In the spirit of humanitarianism worldwide, Northwestern will be holding a university-wide World Day of Social Justice Conference to bring together engagement groups from all over campus to raise awareness and increase collaboration. Conference participates include GlobeMed at NU, the Center for Civic Engagement, LIFT Evanston, SEED, NUCHR, INSPIRE Films and others. Goals for the conference include spreading knowledge about the work different groups do, brainstorming ideas for working together, and decreasing programming conflicts in order to promote better event attendance.

The conference will be held February 20, from 12-3pm in Parkes Hall and is free and open to the public. The conference will be followed by a public speaking skills building workshop by Professor Peter Civetta. The workshop will be aimed at helping students effectively communicate the mission and work of their organizations. The tentative conference schedule is below:

12:00 – 12:10  –  Come in, get food, get seated

12:10 – 12:20  –  Introduction

12:20 – 12:35  –  Icebreakers

12:35 – 01:55  –  Group Presentations

01:55 – 02:30  –  Breakout Discussion Sessions

02:30 -03:00   – Food and networking

03:00 -05:00      – ULRPI Skills Training

This is the first year we are holding a WDSJ Conference at NU, but have high hopes for collaborative outcomes. This conference can be easily replicated on college campuses across the US.

There are 11 days left until the World Day of Social Justice, and still enough time to put this sort of event on at your school! All it takes are a couple student leaders to compile a list of the relevant groups, reach out to the students in charge of these organizations, and ask them:

1) For a description of the group’s work, mission, and ideas for collaboration for the conference packet

2) To prepare a brief 3-4 minute presentation

3) To bring 3-4 members to the conference

We have been planning this conference since the end of winter quarter, and of course the more preparation, the better. Consider planning a collaborative event like this for later on in the year even if it may be too late to put it on for WDSJ on 2/20. If you have any questions about planning such an event, feel free to contact me at tiffany@u.northwestern.edu

-Tiffany