The Policy Brief
Currently, the "Concordia experience" is increasingly defined by the stress of what happens outside the classroom. We are seeing a student body that is stretched thin, trying to balance skyrocketing rents, the rising cost of groceries, and an academic environment that feels increasingly transactional. For many of us, the University has become a place where we pay more and receive less support. From the perspective of potential Union leaders, we see a gap between the services the CSU provides and the daily needs of the average student. Whether it is an international student navigating more and more complex legal hurdles alone or a first-year student skipping meals to afford textbooks, the current safety nets need further cultivation. The Union should not be a distant bureaucracy; it must be the baseline of security that allows students to focus on their education without fearing for their basic needs. Our conviction is simple: The CSU belongs to you. Every dollar of your fee-levy must be an investment back into your well-being.
1. Strengthening Food Security on Campus
Food insecurity has become a common reality for students. Many need to balance tuition, rent, and daily expenses while trying to maintain academic performance. Meal programs such as People’s Potato already demonstrate that collective food initiatives can significantly improve student well-being.
Our community already has a strong foundation of food initiatives that demonstrate how collective approaches can successfully address this issue. Programs such as the People’s Potato have shown that community-based meal services can play an important role in supporting students across campus. Building on these initiatives, the Step Up slate proposes to expand food access throughout the entire day so that students have reliable opportunities to access meals regardless of their schedules. The first step toward this goal is the introduction of a free breakfast service on campus. While lunch programs are already well established, mornings remain a period where many students attend class without having access to affordable food options. A breakfast program would complement existing services and help ensure that students begin their day with access to a meal. Implementing such a program would involve working with existing food initiatives, coordinating volunteers and staff, and allocating CSU resources to support its operations.
Alongside the introduction of breakfast services, existing meal programs would be expanded to increase both their reach and their capacity. Strengthening partnerships with campus cooperatives and food collectives would allow these programs to serve more students and operate more consistently throughout the academic year. These collaborations would help settle that food initiatives remain community-driven while benefiting from the logistical and financial support that the CSU can provide. In addition to expanding meal services, emergency food assistance must remain accessible to students facing immediate hardship. The CSU can strengthen these supports by increasing the resources available through the Emergency Food Fund and ensuring that students can easily access assistance when they need it. Simplifying application processes and introducing flexible options such as meal vouchers redeemable at campus cooperatives would help students receive support quickly and without unnecessary administrative barriers.
Taken together, these initiatives aim to create a campus environment where access to food is treated as a basic element of student well-being rather than a privilege dependent on personal financial circumstances.
2. Affordable Housing for Concordia Students
Housing affordability remains one of the most pressing challenges facing students in Montreal. Rising rental prices and limited access to affordable units have placed significant pressure on students attempting to secure stable housing while completing their studies. For many students, housing instability directly affects academic performance, mental health, and the overall university experience. The CSU has already demonstrated that student-led housing initiatives can produce meaningful results. Through its partnership with UTILE, the student union played an important role in establishing the Woodnote student residences, a non-profit housing development designed to provide affordable units specifically for students. The success of this project shows that collaborative models of student housing development are both feasible and necessary. Building on this momentum, the Step Up slate supports the development of an additional student housing initiative that continues the CSU’s involvement in long-term housing solutions. Expanding this work would involve strengthening the partnership with UTILE and participating in the planning processes required to identify potential development opportunities. By contributing to feasibility studies and supporting funding applications, the CSU can help ensure that future projects prioritize affordability and student accessibility.
Advocacy will also play an important role in advancing student housing initiatives. Housing development requires cooperation between universities, municipalities, and provincial institutions. The CSU can represent student interests in these discussions by advocating for policies and funding programs that support non-profit student housing. Working alongside other student unions facing similar challenges would strengthen this advocacy and help put forth the urgency of housing affordability for students across Quebec. Ensuring that students remain involved in housing development processes is equally important. Housing initiatives must reflect the needs and priorities of the students they are meant to serve. Maintaining student representation within governance structures and conducting consultations throughout the planning process will allow the CSU to keep students informed and involved as these projects develop. Through a combination of development partnerships, public advocacy, and student consultation, the CSU can continue to expand its role in addressing housing affordability in meaningful and lasting ways.
3. Expanding Legal Support for International Students
International students contribute significantly to the academic and social life of Concordia University. At the same time, they often face legal and administrative challenges that are far more complex than those encountered by domestic students. Issues related to immigration status, employment regulations, and housing rights frequently require specialized legal knowledge that is not always easily accessible. Access to legal assistance should not depend on an individual student’s financial resources. Students navigating immigration systems or employment regulations should be able to obtain reliable guidance without facing prohibitive costs. Recognizing this need, the Step Up slate proposes to expand the CSU’s legal services to better support international students. A key component of this initiative would be the introduction of a dedicated fee levy designed to fund legal services specifically addressing the needs of international students. Because the CSU operates on the basis of student-approved funding mechanisms, implementing such a program would involve presenting the proposal through a referendum process and consulting students on how the service should operate. Establishing a stable funding source would allow the CSU to develop legal services that remain accessible and consistent over time.
Expanding consultation services is another essential element of this effort. Increasing the availability of legal consultations and connecting students with professionals who specialize in immigration and employment law would help ensure that students receive accurate and timely advice. Workshops and informational sessions could further support this work by helping students understand their legal rights and responsibilities within Canadian systems. Finally, improving awareness of existing services is necessary to ensure that students actually benefit from the resources available to them. Many students remain unaware that legal support is already offered through the CSU. Developing accessible guides, outreach campaigns, and informational materials would make it easier for students to learn about the assistance they can access.
Through these initiatives, the CSU can strengthen its ability to support international students and help guarantee that legal barriers do not prevent them from fully participating in academic and professional life.
