Stronger Together

Mahatma Gandhi once said “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”. One of the most exciting things about being in a University is the possibility to connect with different people, share unique ideas and embrace new ones. That is why I decided to write about the National Welcoming Week Cultural Festival, hosted outside the Marshall Student Center at the University of South Florida, on September 19^th.

The event, held at the state with the most refugees in the United States, displayed various stands where people could go for information about U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, refugee resettlement, naturalization, heath services, and a bit of history (including famous refugees and their achievements), along with music, food, a cultural fashion show, and plenty of hands-on activities for anyone interested. The main purpose of the gathering was to raise awareness of different cultures, attire and traditions of the many countries represented.

The concept of a global community gain undeniable influence and repercussion over the decades and people are more and more conscious of the subject. I once heard that humanity’s greatest desire is to belong and to connect. The idea of empathy has gained significance in people’s daily lives. The most common way of empathizing with others used to be through what’s known as “affective empathy”, in which you share an emotional response with the person you’re interacting with. Nowadays, “cognitive empathy” has gained a stronger value in society – to take a different perspective and to understand someone else’s way of viewing the world, something that is crucial to social prosperity.

It is exciting, and even inspiring, to see how in the modern world perceives uniqueness and authenticity in a brighter light. And how institutions, especially educational ones (responsible for supporting young adults as they shape their own identity), seek to nurture people’s curiosity towards diversity. Among the many things we can exchange – goods, gifts, money, credits and currency – the most important are information, culture and ideas. The most amazing things ever accomplished in mankind were never achieved in complete solitude. Only by exploring the rich world of ideas that exists outside the box that innovation can rise and society can thrive. Learning is certainly not a unilateral process. There is no doubt that, indeed, we are stronger together.