PAC Explores the Positive Potential of Social Media
As the title “Media as a Tool for Social Change” suggests, this year’s Public Affairs Conference (PAC), held April 6–8, urged attendees to evaluate the prevalence of media and consider ways to make positive social change through thoughtful use of technology.
“We wanted people to walk away with an awareness of how they consume media and why they choose to produce the content they do,” conference Co-director Annika Erickson (US'13, C'17) says. The board invited eight speakers with professional experience on the topic, including Shiza Shahid, Co-founder of NOW Ventures and the Malala Fund; Kevin Adler, founder and CEO of Miracle Messages; and Christa Case Bryant (C'03), Politics Editor at The Christian Science Monitor, among others. Also included in the lineup was Tanner Johnsrud (US'97), a Christian Science practitioner, who provided a spiritual perspective.
Engaging with delegates throughout the three-day conference, speakers encouraged students to view world problems as opportunities to make connections and solve issues. For example, Adler shared that, in his use of social media to connect people living on the streets with their families, he “never uses the word stranger,” adding, “I encourage you to look at your fellow man as the child their mother loves. This unconditional mother love is what each person deserves.” Many delegates were also inspired and moved by Shahid’s accounts of promoting girls’ education in Pakistan.
The oldest student-run conference in the nation, PAC celebrated its 68th year in April. Students take full responsibility for the conference—choosing a topic, securing speakers, managing the budget, developing marketing strategies, and coordinating logistics. The conference aims to bring the extended community together and to encourage attendees in active citizenship.
“This year's PAC taught us that the greatest gift we have to offer is one that can never be depleted: love,” Annika says. “We have the ability to connect with the people around us and can add a touch of humanity to the situations that most need it.”
Watch a short video clip to learn more about PAC.