This has been a big week at UVM. Not only did the Vice President of the United States step foot on-campus, but so did several big-name Vermont politicians, including the one and only Senator Bernie Sanders.

Vice President Joe Biden was a part of a roundtable discussion Friday alongside Sen. Patrick Leahy that centered on the “Cancer Moonshot Initiative.”

This initiative aims to ultimately defeat cancer by increasing innovation for prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

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Although the event was ticketed and by invitation only, there were several students present, including some from RallyThon, SGA and student organization leaders.

The mood in the room was most certainly vibrant; and the excitement and anticipation to share a space with the vice president was undeniable.

Just a couple of days later, Sanders visited campus to campaign for several Democratic candidates on Vermont’s local ballot, including candidates for governor and lieutenant governor – Sue Minter and David Zuckerman, respectively.

This event was still ticketed, but was open to the public, and people were waiting in line hours to enter before the event was scheduled to begin. The energy in the room was tremendous as people cheered on the candidates.

We’re extremely lucky to attend a University where we are given these opportunities, and are also fortunate to be a part of a community which is, in general, more politically active and socially aware than other college campuses.

The Cynic urges you to take advantage of opportunities like these, and remain an active and vocal part of the political process, whatever that may mean to you.