Mai Ung, if asked, would characterize herself as a pretty active and busy person. And this summer, she certainly proved it to be true.

“I was taking class and working another job while pursuing a non-profit internship with the Iowa Council for International Understanding,” Ung said.

But this was no ordinary internship. The entire job was actually devoted to putting together one festival — “Night of the Asian Festival,” an annual fundraising event sponsored by the ICIU in cooperation with Downtown Partnership Inc.

“I am the contact liaison between the community groups that are volunteering to help put this together,” Ung said. “And I work with the coordinator, Edie Hein, to bring all of this together.”

Each year the ICIU puts together a “Night of the Festival” that brings attention to a particular region of the world through a dinner and festive display of elegant food, music, dancing and art work.

This year, the focus of the evening will be on Asia and the Pacific Islands.

“The purpose of having this festival is to educate people about our different cultures, as well as making it fun for everyone to enjoy,” Ung explained. “We hope to enhance people’s awareness of cultures they have never seen or heard much about before.”

This year’s festival will feature East Indian, Hmong and Laotian dancers performing dances from many different cultures, Ung said.

As part of her job, Ung was given the opportunity to put together one of the performances on her own. “There is also a fashion show in it that I coordinated myself,” she said. “Tiffany O’Donnell from Channel 13 news will be the emcee for it.”

Ung said past experience has led her to be very optimistic about the event. “We are expecting over 1,000 people to attend the festival,” she said.

Ung has a positive outlook on her internship as well. “I’ve always been interested in learning about different cultures and understanding them,” she said. “I also have a minor in international studies, so I thought that working on something like this would be extremely beneficial.”

Ung said her job has given her the opportunity to work with community leaders and volunteers and enhance her awareness of different cultures.

“Night of the Festival” will begin at 6 p.m. on Saturday in the Capital Square Lobby in Des Moines.

It will commence with a dinner, featuring authentic Asian cuisine, for $65 per person. An outdoor gala will follow the dinner, beginning at 8 p.m. in the Principal Plaza.

This part of the evening is designed for families and the general public. The ticket price is $5. Entertainment will feature musicians, dancers and a variety of performers.