Global Huskers Festival Makes Impact Across Campus

On Tuesday, November 19th, Athletics partnered with the International Student and Scholar Office, Student Involvement, and University Housing to host the Global Huskers Festival at Memorial Stadium. This multicultural festival included 18 student-hosted booths, representing countries and cultures from across the globe.

Each booth displayed art, décor, fashion, literature, games, and traditions. Many booths also contributed popular food of that country for attendees to taste and explore. In addition to the booths, there were several live performances throughout the evening including spoken word poetry by Lemon Andersen, multiple dances, and an international fashion show.

International Student Success Navigator, Nakell Baker, worked with others across campus to host the Global Huskers Festival. Baker shared, "Personally, I believe events like this unite the student body. These kind of social and cultural events are integral in breaking boundaries and assumptions between students. Events like the Global Huskers Festival help international students feel truly welcome at UNL and provide domestic students with new experiences. These events spark conversation about the benefit of differences between people which provides opportunities of growth for everyone."

Student-athletes from Estonia and Latvia hosted their own tables, and another served as a judge for the booth competitions. Johanna Ilves, a Track & Field student-athlete, hosted a table for her country of Estonia. "I chose to host a table at the Global Husker Festival because it seemed like a good opportunity to represent my country, Estonia, and give people more information about it. I think UNL hosting this festival is really important as it shows people around us others' backgrounds and maybe helps us to understand others better."

With international student-athletes from over 28 countries represented in Athletics, Diversity and Inclusion Director DaWon Baker, wanted to ensure representation from Athletics at this campus-wide event. Baker commented, "We are intentional about sharing the stories and experiences of our international athletes. When you are coming from hundreds of miles away, the opportunity to show your heritage and culture is an opportunity to celebrate and educate. When opportunities such as the Global Huskers Festival arise, we try our best to put our staff and athletes in the position to build bridges with campus, celebrate themselves and educate others about home. Our athletes come from all over the world, opportunities for them to share their upbringing and cultural experiences allow for them to be authentically them and makes for a better student-athlete experience."

The Global Huskers Festival was put on in part of International Education Week, a joint initiative between the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education. UNL capitalizes on International Education Week to highlight international diversity present on campus, generate awareness and appreciation for other cultures, and recognize the contributions international students make to the educational experience for all.