Sunny, my friend and myself help to run the Foreign Affairs Booth

 On February 9th, 2022, the Foreign Affairs club participated in Club Rush 2022 at Utah Valley University by hosting a group of tables to promote the coalition and share our works. The event was held in the Utah Valley University Grand Ballroom for eight hours over two days. Prior to the event, student members coordinated logistics and preparations through a task list that assigned duties for which each member was responsible. Such assignments included registration, the creation and logistics of promotional materials, and a schedule for shifts at the booth.

 Throughout the 8 hours, I was able to talk to many people. I learned about their dreams and goals. It reaffirmed my belief that we are all in this world together, working towards the same end goal. We received over 100 sign-ups over the two days.

The end to a successful club rush

 The Foreign Affairs club shared achievements and raised awareness of mountain sustainability issues among the local student population through the event. Many individuals were surprised and intrigued to learn how the mountains and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) applied to their fields of study in business, healthcare, engineering, and more. They were especially interested that the SDG goals have 169 targets, but only 3 mention mountains.  We were able to engage in conversations about themes of the 2030 Agenda and the ways they are simultaneously connected to mountain communities and various academic disciplines or interests. The UIMF model of Student Engaged Learning (SEL) was also of great interest to many attendees.

In addition to promotional materials for the UIMF, we shared information in collaboration with the UVU Office for Global Engagement on the upcoming CSW 66,2022 event. UIMF participation in Club Rush was hugely successful. We created relationships with other organizations at UVU, and the coalition collectively received over 100 interested individuals and provided contact information.

                      Stephan Atkinson, UIMF Member, Vice President of Foreign Affairs club