Each year, Girls Scouts and Guides from 146 countries across the world celebrate World Thinking Day, to honor the cultures of its diverse members. World Thinking Day is part of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts (WAGGGS) Global Action theme, focused on improving the lives in the world’s poorest communities.

Girl Scout Troop 20253 of Glenview hosted multiple troops at its World Thinking Day celebrations on April 15, 2018 at the Glenview Ismaili Jamatkhana. As first-time participant Alhena Tajuddin of Troop 50108 explained, “at World Thinking Day, all the different groups choose a country to represent and then everybody else gets to learn a lot about that country.”

At this year’s celebrations, Girl Scouts honored the cultures of Greece, Switzerland, France, Ireland, Mexico, Morocco, Kenya, Japan, China, India and Pakistan, displaying their new-found knowledge through interactive booths, dance performances and food. Girl Scout troop participants included Daisy, Brownie, Junior, Cadette, Senior and Ambassador troops.

Celestine Decroos of Troop 40320 shared, “Thinking Day, to me, is about meeting all the different troops and seeing what they have learned from all the research they did on their country and seeing how everyone interacts with each other. And the best part is just getting to know everybody.”

Other Girl Scouts and parents alike also enjoyed learning from and celebrating with Girl Scouts from different troops, including Arij Virani of Troop 20253, who explained, “it’s really hard to get together with all the other troops because we’re always so busy with our separate activities, so it’s nice to see [us] all come together.”

With another successful World Thinking Day in the books, Girl Scouts, their families and their leaders are already eagerly awaiting the next opportunity to unite and honor diversity with their fellow members.