Ariela Suster, Sequence founder, to headline International Education Week

Madison, WI—Sequence Founder and Creative Director Ariela Suster will discuss how she is disrupting the cycle of violence plaguing at-risk youth in El Salvador through her fashion and jewelry brand. The lecture will take place at 5:30 p.m. on Mon., Nov. 13, at the Gordon Dining and Event Center, as part of the events planned to celebrate International Education Week (IEW).

Ariela Suster
Ariela Suster, founder of Sequence, will deliver the keynote speech for International Education Week.

Growing up during the Salvadoran Civil War, Ariela Suster and her family experienced violence firsthand.  Having seen the suffering created through violence plaguing El Salvador, Suster founded Sequence to break the cycle of violence for at-risk youth through education and employment opportunities. Today, Sequence employs at-risk youth from her native El Salvador, introducing them to the highly creative world of fashion and helping them to build artisanal and entrepreneurial skills.

Suster’s lecture, “From Mission to Market: A Future for Salvadoran Youth through Entrepreneurship, Education and Empowerment,” will highlight Suster’s personal mission to create a vehicle for social change and how education can pave the way toward a brighter future for El Salvador. Suster will discuss her time in El Salvador as well as her role with some of the world’s top fashion publications, including Instyle, Lucky and Harper’s Bazaar. Suster’s work has been widely recognized, and has garnered honors such as the 2017 Vital Voices Global Leadership Award for Economic Empowerment.

The IEW Keynote Lecture is one of many events planned in observance of International Education Week, a joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education. From November 13–19, campus will celebrate the benefits of cultural and international exchange on and off campus through lectures, programs, fairs and other activities.International Education Week poster

Highlights of the week include a Global Engagement Fair on Nov. 13 before Suster’s keynote lecture, the Peace Corps Story Slam on Nov. 15, a lecture on the role of African-Americans in 20th Century Denmark on Nov. 16 and IEW Alumni Career Mentoring on Nov. 16. New this year is an international film series that features films from around the world, with some even written, produced by or featuring UW alumni, staff, faculty and students. Films will be showing at venues across campus and in the community Nov. 14–19. Most events are free and open to the public.

In addition, partners have planned lectures, lunches, networking events and parties on a wide variety of interests throughout the week. View a full schedule of events available to the campus community and the public at iew.international.wisc.edu.

IEW is organized by UW–Madison’s International Division in collaboration with colleges, schools, departments and units across campus as well as community organizations. View the full list of sponsors at iew.international.wisc.edu.

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