College students hear the phrase “the real world” a lot.

Parents and professors love to use it to put the college experience into perspective, as in “Going to class prepares you for the real world.”

And while getting a high GPA and having a lot of relevant extracurricular activities will ease the transition from the hermetically sealed bubble that is college, to the cold, stark reality of the world outside—preparing for the real world can’t be done exclusively in a classroom. It requires actually opening your heart and mind to the realities of modern society including those we’d rather pretend didn’t exist.

This week Students Against Hunger and Homelessness aim to do just that by raising awareness of issues that affect millions around the world.

But to see hunger and homelessness one doesn’t have to travel very far. In fact, just blocks from Eastern Michigan University lies “the real world,” where getting a 4.0 has been replaced with finding a hot meal and shelter for the evening.

As part of Volunteers Incorporating Service Into Our Neighborhoods, SAHAH is a group of EMU students dedicated to making a difference in the Ypsilanti area.

“We can’t really end hunger [and homelessness] as students,” said Phoebe Conybeare, a Student Coordinator at SAHAH. “But we can definitely bring awareness of it, especially in Ypsilanti because there is so much, unfortunately.

“A lot of people have stereotypes about the people outside of campus in Ypsilanti. I think that Ypsi is so diverse and it could be such a great community. And if students get involved in making the community a better place people would appreciate it more; not just the people on campus, but the people in the community, too.

“I just think it’s important that students get out of their bubbles and try to make a difference, even if it’s on a local scale. Some people want to do it on a bigger scale, but there’s definitely things you can do to change the world, even a little bit here at home.”

Throughout the year the group participates in food drives, volunteers at local shelters and food pantries and works with other organizations in the area to improve the quality of life for the hungry and homeless in our backyards.

Some of the groups SAHAH frequently collaborates with are the S.O.S. Community Center, Emmanuel Lutheran Church’s Hunger Coalition, the Holy Trinity student parish and the Ann Arbor food gatherers.

All this week the group has been busy with many different events, which will culminate in a discussion tonight from 6:30-8:30 in Student Center Ballroom B. The event is called “Understanding Hunger and Homelessness” and is a workshop meant to help EMU students get a new perspective on the real issues facing people in this area.

“We have a nutritionist from the university coming to talk about hunger and to talk about eating right and what college students can eat that’s inexpensive but will also keep them healthy,” Conybeare said. “Because, you know, most of us [eat] Easy Mac and Ramen, that’s the easiest thing to do but it’s not necessarily good for you in the long-run, at all.”

In addition to this discussion the event will include an exercise where students will role play different college students who come from varying backgrounds in order to understand all students have different experiences and perspectives.

This week the group is also co-sponsoring a Can Art competition, in connection with the AMPlifying the Arts festival being put on by AMP, which combines artistic expression with community involvement. In the competition various student groups on campus use donated canned goods to build giant statues.

“Washtenaw County is kind of a barren food source,” Conybeare said. “There’s not a whole lot of food, especially in the pantries. I know that recently food gatherers are way low on food, but hopefully with the can drive we’re doing we can bring that back up. We already have about 6,000 cans on campus circulating through the can art competition.”

At the end of the competition all of the canned food will be donated to the Ann Arbor Food Gatherers and the EMU Children’s Institute, which lost funding from the state to cover food expenses

Other groups on campus participating in the Can Art competition include the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization and the Intermedia Gallery Group.

“We kind of went into it not really knowing what to do,” said Tim Wolak, a SAHAH student coordinator in charge of the group’s entry in the Can Art competition. “None of us had really done it before. So we just immersed ourselves in it and started building. We had to take it down once and stabilize it a little bit, but as we went on we got the hang of it.”

Besides students involved in SAHAH, members of the Arm of Honor fraternity helped build the group’s can sculpture. SAHAH’s sculpture alone includes approximately 2,800 cans.

After Hunger and Homelessness Week ends there are still plenty of opportunities to get involved. SAHAH participates in events around the community throughout the year, and have their big annual event, the Hunger Banquet, in the spring.

For more information stop by the VISION office or visit http://www.emich.edu/vision.