40th annual International Festival is a global sensation
On Saturday, Oct. 17, UNC Charlotte hosted a large crowd of visitors on campus for the 40th installment of its International Festival, and thousands more experienced the wonder of the festival via a live webcast.
This annual event featured the traditional offerings of art, costumes, games music, dance and food representing cultures from around the world. New for 2015, in recognition of the festival’s four decades, the Office of International Programs introduced a lively procession of nations and a celebratory fireworks presentation.
According to the Office of International Programs, overall attendance for the 40th anniversary celebration rivaled past events. For the first time, organizers captured a count of UNC Charlotte student attendance, and more than 2,000 students participated in the festival.
“For four decades, UNC Charlotte has gathered the international and internationally minded members of the University and Charlotte community to celebrate our cultural diversity,” said Christina Sanchez, associate director for international programs. “For one day, the campus becomes a ‘small world with big culture’ that we must acknowledge, celebrate and continue to learn about throughout the year. It is a pleasure and honor to work with the local community and all members of UNC Charlotte in order to promote global awareness through the offerings of this annual event.”
The Office of University Communications provided a live stream for this year’s International Festival that reached a global audience. In addition to providing coverage of events, such as dance performances, the webcast team conducted interviews with a variety of participants, festival goers and performers; the webcast also included pre-produced segments that highlighted the abundant international offerings that occur in the greater Charlotte region.
International viewers of the webcast totaled more than 2,400 unique households in 40 countries with India, Germany and the Netherlands representing the top three countries for streamers.
Images from the 40th International Festival can be viewed on the University’s Flickr page.