (date TBC)Festival of IdeasA free walk-in exhibition in the Old Library as part of the University-wide Festival of Ideas. Times TBC: details will appear on the websitewww.cam.ac.uk/festivalofideas

Saturday 15 March 2014 (date TBC)Science FestivalA free walk-in exhibition in the Old Library as part of the University-wide Cambridge Science Festival. Times TBC: details will appear onthe website www.cam.ac.uk/sciencefestival

Library exhibitions and eventsJohnians are always welcome to view the regular exhibitions in the Library Exhibition Area, which is open to visitors fromMonday to Friday, 9am–5pm. There are also special events taking place throughout the year. For more information,visit www.joh.cam.ac.uk/library or for regular updates, follow the Library on Twitter @StJohns_Library.

Lent term 2013

The College would like to congratulate the followingJohnians, who featured in the New Year Honours List 2013:

Heather Jane Hancock (1984), formerly a Trustee ofThe Prince’s Trust, became a Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO).

Stephen Charles Richard Munday (1983), Executive Principalof Comberton Village College, Cambridgeshire and NationalLeader in Education for the National College for SchoolLeadership, received a CBE for services to education.

Commander Timothy Mark Hulme (2011) of the Royal Navy was awarded an OBE.

St John’s is delighted to announce that it has appointedthree new Honorary Fellows of the College:

The Most Reverend Bernard Ntahoturi (1973),Archbishop of Burundi.

Professor Jane Stapleton (Fellow 2011–12),Barrister of the Supreme Court of New South Wales.

Ms Jennifer Egan (1985), Novelist and PulitzerPrize-winner 2011.

Two Georges triumphThe winners of the Wilkinson Essay Prize for 2012 wereGeorge Hallas from Taunton School for his essay ‘Myth andMemory in the Architectural Monuments of GlobalSuperpowers’, and George Edmondson from Knutsford HighSchool for his essay ‘What is there left to explore?’.

The two students and their parents were invited to an awardceremony in College, where the Master presented them eachwith their prize of £750. Matching sums were also awarded tothe prizewinners’ schools for expenditure on academicresources. As part of the prize both winners also took up theinvitation to stay in College for a week over the summervacation, working in the College Library and in otherCambridge collections on a project of their choice.

The Wilkinson Essay Prize competition encourages students inYear 12 (lower sixth form or equivalent) to submit an essay ona topic of personal interest and to develop the analytical andpresentation skills that will benefit them in their future studies.This prize was endowed by Heather Hancock (1984, néeWilkinson), who studied Geography and Land Economy atSt John’s. Heather is now Managing Partner for Talent andBrand at Deloitte, having previously spent 15 years workingin the public sector. She was also responsible for Deloitte’s

Olympic and Paralympic relationships and services duringLondon 2012, and was recently awarded an LVO (see storybelow).

The closing date for entries for this year’s competition is1 May 2013. More information about the competition canbe found on the College website atwww.joh.cam.ac.uk/wilkinson-essay-prizes-2013.

New Year Honours New Honorary Fellows

George Hallas (centre left) and George Edmondson (centre right)

with their families.


Achievement honour for BillCatering and Conference Manager, Bill Brogan, has beenpresented with a Special Achievement Honour at the Healthand Vitality Honours, which recognise healthy best practicewithin the food service industry.

Since arriving at the College in 2005 Bill has embarked on anambitious programme of initiatives to encourage sustainabilityand health in food service, both at St John’s and at othercolleges across the UK.

St John’s was alsorunner-up for theHealth andVitality SourcingHonour at theceremony, whichwas held atLord’s CricketGround.

Two Johnian architects have received prestigious accolades at The Royal Instituteof British Architects (RIBA) President’s Medals Student Awards 2012.

Paddi Benson (2009), who graduated with a starred first in Architecture last year,received a commendation in the Bronze Medal class and a SOM FoundationTravelling Fellowship at Part I level for her project ‘Remember Berlin -Kunsthochschule Archipelago’.

Rebecca Roberts (2005) was awarded a SOM Foundation Travelling Fellowship atPart II level for her project ‘Going to a Town: A Gallery for Gerhard Richter inBerlin’. Rebecca studied for Part II at the Sir John Cass Faculty of Art, Architectureand Design within London Metropolitan University. She is currently working forHerzog and de Meuron on the new extension for Tate Modern.

The Raspberry Pi computer created by a teamfrom the University of Cambridge,including Eben Upton(1996) and RobertMullins, Director ofStudies in ComputerScience atSt John’s, has beennominated for a Designsof the Year award 2013 inthe Digital category.

The award is run by the Design Museum inLondon and last year’s overall winner was theLondon 2012 Olympic Torch by design studio BarberOsgerby.

The Raspberry Pi faces stiff competition in its category fromthe popular Rain Room installation at the Barbican,Microsoft’s Windows Phone 8 and the Gov.uk website,which aims to combine all of the UK Government’s websitesinto a single site, saving £50 million per year.

Winners will be decided by ajury and announced on 17 April.You can see the full list ofnominees atwww.designmuseum.org/exhibitions/2013/designs-of-the-year-2013.

College news

Bill Brogan receiving his award

Rebecca (centre left) and Paddi (centre right)

Andrew Hendry, courtesy of RIBA

Double RIBA award win

Raspberry Pi design nomination

Lent term 2013

Join in online

This month we are launching our new online community for Johnians, where you can update your contact details as well as find comprehensiveinformation about events, campaigns and publications. Later in the year we will launch online event booking and forums for careers and networking advice.

There will also be a brand new look for our monthly enewsletter, Johnian enews, which gives you a round-up of what’s happening in College and lets you know about events in your area. In order to receive updates, pleaseensure that we have your preferred email address as this will be used for allfuture e-correspondence.

As always, we welcome your feedback on our new site so that we can continue to improve it. Please do visit www.joh.cam.ac.uk/johnians and get involved!We are also looking for Johnian bloggers to take part in an exciting new web project.Do you have a regular blog? If so, email us at [email protected]

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Lady Margaret BoatClub Association, which started life as The Old Johnian HenleyFund in 1913. It has helped Lady Margaret crews compete atHenley since its foundation and has more recently taken on awider role by helping to raise over £200,000 for the purchase ofnew boats and oars, gym equipment and training camps.

There will be a celebration in honour of the centenary on the last day of the May Bumps, Saturday 16 June, at First Post Corner,and also at Fitz’s Henley Picnic in the Henley Cricket Club carpark, 3–6 July.

LMBCA celebrates centenary

A team of students from the University of Cambridge are workinghard to design, build and race a solar-powered car in the WorldSolar Challenge in October this year. The biennial 3,000km solarmarathon takes competitors across Australia from Darwin toAdelaide, and in 2011 it attracted 37 teams from 21 countries.

The team, Cambridge University Eco Racing (CUER), is made upof over 60 students and regular updates can be found on theirblog at www.cuer.co.uk/blog CUER hope to win the fiercelycompetitive race with their innovative new design, which breaksthe mould of classic solar car design. Weighing in at only 120kg,the car (nicknamed ‘Daphne’) gains maximum efficiency byusing tilting gallium arsenide solar cells, a lightweight load-bearing carbon fibre moncoque chassis and a highlyaerodynamic shape (CdA figure of 0.075).

Helena Barman (2010), a Johnian in her third year studyingEconomics, will be one of the race drivers. ‘The race itself will bea real adventure,’ said Helena, ‘but already there have beenmoments along the way that impress upon everybody in the teamthat we are truly pioneers.’

Find out how you can support CUER and get your name printedon their new solar car at www.cuer.co.uk/name-on-car

Rendered by Em

il Hew

age

Racing down under

You may remember the story of the College’s new undergraduate scholarship for studentsof the Starehe School, Kenya featured in Johnian News Lent 2012. The first recipient ofthis scholarship, Peter Muriuki (2012), has almost completed his first year at St John’s.

The past 11 months have been focused on working hard and acclimatising to a newlife for Peter, who first arrived at St John’s in June 2012. He spent most of the summerin College taking part in a course of study to get him ready for his undergraduatedegree in Engineering, which he began with all the other first year students inOctober 2012.

Peter comes from a rural village near Meru in Kenya, where his mother is an Englishteacher and his father is a church leader. When he was 14 years old, he moved toNairobi to study at the Starehe Boys’ Centre – a much fought for opportunity becauseof the school’s admissions policy. Starehe Boys’ and Girls’ Centres offer academicallytalented children from impoverished families a secondary school education withoutany fees or the associated costs of boarding, uniforms and books.

Peter applied for the Moody-Stuart Scholarship in 2011, which was set up bySir Mark (1960) and Lady Moody-Stuart to give Starehe pupils the chance to studyat St John’s and become one of a growing group of successful Starehe alumni.

Having boarded at Starehe, living away from home is nothing new for Peter, butbeing over 7,000 miles from home and in a completely different culture has providedits fair share of challenges.

‘I have got used to being here’, said Peter. ‘The weather is quite a bother sometimesbut everything else is fine. I’m getting used to the food. Actually I must admit I’malmost liking British food, almost!

‘My parents were really worried. They were encouraging me to carry a lot of Kenyanfood to the UK and a lot of warm clothing! They thought I would be cold, hungry andlonely. But it’s so different here, the people are so friendly, it’s amazing.

‘I have had the same room since last summer, in Cripps Court. It’s big, it’s spacious –it’s awesome. Just next to the river. One thing I’ve noticed is that it’s quieter nowbecause in summer there were punts coming along the river. They have the guidedtours and some of the things the guides were saying were not true!’

From an early age Peter was interested in electronics and mechanics, helping hisfather to fix the public address system and microphones at their church. Learninghow things work led to an interest in cars and ultimately his choice of degree.

Lent term 2013

verb. become accustomed to a new climate ornew conditions; adapt.

Acclimatise


‘I was really anxious to win this scholarship because I wantedthe chance to study Engineering at an international level andCambridge is definitely a better school than the universities inKenya in terms of resources, teaching and socially.

‘The course is exciting. We’ve already done so many of thethings that I am expected to do. We have designed projectsand programs. It’s a lot of work, it’s hard at times, but atthe end of the day I’m just happy because I’ve learntsomething new.

‘I already knew Cambridge is all about hard work so I’mgetting used to it. You have so little time to do so manythings, and you have to explain the answers you give.So it’s not all about just answering and then you’re done,because you have to go to supervisions and discuss youranswers. It’s mostly about thought and it takes a lot of timebecause you have to be perfect.

‘The first week we worked on Lego Mindstorms – that wasquite exciting. It was a project to create small programmablerobots using a group of kits containing software andhardware. We did some programming exercises, those wereguided lessons because some of us haven’t done C++ andthe other programming languages before. It was a learningexperience. After this we did structural design and came upwith a structure, a cantilever bridge.’

But it’s not all hard work, Peter has been finding plentyof opportunities to experience some of the traditionalaspects of being at John’s and make the most of his timein Cambridge.

‘I am in the rowing club and it’s good fun learning a newsport. I’m in one of the lower boats, LM4, so we don’t haveas many practices, but it’s still early mornings. I’m not surewhen to tell my parents because one thing they’ll say is,“Isn’t it quite cold?” In the morning it’s about three degrees.They will just be so worried. So for the time being I’mtrying to keep it secret!

‘I’ve done a lot of cycling to get afeel for the English landscape,because it’s quite different fromhome. We live on the slopes ofMount Kenya, so it’s not so flatlike in Cambridge.’

‘My first experience of Hall was Matriculation Dinner.The first time you are meeting people and you’re wearinggowns and official clothes – it’s just quite inspiring.It reminded me of Hogwarts!’

Lent term 2013


Mike Burgoine is the College’s Accommodations andBookings Manager, but he has an extra string to his bow –Mike has a degree in Biology and a Master’s degree inClean Technology, so acts as the Energy Project Manager forthe College. This involves guiding the administration ofenergy (including the Carbon Reduction Commitment),being part of the College’s Environment Committee andadvising College departments about environmental issues.

Here, Mike gives us the highlights of what St John’s hasachieved so far and also what plans there are for futuregreen projects.

‘We have done a great deal in recent years and the Collegeshould be proud of this. I know that many other collegesdon’t even have an environment committee and yet we havea really solid infrastructure for ideas. When environmentalissues come up, I investigate and provide opinions and facts.A good example of this is the photovoltaic array for the

current Cripps Building refurbishment, where a report wasproduced by a consultancy. I reviewed it, critiqued it, did myown sums and helped to support this project through theBuildings Committee process. I work closely with theMaintenance Department, Steve Beeby in particular, andthe Domestic Bursar, John Harris, supports our ideas. It’s anice mix of environmental benefit and cost savings, andprojects we look at consider both.

‘I’m most proud of the voltage stabilisation project, as thiswas something I came up with and it seems to be doingwhat we predicted in terms of savings. The greatestselling point of this project is that it really works “behindthe scenes”, in that it doesn’t rely on behaviour changefrom students or staff. More generally I’m quite proud ofthe increasing momentum of the Environment Committee.It was important to energise this as a foundation toprojects, ideas and useful discussion, otherwise nothingcould be achieved.

Going Being based in historic buildings can make it difficult to installand use environmentally friendly technology. However, St John’sis forging a greener path for the future, with much success.

Mike Burgoine Green Day in College Loft insulation New recycling facility

‘Recycling has scope to improve, both in College offices andstudent areas. We are trialling communal recycling stationsin office areas, with a view to rolling these out College-wide.Heating inconsistencies in the College are an obviousproblem, and work is needed on the Building ManagementSystem to regulate the heating better, both in terms of theheating duration and temperature. This is a really big projectwith considerable costs and hopefully a large potential forsavings, but it’s still in very early discussions.

‘Listed Building Regulations really restrict what we can do.The most obvious and relatable example of this is not beingable to change the exterior windows, which wouldordinarily be a straightforward way to retain heat and savegas. Many textbook approaches to energy management arenot applicable within our bespoke and beautiful Collegesetting. Consequently, we’re forced to be more innovativein our ideas.’

green

Exterior windows

Photovoltaic array

Lent term 2013


Over the last five years St John’s has shown its commitment to savingenergy and becoming a greener place to live and work. The timeline on thispage shows how the College began the process and what major achievementshave been made along the way.

Going green continued...

March 2011As part of the University, the College registered forthe Government’s Carbon Reduction Commitment

(CRC) Energy Efficiency Scheme – a mandatoryscheme aimed at improving energy efficiency andassociated carbon emissions in large public andprivate sector organisations. St John’s is required toreport to the Government on all carbon emissionsand is then charged for each tonne of emissions(currently £12/tonne).

October 2006Environmental Working Group

established.

August 2011Installation of voltage

stabilisation on the two mainelectricity supplies to theCollege site, with anestimated saving of 8%(£14,300 per year). Voltagestabilisation is a technologythat addresses thediscrepancy between theactual electricity supplyvoltage and the optimumvoltage that electricalequipment needs.

September 2010College appoints Energy

Project Manager.

November 2010On the first ever Green Day in College,an impressive 11% was saved on gasand 5% on electricity consumption.This prevented almost one tonne ofcarbon dioxide being released.

March 2007Environmental Working Groupturns into the Environment

Committee, who meet on atermly basis to discuss topicalissues and ongoingenvironment projects. The committee reports to theCollege Council to ensurerecognition and support at thehighest level.

Lent term 2013

If you’d like to read about other environmentprojects in College and stay up-to-date with futureplans, please visit www.joh.cam.ac.uk/environment

September 2011As part of the Cripps G and H staircase refurbishment, a solar thermal

system was installed for hot water generation. The savings were notvast because Listed Building Regulations prevented the use of theoptimum location, orientation and angle, however the Collegecontinued on an environmental basis.

Photovoltaic (PV) array installed during the Maintenance Departmentrefurbishment to generate an estimated 12,000 kWh of electricity peryear and therefore avoid the purchase of approximately £1,300 of energy.The College registered this PV array under the Government’s Feed inTariff (FiT) scheme, which essentially pays out for the generation ofcertain types of renewable electricity. Depending on sunlight hours, theCollege is saving around £5,000 per year from this project.

September 2012New recycling facility installed on thepatio outside the Buttery Dining Room,with receptacles for cans, cardboard,glass and plastic.

Water retention technology

(TerraCottem) introduced into soilwhen lawn was re-laid in SecondCourt, as part of necessarymaintenance work. This is estimated toincrease water retention by 50% andtherefore reduce water consumption.TerraCottem is present in mostPremiership football stadiums.

November 2012Green Day 2012 focused on rethinkingthe ways in which we use energy andraising awareness of the carbon dioxideemissions associated with meatproduction, with information provided inthe Buttery. Actions on the day itselfsaved 6% on gas consumption and 4% onelectricity consumption. This resulted in acost saving of £77, which converts to over£28,000 annually, if achieved consistentlythroughout the year.

March 2012The first annual Carbon Reduction Commitment

(CRC) report was submitted to the Government forchargeable carbon emissions. The College incurreda cost of approximately £46,000 from its annualemissions. CRC funds are used for long-termenvironmental projects by the Government.

August 2012Loft insulation upgraded in the First, Second and Third Court roof space.


For every one of the British athletes covered in glory at the 2012London Olympics and Paralympics, there are thousands more

still waiting for their chance to shine. Louis Persent (2008)explains the highs and lows of a sporting life.

Behind the medals

Lent term 2013

On 6 July 2005 I sprinted out of an ICT lesson at schoolin an embarrassing state of euphoria. London had justbeen announced as the host city of the 2012 Olympicand Paralympic Games and I made a decision there andthen, halfway between the library and the computerroom, to be a part of it.

I first turned up at my local athletics track aged 12. Forthe next few years I tried every event going, eventuallyfalling in love with the twisted combination of speed andendurance that is the 400m. I matriculated at St John’s inOctober having just won a silver medal at the WorldJunior Championships in the 4x400m relay.

My first year in College studying Architecture was anexercise in improvisation. As a track athlete, rather thansay a rower, there was no clear training blueprint tofollow. I would train at my local track, on College playingfields, in London and in Essex where my coach wasbased, rushing between the Architecture Department andthe gym at the start and end of each day.

My Director of Studies and Tutor were very supportiveand training was a useful counterpart to studying. But itwas never easy. My first Varsity Match fell the weekendbefore I had to submit my portfolio for examination.I won the race off three hours sleep but it was far froman impressive performance.

A week later, no longer covered in sawdust and glue frommodel-making, I qualified for the European JuniorChampionships, returning from Serbia with two medals.In my second year I improved again despite Achillestendon injuries. However, come Easter term in the thirdyear it was clear that I needed to focus on my degree.I took six weeks off training and had a disappointingseason. Subsequently I lost my National Lottery funding.

So a year before the Olympics I was faced with aproblem. I’d planned to spend the year training full-timebut now I needed an income. Somehow I secured a jobwith London 2012 as a cartographer, producing most ofthe spectator maps for the Games. I moved back home,settling into a daily rhythm of commuting, working,physiotherapy and training. Every moment I wasn’t on atrain or at the office was spent focused on making theOlympic team. I knew if I could run 45.7 seconds I wouldhave a shot at making the team – an ambitious, but notimpossible goal.

I squeezed in 20 hours of training a week and saidfarewell to a social life. Everything was going to plan.I had a short warm-weather training trip and realised Iwas in the shape of my life. After an awkward first raceI left for Geneva. For the first time in four years I ranwithout Achilles pain and as I crossed the line I lookedat the clock in astonishment – 45.77 seconds.


I’d taken 0.8 seconds off my personal best, was UKnumber one and European number two for my agegroup, and right on course to make the Olympics.

But in the space of a week elation gave way tofrustration. Stepping off the plane I felt a dull painalong the inside of both tendons. By the end of theweek I was having trouble walking. I pulled out of tworaces, resigned from my job and spent the weeksleading up to the Olympic trials travelling across thecountry to see specialists. When I lined up at the trialsI knew I was on the brink of selection. But it didn’t goto plan. Still determined to give it one last shot I usedall my remaining money to fly back to Switzerland forone final race, running my second fastest ever time.It wasn’t enough though and my seven-year journeyhad ended in the pain of injury and the frustration ofmissing the Olympics by one place.

As my frustration mellowed I was able to recognisethat 2012 was nonetheless a breakthrough year.I made a big improvement despite a less than idealtraining set-up, learning a huge amount about mysport and myself in the process. The new Olympiccycle is a chance to re-evaluate and take a risk.

I decided in September to have surgery on both Achillestendons and to be coached by Tony Lester, the manwho guided Roger Black to Olympic silver. I moved toLondon in October to train full-time, working a fewafternoons where possible to try and help my finances.

Despite running the required time I missed out again onLottery funding due to a lack of consistency. Whilst thetop level of Lottery funding has been guaranteed untilRio 2016, the next level of support for British athleteshas been substantially scaled back. My event is one ofthe most competitive domestically. I have rivals whospent last year sleeping on floors and working two orthree jobs to try and get by.

If 2012 has taught me anything, it's that sport is allabout hard work, dedication and taking the right risks.Now Rio 2016 is on the horizon and my ambitions areclearer than ever. I don’t just want to make the team,I want to get on the podium. With that target in mind,I’m looking forward to the next few years of hard work.

If you would like to contact Louis or offer support,you can reach him at [email protected]

Behind the medals continued...

Lent term 2013

Date: 17 May 2012Venue: The Ballroom, the Mandarin Oriental, LondonEvent: Party to celebrate Colin Stone’s (1980) first 25 years atFidelity Investments International.

Fidelity hires from all universities and has many representativesfrom the University of Cambridge, but for one of the lesserwell-known financial institutions in the City it is notable that fiveJohnians have arrived at Fidelity and are ‘making it’ in variousroles on the investment team.

Over a glass or two of bubbly at Colin’s party, we reflected onour time at John’s, what made us enter the big bad world offund management and how we have all ended up at Fidelity,despite no hint of nepotism!

The characters:

Colin Stone

(Engineering 1980),Manager of Fidelity Smaller Companies Fund

Jeremy Podger

(Philosophy 1983),Manager of Fidelity Global Special Situations Fund

Matt Siddle

(Economics 1996),Manager of Fidelity European Growth Fund

Myself, Fiona Davy

(Modern Languages 1998),Director of Equity Research

Rich Spalton

(Economics 2005),Research Analyst

All five of us agreed that investing is an art not a science.Yes, you need to be comfortable with numbers, but moreimportant is an inquisitive mind. From engineering tolanguages graduates, we all agreed that what we were taughtmost at Cambridge was how to think, how to ask questions,how to solve problems, and as one of the larger colleges,St John’s taught us the importance of being an individual.

I remember the shock of my first year at John’s and myDirector of Studies asking me ‘What went wrong?’ after myfirst set of Cambridge exams. Just like at Fidelity, John’sprovides a support network that is there if you need it, butyou are also given freedom to find your own way. Some daysyou sink and some days you swim. I did eventually swim atJohn’s and graduated with a 2:1. In the same way, we’ve allhad investment ideas that have gone wrong and others thathave gone tremendously right.

Adaptability and a sense of humour are qualities that all fiveof us acknowledge that we perfected at John’s (from friendsembarrassing us in the bar, to having an agile mind to copewith all the different roads that supervisions could take!) andhave needed at Fidelity. Rich remembers having a meetingwith the CEO and founder of a well-known UK clothingbrand who is something of a character. Rich was late to themeeting due to a prior meeting overrunning and the CEOmade him do 20 sit-ups!

Another thing the ‘Fidelity five’ have in common is that we alllove our job. Investment management is a career that hasgiven all five of us responsibility early on, has surrounded uswith exceptional people, is incredibly varied and allows us tobe ourselves – just as John’s offered us as students.

Fiona Davy (1998) reflects on an unexpected reunion for five Johniansof different generations who all work for the same finance company.

reminisce

While it’s not exactly easy to stumble across the world’s mostisolated inhabited island, my love affair with Easter Islandbegan in 1996, when my gap year led me to spend 10months in Chile. My aim was to broaden my horizons andlearn Spanish, which I was due to read at St John’s thefollowing autumn. I had originally planned to spend the entiretime teaching English at a school in the capital Santiago, but

it soon became apparent when I met my exceptional hostfamily, together with their two maids and swimming pool, thatthis probably wasn’t going to be the cultural experience thatI had been hoping for. In my search for something slightlymore ‘out there’, so began my fascination with Easter Island –Chile’s tiny Polynesian territory over 2,300 miles from itscoast, in the heart of the South Pacific. The more I read about


Choose a job you loveand you will never have to work a day in your life.

James Grant-Peterkin (1997) has an unusual butextremely fulfilling role that he has been preparingfor and dreaming of since he was a teenager.

Lent term 2013

the island, the more its history and unsolved mysteriesintrigued me, until I finally left my English teaching job andsplurged my entire travel budget to buy the then exorbitantlyexpensive air ticket to the island, which in those days wasjust a refuelling stop on the weekly flight between Chile andTahiti. Months later I was hooked, despite initially having towork 18-hour days washing dishes in order to finance mystay. I reluctantly left in order to return to the UK and beginmy three very happy years at St John’s.

I quickly diverted the focus of my Modern Languages studiesto anything Easter Island-related, and spent my entire yearabroad in the third year back on the island, now as part of myPart II in Spanish linguistics. I wrote my dissertation about theway in which Spanish, the official language on the island dueto Chile’s ownership, is mixed with Rapa Nui, the Polynesianlanguage that has existed here ever since human colonisationin about 700 AD. My linguistics studies on the island led to amuch deeper interest in Easter Island’s archaeology andanthropology, and ultimately have provided the base for thelast decade of my life – living and working on Easter Island.

I have been running my own tour agency, Easter Island Spirit,since 2007, and three years ago I was appointed the BritishHonorary Consul here. I have written a dedicated guidebookto the island, A Companion to Easter Island, which has sincebeen translated into Spanish, French and German.

The island has certainly changed enormously since I firstarrived, as globalisation touches even the most remoteoutposts. Tourism has also boomed – the island is now servedby daily flights, and last year some 70,000 people came to

marvel at Easter Island’s famous moai (over 1,000 of them) andall of the other archaeological vestiges left by the islanders’ancestors. The permanent population has almost doubled fromthe 3,000 people that lived here when I first visited 16 yearsago, and yet by having just one town on the whole island, thesense of peace and purity fortunately hasn’t been lost.

I remain indebted to John’s, not only for the generous travelgrant back in 1999 that meant I was able to spend my yearabroad here, but also for having provided me with such arounded university experience, which ultimately shaped thelife choices that I made upon graduating. Having spent threeyears surrounded by exceptionally talented people, many ofwhom either already were or would later go on to becomeexperts in their chosen field, it gave me the confidence tofollow my own passion and forge my own path, consciousalways of Confucius’ words: ‘Choose a job you love and youwill never have to work a day in your life.’

James can be contacted at www.easterislandspirit.comand his book, A Companion to Easter Island(ISBN 978-956-332-641-3), is available on Amazon.

In my search for something slightlymore ‘out there’, so began myfascination with Easter Island


Past, presentand futureArchaeology and Anthropology graduate Alex Wilshaw (2005) anda team from the Leverhulme Centre for Human EvolutionaryStudies are returning to Turkana, Kenya to dig into the past andto help the local community.

As part of a team of anthropologists from the LeverhulmeCentre for Human Evolutionary Studies I have been privilegedto spend the last three summers carrying out archaeologicalresearch in the beautiful Kerio region of Turkana, Kenya. Wetry to discover who was living there 10,000 years ago andhow. Many of our sites, although being in the baking deserttoday, were originally on the edge of prehistoric Lake Turkana,which would have been lush and green. We find abundantevidence of bone harpoons used to spear enormous Nileperch, and stone tools for butchering hippos. However, itwould not have been an African lake-edge idyll for theseprehistoric people. Tooth marks and evidence of digestion onsome human fossils show us that they didn’t just eat thewildlife, they were also eaten by it – crocodiles being thesuspected culprits!

Whilst our work in Turkana largely concerns the past, the team’sextra-curricular activities in the area very much concern the

future of the Turkana people who live and work alongside us.Local people have always welcomed us – the strangers whocome to dig in the sand – with kindness and generosity. Theylet us work on their land, share their water pumps, and offerhelp and information whenever they are able.

In return for their hospitality we try to help their communityin any way that we can, by employing local men, giving liftsto people in the Land Rover as we travelacross the landscape or helping to treat ascorpion sting when the local clinic istoo far away. But one of the mostsignificant things we can do is to helpthe Turkana people improve theirschools.

Primary schools in Turkana are fewand far between. To give an idea of

Children of Louwae primary school wave goodbye to thearchaeological team in 2010.

A Turkana lady with traditionalbeads and tribal scarification onher arms.

A Turkana lady in traditional dress; her haircut(shaved on the sides and braided on top)shows that she is married.

scale, Truro in Cornwall has a similar population size toKerio, but is only one seventh of the geographic area.Despite this, Truro has 24 primary schools compared toonly 9 in Kerio.

The schools are mostly housed in palm wood structures orrough mud buildings that remain at the mercy of the wind,which blows incessantly across the desert landscape, and thefeasting termites, which make light work of any furniture aswell as the wooden beams and palm fronds that help to holdup the classroom structures.

The schools have few if any resources: no coloured pictures onthe walls and no books or equipment. Yet the bare classroomsare packed with children showing a love and enthusiasm forlearning that is seldom seen in countries where education isfree and easily accessible. All of the children hope that if theywork hard enough at school they can carve out a better, morestable future for themselves.

It is this determination that we try to encourage and rewardthrough the ‘EJOK @ school in Turkana’ project, which gives a

helping hand to the primary schools in the area and thechildren who attend them. In the past, we have providedpencils and other basic equipment, as well as books. The priceof a Kenyan curriculum reading book is between 50p and £1,so a little goes a long way.

Each year we try to do more to help and this coming summerwe would like to further ‘cement’ our relationship with thelocal community by helping them to build and equip a nurseryclassroom for Locher Akwan primary school, where youngchildren can take their first steps in learning. Five strappingstudents have offered to provide free labour and UsbornePublishing have generously donated early years books, so wejust need to fund the construction materials for this year’sclassroom project.

You can find more information about EJOK and donateto this year’s school project at http://ejok.orgRead more about the research carried out in Turkana athttp://in-africa.org or contact Alex Wilshaw directly [email protected]

Children at Locher Akwan primary school look at books donatedto their school in 2011.

Smart boys on parade in their uniforms at Louwaeprimary school in 2010.

Locher Akwan’s current nursery classroom, which will hopefully be replacedwith a permanent building this summer.

Local people trying to cross the swollen Kerio Riverafter the rains in 2011.

The University of Cambridge has always had a world-classreputation for the quality of its Mathematics teaching andresearch; a reputation that continues to this day. St John’s isone of the largest colleges teaching Mathematics within theUniversity and therefore wants to continue at the forefrontof attracting the most able and promising youngmathematicians in the country.

In 2011, two Johnian Mathematics graduates attended afundraising event in London organised by the College.Reflecting on ways to help maintain and further the StJohn’s reputation for excellence and in particular forstudents of Mathematics, they conceived the idea of aprize awarded for outstanding achievement in preparationfor the Mathematical Tripos. After discussions with theCollege and with key input from Stephen Teal,Development Director, and Matthias Dörrzapf, Senior Tutorand Director of Studies for Mathematics, the two Johniansendowed the £9,000 Pythagoras Prize in perpetuity. It ispresented to a first year undergraduate student at theirmatriculation. The donors, who wish to remainanonymous, were motivated by the desire to encourageoutstanding students seeking to study at Cambridge toapply to St John’s, and to increase the accessibility of theCollege to applicants from all backgrounds who mightotherwise be daunted by relatively high tuition fees.

In addition to helping a successful first year candidate withthe Pythagoras Prize, the donors were keen to help theCollege fund a STEP (Sixth Term Examination Papers)

workshop for prospective entrants coming from schoolsand colleges that are unable to provide appropriatepreparation and support. The examination is essentialpreparation for studying Mathematics at Cambridge, and isa requirement for conditional offers to students who apply,as it is designed to test the potential of exceptionalcandidates. It is currently being adopted by otheruniversities in the UK.

Attending the first three-day STEP workshop in June 2012was Adam Gleave from Budmouth College in Weymouth.Adam performed within the top percentile in both his STEPII and STEP III papers, helping him to secure his place at StJohn’s. He matriculated in Michaelmas term 2012 and wasawarded the Pythagoras Prize in a ceremony presided overby the Master, Professor Christopher Dobson.

The donors recognised the value for their own careers ofthe rigorous preparation they undertook for the tripos andthey appreciated the support the College provided to themby way of scholarships, bursaries and prizes. ‘We are keenthat these opportunities should be open to students in thefuture,’ said the donors. ‘We hope that other Johnians willfollow with similar prizes for other subjects that theCollege offers.

‘We’re optimistic that the Pythagoras Prize can act as atemplate for alumni who wish to support the College andits goal to attract the most outstanding, talented studentsfor many years to come.’

A successful

formulaIsaac Newton, Paul Dirac, Bertrand Russell and John MaynardKeynes are among the most well-known and revered alumni of theUniversity of Cambridge. All of them have one thing in common –despite the diversity of their work they all studied Mathematics.

S T E W A R D S H I P

Adam Gleave with his mother and the Master, Professor Christopher Dobson.

‘We hope that other Johnians will follow with similar prizes forother subjects that the College offers. We’re optimistic that thePythagoras Prize can act as a template for alumni who wish tosupport the College and its goal to attract the most outstanding,talented students for many years to come.’

Lent term 2013

BEAUFORT SOCIETYST JOHN’S COLLEGEUNIVERS ITY OF CAMBRIDGEOne fine day

The central hall of theDivinity School

John Barrett Pete Oxley and Lizzie Ball Portraits in the Master’s Lodge

The Beaufort Society continues to flourish and its membershipnow stands at 202, almost double the number at its foundationfour years ago.

On a fine autumn Saturday last year, 70 of those membersgathered in a new venue – the freshly redeveloped DivinitySchool. The Society was the first group to see inside thisfabulous building, which now offers the College greatlyenhanced spaces for teaching and outreach. The project waspartially funded through the generosity of the College’sbenefactors, so it was a fitting place for the society to meet.

After a drinks reception in the Central Hall of the DivinitySchool, members made their way to Hall for lunch, over whichthey heard from guest speaker John Barrett MBE (1951), theformer tennis professional who was the BBC’s Wimbledoncommentator for 35 years.

John told stories about his career as the ‘voice of tennis’, andgave a bravura impersonation of Count Jim Moriarty from The

Goon Show that reduced many of his audience to hystericalgiggles. Musical entertainment followed from Lizzie Ball (1999),who played gypsy violin with her accompanist Pete Oxley.

As the crowd called for more, the after-lunch activities began,including the opportunity to find out more about the DivinitySchool refurbishment from two of the St John’s team behind itall – Domestic Bursar John Harris and Deputy Superintendentof Buildings Mike Finch. Guests were also able to learn aboutthe stories told in the familiar Chapel glass and by theportraits in the Master’s Lodge.

Society members made their farewells at the end of theday over tea in the Master’s Lodge. They will meet againin October this year when the College will make welcomethis growing group of friends, whose support is so verymuch appreciated.

The next meeting of the Beaufort Society will be on Saturday12 October 2013. Membership is open to anyone who lets usknow they have made provision for St John’s in their will.

For more information, please contact Sarah Westwoodin the Development Office, by e-mail [email protected] or by phone on01223 330724.

Saturday 13 October 2012 saw the fourth annual meeting of theBeaufort Society in College, celebrated with a lunch in Hall and anafternoon of entertainment.


Lent term 2013

Touring the Divinity School

www.joh.cam.ac.uk

EVENTS CALENDAR 2013

Join us on Facebook to keep up to date withwhat’s going on in College. Visit www.facebook.com/stjohnscambridge

The Johnian professional network is extending through LinkedIn. Join the ’St John’s College,Cambridge’ group to find out more about the amazing careers of Johnians.

Development Office

St John’s College, Cambridge CB2 1TP

Tel: 01223 338700 Fax: 01223 338727

Email: [email protected]

Registered charity number 1137428

St John’s is now tweeting news and updates.Follow us @stjohnscam

Do you receive our monthly enewsletter? If not, send us an email [email protected] to make sure you don’t miss out.

APRIL

3 Event in Toronto12 Event in Washington DC14 Donor Day (by invitation only)18 Entrepreneurial Networking Event,

London FULLY BOOKED

MAY

3 Port Latin Feast10 MA Dinner11 MA Lunch11 A Celebration of the Samuel Butler Project16 Manchester Drinks30 Johnian Society Dinner, Cardiff

(see enclosed leaflet)

JUNE

6 Johnian Society Summer Party, London(see enclosed leaflet)

13 Evensong18 May Ball20 Garden Party for Graduands29 Johnian Dinner

(up to and including 1952, 1954, 1955 and 1958)30 Johnian Lunch

(up to and including 1952, 2002 and 2003)

JULY

6 Benefactors’ Dinner (by invitation only)7 Family Party26-27 Johnian Society Golf CompetitionTBC Event in Vancouver TBC Event in Seattle

SEPTEMBER

7 50 Year Dinner (1963)21 Johnian Dinner (1993 and 1994)27-29 Alumni Festival28 Johnian Society Day (see enclosed leaflet)

OCTOBER

12 Beaufort Society Day (by invitation only)17 EvensongTBC Women’s Networking EventTBC Senior Bursar’s PresentationTBC Event in HoustonTBC Event in Chicago

NOVEMBER

TBC Entrepreneurial Networking Event

DECEMBER

6 Choir at Royal Festival Hall, London12 Varsity Match

For more information, visit our website: www.joh.cam.ac.uk/johnians

johnian news lent 2013

Documents

johniannewsst johns

lent term

issue arewelcome

james robinson

chemistry of life

louis persent2008

cameron design

peter muriuki