HOW CAN WE RECREATE THE EXPERIENCE OF BACKPACKING THROUGH LATIN AMERICA?

PROJECT MOTIVATION

On Fall of 2016 I was part of the organizing committee for the Hispanic Heritage Month at ASU and we were looking for a way to end the celebrations with a bang. The theme for that HHM was “More Than a Label” because we wanted to break the common misconceptions and stereotypes that most people have about Hispanics and educate people about the many aspects and traditions that makes the Hispanic Culture beautiful. Our past experiences brought us to the conclusion that the best way to learn about another country, is to travel to it. So, we asked ourselves what would be a good way to recreate the experience of backpacking to all of the Latin American countries in one day.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

We decided that in a good way to recreate this experience was by making ASU’s first Hispanic cultural exposition. The event consisted of student groups and other organizations hosting booth-type areas featuring one of the Hispanic countries of Latin America. These booths contained information, pictures, games, props, and physical representations of each country that showcased the country’straditions, rituals, cultures, meals, etc. In addition to the booths, we had music, foods, and performances that represented the showcased countries. Since we wanted to recreate the experience of traveling, we had airport check-in tables, maps, and everyone got a passport that they could stamp depending on the countries that they visited.

COLLABORATION

This event was by far the most collaborative event I have ever been a part of. We had to coordinate with over 20 different student organizations to represent each one of the Hispanic countries. The major challenge was that even though we had students that had connections to some of the countries, most of them did not have any props, displays, or even a well-rounded picture of the country, at least not enough to recreate what it would feel like to travel there. The way we tackled this was a combination of getting creative and collaborating with externalcommunitiesin Arizona. From Arizona culture groups to representing consulates and everything in between, we reached out to anyone that would be willing to let us use material for the booths and even if they wanted to be part of the event as “tour guides”. Even though it was a lot of work, we were surprised by the amount of people that wanted to contribute to this project. People brought statues, set up large displays of Mayan Ruins, and even dressed up in traditional clothing. Entire community groups even volunteered to perform traditional dances and rituals all for the sake of showcasing their country’s culture.

IMPACT

The Expo turned out to be as much a symbol as it was a celebration because it truly embodied what the Hispanic Heritage Month is all about. For the 600 students who were in attendance, the combination of the colorful booths, the food and the performances, really created a platform in which we encouraged students to learn about the history, culture, and traditions of all Hispanic nations. As a result, the event was added as a signature event of ASU’s HHM and will have its second exhibition in October of 2017. The project was also nominated for two Pitchfork Awards for “Best Cultural Programs” and “Best Program Celebrating Campus Diversity”.

FEEDBACK & PROJECT FUTURE

Although 600 was close to the number of participants we expected, this type of exposition would have comfortably hosted a couple thousand more. For future years, we can leverage the connections we have with the university faculty to encourage more students to come and we can also begin advertising more to the broader community of Arizona. In addition, because we were not expecting to collaborate with so many people and organizations, we were not as logistically prepared as we could have been, which resulted in a bit of a slow set up and start of the exposition. This year, systems will be put in place so that multiple people are delegated the responsibility to communicate with different groups and individuals as opposed to just the project manager.

CULTURAL DANCE PERFORMANCE SNIPPETS!

I'NARU GRUPO FOLKLÓRICO

DANZA FOLKLORICA

SUNDANCE PERU

DANZA FOLKLORICA II

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