By Karintha Lowe

This Halloween be prepared to be terrified by…ghosts of global disparity? On October 31, Macalester Development Group (MDG) will host a themed haunted house to raise awareness about global development. The event, called “MDG Haunted Life: 7 Minutes of Fear” will be from 7-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Halloween day in the IGC. The house will feature ghosts and scenes designed to represent different issues in the developing world, such as lack of clean water and education in many developing countries. “When we talk about development, it can be so difficult and theoretical,” said Lucia Callizo ’13, board member of MDG and event co-coordinator. “We just wanted to take a step back from that, to have an opportunity to connect personally to the issues.” Macalester Development Group hopes to raise awareness of development issues outside of the academic context and to create a forum for personal connections. “We want to have a fun event that everyone can participate in and also learn from,” said MDG board member and event co-coordinator Natalie Westberg ’15. “Coming into the house, you’ll meet different ghosts that relate to development topics, and at the end there will be a moment of reflection,” Callizo said. While the majority of the time spent in the haunted house will be dedicated to fun and frights, the addition of a moment of reflection was a conscious decision by the board to add more weight to the event. “The house is going to be really fun, but we also want to make it clear that we take these issues very seriously,” Westberg said. “There will be blood and cobwebs, but also time to think about issues as well.” “Development issues are a lot to chew and to digest, and that can scare people, so we’re trying to educate people about global disparity and raise awareness about our own opportunities and advantages that we take for granted in a new and fun way,” Callizo said. “It will be a haunted house, but with an international development undertone,” Westberg said. “We want to invite students to reflect on development but in a different environment, out of the academic context, and to have fun!” Callizo said. The MDG Board hopes to make the haunted house an annual event for their group. The club is also currently looking for volunteers to either help decorate the house or act as ghosts. If interested, email the Macalester Development Group at [email protected]. refresh –>