If parts of campus seem more like Latin America or Western Europe than a New England college town this week, there's no need for double-take. It's all part of the annual Intercultural Festival, a 10-day event that promotes awareness of the many cultures represented at Tufts.
The festival, which kicked off last Wednesday and will last until Saturday, is sponsored by Tufts' International Club (I-Club). Activities encompass aspects of culture including food, dance, costume, and art with the goal of educating the community - even those not interested in joining culture groups - about the range of cultures represented by Tufts students.
"The festival gives the Tufts community the opportunity to explore other cultures, with us more or less just taking care of the details. We might be considered a travel agency in that respect," said Sean McDermott, the I-Club president.
The I-Club has also been working outside of the University community with groups such as Humano, a Latin dance band, and the Honduran Embassy to spice up the week's events. The group has tried to bring multiculturalism to the surrounding area as well. McDermott is assisting the Medford school district in the creation of an elementary school intercultural festival to expose children to global customs.
While the Tufts festival has been held annually over the past ten years, this year's events are slightly different from those of years past. Activities are held on a daily basis, but there are fewer total events taking place.
"We purposefully cut down the number of events that we normally have. We kept all the big ones, but dropped the ones that had very low attendance. The idea was quality over quantity," McDermott said. Additions to the festival include speakers on an array of topics such as Wednesday's lecture on "Global Concerns on Nuclear Weapons" by Professor Gary Goldstein and a speech on Friday by Jennifer Hyndman on "Roads, Shrines, and Bodies." For the first time, the festival will present International Orientation Skits, performed by students applying to be International Host Advisors for incoming freshmen next August.
Some modifications to the Intercultural Festival were made possible with the help of an extra $35,000, won earlier this year through an Iagora.com competition between international clubs worldwide.
The ten-day celebration culminates with the Parade of Nations at Cohen Auditorium on Saturday. Tufts' cultural groups will perform live music, dances, and acting skits, as well as screen original videos. Flags from represented nations will adorn the Auditorium.
There will also be a fashion show in which students model traditional costumes from around the globe.
During the parade, the winner of the Oliver Chapman Award - an award given to a senior who demonstrates remarkable involvement in the international community - will be announced. The nominees are seniors Ayesha Siddiqui, Bernardo Monzani, and Shou Min Tan.
All proceeds from the Parade of Nations go towards the club's International Scholarship Fund, which was established ten years ago to assist international students with financial difficulties. "Though we aren't yet at the point where we have enough in the fund to give an actual scholarship, right now the money is used if needed as emergency loan money," McDermott said.
So far, the I-Club's efforts have been well received by the Tufts community. "I appreciate the way Tufts supports and encourages its students to unite and share the many different cultures on campus," freshman Meghan Brown said.
"The reason I came to Tufts was because of its international atmosphere," freshman Marci Ferraro said. "You can see all different cultures represented in the student body as well as things about each culture you may have studied only in a class. The festival is a good way to experience the different cultures."
The week was organized primarily by the I-Club's 12 board members, though an estimated 35 other students helped organize and advertise events. Culture clubs were also contacted and responded enthusiastically to the opportunity to share their organizations with the rest of Tufts. During the Intercultural Festival, the groups will sponsor and participate in various events, such as this Thursday's Tertulia Carnival being run by the Spanish House.
Other late-week events include "Around the World," an exhibit of photographs taken by Tufts students traveling abroad, and "A Night at the Savoy," a dance set in 1940s Harlem.
