political front happened in the early twenty-tens as well. After holding a referendum on membership in the Canadian Federation of Students, UVSS members voted to leave the Federation in March 2011 after more than twenty-five years of membership. Following this, the UVSS established the Where's The Funding? campaign in conjunction with a number of other student societies in BC. In recent years, the divestment movement has been a primary focus for UVSS campaigns. Student groups Clubs Clubs are interest groups run by students and administered by the UVSS. There are over 150 student groups on a variety of topics a list of all active clubs can be found on the UVSS Clubs website. Clubs receive a small amount of funding each semester from a student levy and are governed by clubs policy and Clubs Council. Course Unions Course Unions are department focused student groups run by students from a specific department and administered by the UVSS. There are over 25 Course Unions representing departments across campus, a list of all active clubs can be found on the UVSS Course Union Website. Any student that wants to start a Course Union can do so by talking to the Director of Student Affairs who has an office located in the Students’ Society Centre (SUB B103) Course Unions receive a small amount of funding each semester from a student levy and are governed by Course Union policy and Course Union council. Professional Development Unions (PDUs) There are four active Professional Development Unions at the University of Victoria. Each PDU is run semi-autonomously with funds being raised solely by the students within that department. While each PDU raises its own funds, they are considered under the umbrella of the UVSS for purposes related to the BC University Act. The following are the PDUs at UVic: University of Victoria Engineering Students' Society Commerce Students' Society The Law Students’ Society Education Students' Association Advocacy Groups Advocacy groups are organizations within the UVSS serve to represent certain special interests on campus or within society. Advocacy groups are funded by imposing fees on students that are created through by referendum. Each of the groups has voting representation on the UVSS Board of Directors. The following list details these groups: Gender Empowerment Centre (GEM) (2019–present) formerly Third Space (2016-2019) formerly The Women's Centre (1981-2016) Students of Colour Collective (SOCC) The Society for Students with a Disability (SSD) UVIC Pride