Do you want to know more about foreign countries and speak with international students studying at the University, or talk to students from the campus community that have studied and lived in a foreign country? Do you want to taste some international food?

The World Student Association in conjunction with Parent’s Weekend offers you an opportunity to satisfy all those wishes. This Saturday from noon to 2 p.m. on the first floor of the Student Union there will be an International Fair called “Around the World in One Afternoon.”

According to Jessie Ahlschlager, graduate assistant of the Center for International Programs and one of the organizers of the event, the International Fair will present diverse exhibitions sponsored by several multicultural campus organizations and individuals from specific countries.

There will be African and Indian dances and a Japanese karate presentation. Activities will include face painting and trivia. Some of the international students will be dressed in their traditional attires.

Dining services will provide a variety of ethnic dishes and cuisines from around the world in the Union food court.

“There are many organizations involved in the event,” Ahlschlager said. “I think it’s a good way to show off the global community of Bowling Green, to have so many students from other countries, other traditions and cultures. I think the primary goal of this event is to really make the international community visible.

Having an event during such a high traffic time like noon to 2 p.m. is certainly the time we are going to grab a lot of people’s attention.”

The main organizer behind the International Fair is WSA.

“WSA is an organization created by international students to get international students together, to share cultures and share our culture with the community,” said Margarida Brandao, president of WSA. “But it’s not only for international students; we encourage American students to join us. We make events every year and they attended.”

The International Fair organized this year is the first. In previous years there were international festivals in fall, which were similar to the International Dinner held in spring but on a smaller scale.

This year WSA decided to change the tradition.

“We decided to do something different this year,” Brandao said. “Something more on the fair style, a walking thing, where everybody around the University can come in and see it. It’s something more accessible to more people. Before we had closed events, we always limited the amount of people who could come to it. [And now] we want to try something different, a free event to all.”

The stage will be set up on the first floor of the Union in the Falcon’s Nest. There will be some entertainment going on there; some people will dance and some people will sing.

Also, organizers plan to put up 18 booths that will host different multicultural student organization’s country stands.

“The idea is that you travel around the world. If you want to learn something about India you can go to the Indian booth, and see pictures and learn some trivia information,” Brandao said. “We are going to put signs around with directions such as ‘Asia This Way,’ and ‘Africa This Way.’ We are trying to make it a cultural experience.

“It’s going to be during Parent’s Weekend so the idea is to be able to target not only the students but parents, siblings and all those who come during Parent’s Weekend, to give people a chance to learn about other places outside the United States.” People from different cultures can speak and show each other their traditions and learn from each other.

“I’ve met people who have no idea that people in Brazil speak Portuguese instead of Spanish or I’ve heard from some people that the capital of Brazil is Buenos Aires,” said Brazilian- native Brandao. “A lot of people never had an opportunity to leave Northwest Ohio, so people can learn more and test their knowledge. We are going to make a fun educational afternoon.” WSA works with other organizations; it has an agreement with Dining Services, who will be serving international food that day in the food court.

WSA also regularly organizes “Cup of Culture,” which is an event featuring students from various countries presenting information about their cultures and traditions. This semester WSA is planning to organize several other Cup of Culture events, including representatives from America, Armenia, Ukraine, Nepal and India, as well as African countries.

According to Anne Saviers, associate director of the Center for International Programs and advisor of WSA, there are around 580 international students at the University from 80 different countries. The number of international students is increasing.

“When I started working here the number of international students was probably around 320,” Saviers said about the rising international student community, and here we are at 580 now.”

“WSA has been in existence probably for 40 years,” Saviers said. “They are an extremely responsible group. They are very bright and they are very creative. Some groups get a budget and they pretty much use that budget on one huge event for the whole year. WSA takes a budget and manages to pull off two major events and countless smaller events during the year.”