Peace Pole Stands in Front of Ithaca College’s Muller Chapel, Ithaca, New York, USA.

April 14, 2026

On Tuesday, April 14, Ithaca College created a space for unity and peace amid ongoing uncertainty. Three groups on the Ithaca College campus partnered up to create an event in Muller Chapel, titled “Everyone Belongs: Honoring True Belonging in a Fractured World,” promoting inclusion and interconnection. The Offices of Diversity Equity and Inclusion, Religious and Spiritual Life, and Counseling and Psychological Services teamed up to create this event.

Guest speaker Sebene Selassie, a meditation teacher originally from Ethiopia who now lives in Brooklyn, led the discussion. She spoke about topics such as liberation, connection to ancestors, guarding senses from things like negative news consumption and a connection to nature, among others.

The greater goal of interconnection and to introduce the paradox of “we are not separate and we are not the same,” said Selassie. This is known as the paradox of the two truths in Buddhism.

In the discussion, Selassie used the South African concept, “Ubuntu,” meaning “I am because we are.” She discussed the importance of acknowledging interconnection. “Whoever you encounter is a connection whether you’re related to them or not,” said Selassie, while discussing the importance of the term and how it relates to her theme of interconnection.

While reflecting on the theme that “we are not separate and we are not the same,” Rob Winsh, an IC student mentioned that “it’s sort of hard to recognize that idea that we aren’t fully the same.” Winsh continued saying that maybe we could change the mind of political figures and people who are inciting violence by sharing this philosophy with them.

Meditations based in Buddhist teaching

“It was interesting to do a meditation with sound and trying to listen to the bell … doing fast meditations between a conversation was a helpful tool to bring people back into what you’re talking about,” Winsh said.