Being globally minded is not for one religion of people. It isn’t a trait only California Baptist University students acquire. It isn’t going on a mission trip and returning the same.
It is a learned quality that raises awareness on the happenings around the world around us. It connects us as human beings. Whether stories break your heart or inspire you to do something about a particular problem, being aware that there is a world that exists outside of Southern California is indeed crucial.
There is “news” people want to hear about, like how many likes Kim Kardashian receives on Instagram per year and what features come with the new iPhone 7. There is news people need to hear, like the fact 470,000 people have died in the Syrian civil war that began in 2011, or that a region in Spain called Catalonia wants to break off from the rest of the country and become independent.
There is a peace agreement in Colombia being proposed to end one of the world’s longest armed conflicts, and there are now commercial flights offered between the United States and Cuba.
History is literally in the making as we speak, and most students are not doing much to change the “ignorance trend” that infiltrates colleges and universities.
Do not be ignorant. Learn about the world that is around you, read the international section of a newspaper, talk to the international students on campus. Subscribe to a (credible) news source — it’s not rocket science.
We might be thousands upon thousands of miles away from hundreds of countries, but it certainly does not mean they should be pushed to the side and never thought about.
