Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Auburn University’s outreach program is striving to be an epicenter for cultural diversity and education with their second annual Global Community Day Festival on April 15. 

Dr. Elizabeth Quansah has organized an event for the public to explore different cultural foods, music and activities.

“Last year was our first time to bring the international communities and then the domestic communities together to really learn about each other’s culture and values, share food, culture, a fashion show and everything,” Quansah said.

The event is open to the general public and will be from 9 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the AU intramural fields. Food and arts and crafts vendors are invited to sell their wares at the trade fair and “Taste of the World.” There will also be international music, dancing and a fashion show.

Quansah’s aim for the event is to bring unity and inclusivity to international communities in the area. Many international students in the Auburn community don’t have resources outside of their spouse or family unit. The festival can help them make connections to find health resources.

“If you have a diverse population, you also want to make sure that they feel included to call that place their home and be proud to be there,” Quansah said. “We really hope that this festival will continue to bridge that gap between international communities and the American or domestic communities as we call it, and then we will be united.”

The event can help people in the international community understand local cultural rules and expectations. Quansah said that the American custom of staying in the car when being pulled over by a police officer might not occur to someone from other countries. They may step out and greet the officer like a neighbor.

“This is a forum that we get to learn all these things and understand each other, so this is very important,” Quansah said.