Better Together

“By giving international students ‘center stage’ on campus, United Nations Day provides them a platform to be recognized,” explained Jim Mellon, director of the International Student Association, longtime organizers of the annual event. “It’s a chance to celebrate and appreciate the remarkable geographical and cultural diversity we have at UH Hilo in a spirited, colorful, and ceremonial, yet engaging way.”

For the student leaders who organized the event, the day was deeply personal.

“It’s really great getting to work with other international students and getting to plan out these activities that allow us to come together and represent, especially when we’re so far away from home,” said Lynch, a Geography and Environmental Studies major from Pohnpei, Micronesia, who will be graduating in the spring.

“I think it’s important that we hold strong to our roots,” explained Lynch, citing the current political discourse in the United States.

That sentiment was echoed by International Student Association vice president Folliet Schutz, a College of Business and Economics senior with a double major in Business Management and Accounting. Schultz, who is from Kiribati — “an island so small you cannot even see it on a map” — United Nations Day is about visibility and validation.

“We know UH Hilo is a diverse school, but we don’t really know where all these students are from when we see them walking around campus until they’re marching in the parade with their flag,” Schutz said. “It’s nice to see people so proud to represent their country.”

Mellon said this year’s celebration included student-staffed informational tables and 15 student-made language videos that were on display in the lobby of the Mookini Library throughout October.

Ultimately, event organizers say United Nations Day proves that “people-to-people interaction and exchange is a powerful yet simple way to create a more peaceful and just world.” As the campus reflects on 80 years of the UN, there is a strong hope for “80 more years of international students being ‘better together’ at UH Hilo,” said Mellon.