UPEI celebrates Diversity Week, January 17 to 21
UPEI celebrates its third annual Diversity Week from January 17 to 21, and everyone is invited to take part in the events. All events are open to the public and are free of charge.
'Diversity Week is a commitment to recognizing and appreciating the variety of characteristics-both visible and invisible-that make individuals unique, in an atmosphere that promotes inclusion and celebrates individual and collective achievement,' says Ruth Freeman, equity outreach coordinator at UPEI.
The week kicks off with the ‘International Pavilion' on Monday, January 17, in the concourse of the W. A. Murphy Student Centre from 10 am-3 pm. Organized by UPEI's international students, the Pavilion will feature cultural exhibits, and at noon, a popular and tasty event makes its return, ‘Taste Dips from Around the World'. Monday evening, from 6 -10 pm, two movies will be shown at Room 104 at KC Irving Building: Hotel Rwanda and Live and Become.
Also in the concourse, on Tuesday, January 18 from 11 am-2 pm, UPEI student societies and groups will have a chance to show the many reasons why people might like to get involved. One such group, the Bod Squad-Family and Nutritional Sciences students who promote positive messages regarding body image-will exhibit images of ‘Body Pride'. That evening at 7 pm, a GLBTQ panel discussion, ‘Being gay at UPEI', will take place in McMillan Hall.
On Wednesday, January 19, a Muslim/Christian dialogue will take place at 12 noon in the Chaplaincy Centre, hosted by campus chaplain, Sister Sue Kidd. Panellists will follow the guidelines for language of interfaith conversation. Also on Wednesday, everyone is also welcome to show off their trivia skills at ‘Diversity Trivia @ The Wave', beginning at 7 pm.
On Thursday, January 20 at 3 pm, ‘Merry Meet', a social networking session to meet new people and discuss spiritualism, will be held at the Chaplaincy Centre. Beginning at 6 pm, a culturally diverse menu, served buffet-style, will be offered at the Wanda Wyatt Dining Hall for $9 per person. Members of our UPEI community will also demonstrate a variety of international dances at the dinner and will encourage attendees to take a spin out on the dance floor for ‘So you think you can dance, international?'
On Friday, January 21, UPEI students, faculty, and staff are invited to come to the third annual ‘Sound-off and Open Mic' at The Wave from 4-5 pm, and have their five-minute say on the subject, censorship.
To cap off the week, at 7 pm on Friday, the Men's Hockey Panthers take on St. FX at MacLauchlan Arena. At intermission, there will be a ‘Sledge Hockey Demo' and throughout the evening, representatives of ParaSport & Recreation PEI will be on hand to answer questions regarding the many ways people with physical disabilities can access sport opportunities.
Click here for the full schedule. For more information, please contact Ruth Freeman at (902) 628-4332 or rfreeman@upei.ca.
