On October 25th, I had the opportunity to attend International Affairs Scholars’ Mini Involvement Fair outside of Smith-Steeb. It was a great way to gain exposure to extracurriculars and cool trips/ organizations that revolve around the area of international affairs at Ohio State, which was something that I had never had the chance to do.
The first table that I approached was for the club Global Health Initiative. At first, I thought that there would probably be a low possibility of me actually joining since I assumed the organization was solely meant for pre-med or students getting a BS. However, the nice girls running the table quickly assured me that it was, in fact, open to anyone in any major. Global Health Initiative is “driven to increase awareness and provide students with educational opportunities related to global health issues.” As someone who is not super aware of the pertinent issues surrounding health in our world, this definitely caught my attention. What was even more attractive was that they actually went on service trips to places I would absolutely love to visit such as Haiti, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Malawi, and India. I signed up for their email list after chatting with them- so I am definitely considering going to some of their meetings and events in the future!
The next table was very similar to the first; it was called Doctors Without Borders. This was one organization that I have prior knowledge of since DWB is famous for its medical services in war-torn countries affected by endemic diseases or natural disaster. Although it does not pertain entirely to my major, the different cultures of these troubled countries/peoples intrigue me beyond description and I would love to attend various, interesting lectures that will be put on by the nonprofit. I admire the work they do and the dedication they have towards helping those who are suffering.
The third club I visited was the Alexander Hamilton Society. This was another organization that I was familiar with beforehand. Last year in IA Scholars I had attended a couple of debates pertaining to nuclear weapons, North Korea, and the Trump administration. However, I definitely plan on attempting to go to at least one of their debates or expert talks later this year or next semester. My favorite aspect of this organization is that it is the perfect environment to dive into the minds and ideas of others (students, professors, government officials, historians, experts, politicians, etc.) and attempt to understand certain ideologies that I may not agree with or may not entirely (or at all) understand. Especially on college campuses, I believe it is incredibly important to broaden one’s horizons on current issues instead of staying intolerant or ignorant of others’ views.
The last table I visited was AWOW: Advocates for Women Of the World. Personally, the topic of gender inequality worldwide is very important. Even though gender inequality exists in the United States, I often forget about how millions and millions of other women in foreign countries experience much, much worse than I do- things like rape, torture, confinement, and forced dependency on males.
It’s definitely going to be hard to decide to which organizations I should allocate my time!