“C.U. in good health!” was the theme of last week’s Health Awareness Week, which featured an activity each day. Health Awareness Week is an annual student-run event initiated by the Gannett Clinical Volunteer Program.
On Monday, Prof. Sandra Steingraber, Center for the Environment, held a fireside chat called “Living Downstream: Connections Between Human Health and the Environment” in the Willard Straight Hall (WSH) Art Gallery.
“She spoke about her personal experiences as a young woman diagnosed with bladder cancer, her travels [and] research,” said Harbir Kaur Juj, chair of Health Awareness Week.
Steingraber is an internationally recognized expert on environmental links to cancer and had been appointed to President Clinton’s National Action Plan on Breast Cancer, administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Her highly acclaimed book, “Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment” presents cancer as a human rights issue.
On Tuesday, a Health Fair was held in the WSH Memorial Room in which various on and off-campus groups provided information on nutrition, stress and other health-related issues.
The fair, which was attended by almost 800 people, featured games, free prizes, free food and the presence of the two Cornell Bears.
On Wednesday, Jessica Weiner gave a one-woman performance called “Mirror, Mirror” which confronted the stereotypes surrounding eating disorders and self-hatred.
The presentation, which drew approximately 400 people to Uris Hall, combined storytelling and personal experiences to address the issues of body image that affect both men and women. It was co-sponsored by the Panhellenic Health Advisory Team, Cornell Fitness Centers (CFC), Community Development and the Cornell Women’s Resource Center.
On Thursday, Helen Newman Hall opened its doors to the Cornell Community for the Fitness Jam, sponsored by CFC, which featured various fun and relaxing fitness activities in different rooms.
“In Concert” was held on Friday in the Statler Hotel in the memory of Michelle Evans, a Cornell junior who was struck and killed by a TCAT bus last spring. Evan’s family attended the event, where Evan’s father also spoke.
The concert was meant to serve “as a means for people who knew her [Michelle] to celebrate her and for people who did not know her to see a glimpse of Michelle’s spirit and strength that can live on long after her death,” said Nadia Robertson ’00, a member of the Gannett Clinical Volunteer Program.
The concert featured Prolific Soul, Sabor Latino, After Eight, Bhangra Team, Asian American Playhouse, the Chordials and Cayuga’s Waiters. It was co-sponsored by SHAC and the Mortar Board.
Archived article by Inna Bruter