With at least one related activity every day between March 11 and March 31, more events, more student participation and other changes distinguish this year's celebration of Asian Awareness, recognized annually throughout the month of March, from those of past years. One week remains with six events planned."It's the biggest it's ever been," said Joanne Wan '03, head coordinator of Asian Awareness at Brandeis. "There are more events, more speakers, more everything."

Under the theme heading of "Seek Within and Discover," Asian Awareness officially began last Tuesday with opening ceremonies held in the Shapiro Campus Center Atrium.

"The title has to do with trying to see who we are as individuals and how we fit into the bigger picture ... and Brandeis community," said Celicia Chaung '03, president of the Brandeis Asian American Students Association (BAASA).

The expansion of events and activities surrounding Asian Awareness at Brandeis is partly the result of a recent change in the length of time that Asian Awareness is observed. This year is only the second that Brandeis has taken three weeks to recognize the event. Traditionally, Brandeis had recognized an Asian Awareness week. Wan said having three weeks for events is important as an indication of the increasing Asian population on campus, as well as to "show the importance of bringing awareness" in light of past events; she brought up as an example the WBRS incident of last year, in which radio hosts were accused of cultural insensitivity after using derogatory language to describe certain ethnic groups and women.

Among the other new aspects of Asian Awareness, Final Events Coordinator Jane Kim '05 also noted an increase in the involvement of student clubs and groups in the month's activities, as opposed to prior years' need to rely on off-campus groups.

"The response from the Brandeis culture clubs on campus has been great," Kim said.

In addition, many of the events that have taken place this month are new to Asian Awareness at Brandeis, such as the East Coast Intercollegiate Lion Dance Showcase, featuring Brandeis' own Lion Dance troupe, which Chaung described as one of the best in the area.

Chaung added, "One thing that was particularly amazing was the fact that we have so many activities planned over such a short period of time."

According to Wan, Asian Awareness provides an opportunity to explore Asian culture and become more aware of the degree of diversity at Brandeis and in the wider community. Non-Asians as well as Asians are invited to participate in any and all activities in conjunction with Asian Awareness.

Asian Awareness offers all Brandeis students the opportunity "to explore their own identity, their own culture and their own values by learning about someone else's culture ... or their own culture, if they're Asian," Wan said.

According to Kim, who attended a workshop on "Understanding Your Cultural Values," the workshop and other Asian Awareness activities raise "issues that are there for Asian Americans but not so much spoken about. ... (The workshop) stresses that we should be comfortable with ourselves."

Opening Ceremonies Coordinator Jennifer Nelligan '05 added, "It was a good beginning to Asian Awareness month."

Nelligan also noted that the initial events of the month were posing questions that would be answered later on through the culmination of all the month's activities. Activities will ensue throughout the remainder of the month, with such notable events as tonight's Asian Task Force on Domestic Violence, and the concluding Final Event to be held on March 31.

Asian Awareness is being sponsored by the Dean of Arts and Sciences, the Intercultural Center, Student Activities and the Hewlett Pluralism Alliance, as well as the following student clubs: BAASA, Chinese Cultural Connection, Japanese Student Association, Korean Student Association, Liondance Troupe, South Asia Club, Southeast Asia Club, Students for a Free Tibet and Taiwanese American Student Association.