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As gets underway, we catch up with Bud Johnston, Project Manager for the Black at ������Ƶ programme. Bud talks about what Black at ������Ƶ aims to achieve for staff, students, alumni and the local community – and he reveals who inspires him and why.

As Project Manager for Black at ������Ƶ, I work with students, staff, alumni and community partners to deliver initiatives that reflect Black voices, histories and futures. I want to ensure the programme isn’t performative – it should create structural change, centre on care, and archive the contributions of Black people to this University. If we do it right, it will feel like a blueprint for how institutions can be held accountable while being deeply human.

Our current programme includes committed funding for projects spanning photography, portraiture, archives, and education – from to workshops in schools and collaborations with local Black led organisations that are building with community roots. There are some unique figures within our Black alumni at ������Ƶ including Michael Fuller, the UK’s first Black Chief Constable, and Burna Boy, the afro-beat international superstar. Our alumni network is vast and still unfolding.

My favourite place on campus is the Sports Hall. It reminds me of a former life in the early 2000s when I played professional basketball for Brighton Bears and we trained at the University campus each day. I enjoy seeing new students at this time of year – the energy of new horizons is lovely to me.

Digging through music makes me lose track of time. It’s a passion, and everything needs a soundtrack. To be honest, I’m involved in lots of different things, so I rarely have much time to lose!

I’m inspired by people who keep building things even when no one is watching. Right now, I’d say and also . Within their own right they are both doing amazing things to elevate inclusion and a voice for marginalised communities.