News

This will mark the 35th year Lehigh University has hosted the annual International Bazaar, the largest international celebration on campus.

The event, which will be held on April 21, seeks to recognize and celebrate the unique countries and cultures represented in the Lehigh community, through musical performances, information tables, fashion shows, a wide range of international food, and much more.

Hosted by Lehigh’s Office of International Students and Scholars (OISS), the event is organized largely by volunteer students, who spend nearly half a year preparing for the Bazaar, according to Patricia Goldman, Assistant Director of International Student Engagement.

“Our goal is to celebrate cultures of the world in a variety of ways, including through the food from local international restaurants, as well as performances from Lehigh students,” said Katrina Bui ‘26, an industrial and systems engineering student, who serves on the Bazaar’s marketing committee. “It’s going to be a great event this year.”

OISS is still seeking volunteers for the International Bazaar, which will be held on Sunday, April 21 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the University Center front lawn, at the flagpole. For more information or to volunteer, visit the Bazaar website.

“I think it’s important for the students to have a place where they can feel proud to share their culture to their peers,” said Zahra Hassan ‘24, who has helped organize each of the last three Bazaars. “I also think it’s important for students to feel represented, to know there are others like them at their school, and to see that Lehigh is advocating for all these cultures to be present.”

The planning process for the International Bazaar begins in October, and is organized through four student committees: logistics, food, marketing, and entertainment. The committees include both undergraduate and graduate students, and they are given a great deal of autonomy during the planning process, Goldman said.

More than 45 organizations have signed up for tables or performances this year, she said. This includes some Global Union student clubs that have participated in the Bazaar in previous years, like the TUMBAO Latin-Caribbean Fusion dance team and the Helius Dance Club.

But this year will also feature student clubs participating for the first time, including the Polynesian Student Alliance, the Lehigh University Association of Ghanaian Students, and the Lambda Theta Alpha Latin Sorority, Goldman said.

This year will also feature a J-pop performance called “The Last Show” by a Japanese student organization called Yofukashi. Additionally, Lehigh students will be doing international face painting and henna for young children and families from the community who attend.

“I loved seeing all the performances last year, especially the fashion show,” Bui said. “Seeing all the different clothing that people bring and wear; it’s all so gorgeous and colorful. I also think all the performances this year will be really fun.”

The Bazaar also attracts organizations that one wouldn’t necessarily expect to have an international focus. The Management Club at Lehigh’s College of Business will have a table highlighting how they teach international business practices, Goldman said, and last year the Center for Gender Equity had a display at the Bazaar about women’s rights around the world.

“The Bazaar is great because we have a lot of cultural clubs and events on campus, but they are sometimes separated from each other and just doing their own thing,” Bui said. “So it’s good to have this big event where we can come together to celebrate all the clubs, and all of the cultures.”

The Bazaar was established in 1986, and has been held almost every year at Lehigh University, except for a multi-year pause during the COVID-19 pandemic. Resuming the Bazaar in 2022 was challenging because the student organizers had not participated in previous events, and had to base it upon their review of photos and videos from past Bazaars, Goldman said.

“The first year back after COVID was a challenge, because the Bazaar hadn’t been held in years, and none of us knew how to do it,” Hassan said. “But it was something that was important to us and we were determined to do it. It’s something we all really believe in.”