Urbana 2000 Convention

During the Christian International Students and Scholars Conference, held from January 1-4, 2001, InterVarsity hosted a special consultation for leaders from the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES). Nearly fifty leaders from around the world attended, including several General Secretaries of national IFES movements.

The consultation focused on understanding student culture worldwide and developing strategies for ministering to students within this culture. InterVarsity has been studying the emerging student culture since the mid-1990s through our Emerging Culture Project. Jimmy Long, director of the project, led discussion about how postmodernism has changed student culture and the ways that students respond to the gospel.

IFES leaders met to analyze the effects of postmodernism on students in their countries and concluded that the culture of students around the world is in transition. IFES students, like American students, place a greater value on community than the previous generation, base their decisions on personal preferences over truth and no longer believe in societal progress. Participants then brainstormed how to reach the students of this emerging culture with the truth and hope of the gospel.

The consultation was valued by all who attended, and IFES leaders plan to continue to exchange ideas. Jimmy Long and InterVarsity were pleased to sponsor the event, share InterVarsity's findings about the effects of postmodernism on evangelizing North American students, and provide a forum for dialogue about the global nature of the emerging culture.

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