• Cultural Calendar
Celebrating Death as a Part of Life on Día de los Muertos

Widely observed by the Mexican people, as well as those of Mexican heritage, Día de los Muertos, or “Day of the Dead,” both acknowledges the relationship between life and death and also uniquely celebrates that celebration with joy.

On El Día de Los Muertos, those who are gone are still with us in spirit and memory. It is celebrated on November 1–2, when the spirits of the dead are believed to return in order to spend time with their relatives, and the family welcomes them with altars, joyful gatherings, and more. The altars and celebrations are frequently decorated with marigolds and candles, as well as skulls or “calaveras,” which can be made of a variety of materials — as well as sugar! It is popular at many Día de Los Muertos parties to include edible skulls made of sugar, cookies or cakes, decorated with vibrant colored icing and sugared flowers.

El Día de Los Muertos is the rare holiday in which death is celebrated as a vital part of life, and it is a unique opportunity to celebrate both those who are gone and the living who remember them. It is a powerful observation of the importance of death in the ongoing cycle of life.

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National School Lunch Week Celebrates the Difference a Simple Lunch Can Make

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) serves nearly 30 million children every school day, providing the essential basic nutrition that contributes to student success and teacher support. President John F. Kennedy created National School Lunch Week (NSLW) in 1962 to promote the importance of a healthy school lunch in a child’s life, as well as the impact a simple school lunch can have both inside and outside the classroom.

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September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month

September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, offering an ideal opportunity to speak out and raise awareness on this vital topic — an awareness that is urgently required, with suicide the tenth leading cause of death among adults in the U.S. — and the second leading cause of death among children and young people aged 10–24. Unfortunately, these rates are increasing, and those who are young, LGBTQ, or BIPOC are especially vulnerable. LGBTQ youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide, while transgender adults, meanwhile, are almost 12 times more likely than the general population to attempt suicide.

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Memorializing the Horrors of the Transatlantic Slave Trade, on Slavery Remembrance Day

Created by UNESCO to memorialize the horrors of the transatlantic slave trade, Slavery Remembrance Day, also known as International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition, is observed on August 23 worldwide. Upon this day, it's important that we remember that this observance is not only a reminder of the horrors of slavery as we honor its victims—it's also about our dedication across the globe to ensure that slavery, and the racism that caused it, is abolished once and for all.

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Promoting Indigenous Rights on the International Day of the World's Indigenous People

Commemorating the historic meeting of the first United Nations Working Group on Indigenous Populations in 1982, International Day of the World’s Indigenous People (August 9) provides us with the chance to promote the rights of Indigenous People worldwide, while also amplifying their voices, cultures, and accomplishments. In these days of increased concern over climate change, the knowledge and commitment of many indigenous peoples to sustainability and biodiversity may in fact prove crucial to protecting the earth for future generations.

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Looking to the Stars on Women Astronomers Day

Far too often, the history books seem to focus on the men who made the impacts, the men who made the achievements—and then men who looked to the stars. Yet throughout history, the eyes of women have focused on the stars as intensively as men, and to them belong many great achievements and discoveries as they played essential roles in a variety of scientific and astronomical breakthroughs.

Which is why, every August 1, we celebrate Women Astronomers Day.

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