Within the Elon University bubble are intramural sport competitions, an upcoming B.O.B. concert and the tradition of stealing bricks. But beyond this campus, there are social problems and human rights violations of which students may not be aware.
The first-ever Aware Fair will be held 2-4 p.m. on Friday, April 18 in Speakers Corner. Senior Gloria So, awareness director of Elon Volunteers! will host the fair as a way of connecting students to the community and informing them about organizations that advocate for social justice.
“It’s easy for Elon students to get wrapped up in the busy college culture, and the last thing anyone wants to do is sign up for another email list or attend another meeting,” So said. “Yet Elon students do care and do want to learn about local and global issues. The emphasis is on education.”
Thirteen organizations will participate in this interactive event. Each organization will have a table featuring a variety of interactive activities, free food and giveaways, including “Consent is Sexy” t-shirts and food from the Burlington Co-Op.
“I hope to educate Elon students on the Lord’s Resistance Army issues and Invisible Children’s efforts,” said Marlena Fernandez, Invisible Children representative. “I especially hope that [Invisible Children’s] intentions are clear after the controversy that has surrounded the organization in the past.”
WSOE will play social change music and broadcast on-air interviews from the participants about their projects and causes. So got the idea for the broadcast from the class “Ordinary People in the Struggle for Social Change and Reform.”
“We had a day of music during which we studied the collective power of music in social movements,” So said. “It was inspiring, and the music created an indescribable mood that was shared by everyone present. It helps us feel together, connected and alive.”
The idea for the fair came from a Phase 4 retreat through the Isabella Cannon Leadership Program, where students created a legacy project to leave their mark on Elon’s campus. So discussed the idea with Bob Frigo, the associate director of the Kernodle Center, and her awareness team, consisting of members from Sierra Club, Amnesty International, Oxfam and Invisible Children.
“Awareness is about choosing to become informed,” Fernandez said. “Elon students can talk to the awareness organizations on campus or do their own research in order to increase their awareness. But really, awareness is only the first step to making a difference.”
From there, So worked on the logistics of the event — reserving locations, contacting organizations, coordinating the activity schedule and designing an image to represent the event. Her team then divided the tasks related to public relations and setting up the individual tables.
“The executive board has spent multiple hours brainstorming activities and creating trivia questions for the event,” Fernandez said. “Though it takes time and effort, we are all happy to do it because there is a chance of raising more awareness on Elon’s campus.”
So said she plans on continuing the Aware Fair by adding it to the responsibilities of the awareness director position, hoping to continue the spread of social-conciousness even after she leaves Elon.
“There’s a term called Ubuntu that means ‘I am because we are,’” So said. “I believe our responsibilities as global citizens include thinking as a community and being willing to advocate for social change. I hope all of the people that stop by will be inspired in some capacity and moved to try or feel something new.”