Tag: RheinAhrCampus

Intercultural Stereotypes +++ Nationality Stereotypes +++ Absolutely Intercultural 268 +++

Hello and welcome to show 268 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Sometimes we are the objects of other people’s stereotypes and sometimes, we are, in fact, the people who actively use overgeneralizations to simplify our social lives. When we use stereotypes, we instinctively categorize others using shared beliefs about a certain target group. But do cultural stereotypes really always make our lives easier, or do they sometimes ruin relationships and harm the relationship between two different cultures? Our mothers told us, not to use stereotypes, but then, some people tell us that stereotypes may be a great trigger for small talk ?Are cultural stereotypes the bridge that connects two cultures, or are they the reason why this bridge between two different cultures is never built?

In our show, three students tell us about concrete situations, where they were the objects of stereotyping and how those stereotypes affected their personal lives. 

absolutely Christian

In our first category, “absolutely Christian”, Berla, a student from Iraq tells us about being stereotyped as a Muslim by her fellow classmates before they had even seen her in her new school in Germany. They were in for a surprise.

absolutely secular

In our second category, “absolutely secular”, Erta tells us how a friendly bus driver in her university town wished her Eid Mubarak just because he knew that she is Albanian. In his mind all Albanians are Muslims.

absolutely white 

Finally, in our last category, “absolutely white”, Ali from Yemen remembers a story where a girl he met in a club was a little surprised by his skin color.

What about you? Have you been the object of a stereotype? How did you react? Do you try to use these situations to connect to others or do you just ignore them and move on?

Please write a comment or mail us, we could do a follow-up interview with you in one of our next shows. We could go deeper into other categories such as Heterostereotypes which we have about the others and Autostereotypes which we have about our own cultural group. On our web page, www.absolutely-intercultural.com, you can get more information about this show and previous episodes and you can leave comments. And if you enjoyed the show, please like us on Facebook too. 

By the way, did you know we are also on iTunes or Apple Podcasts? You can subscribe to us there for free and give us a rating and a comment. 

Our next show will be coming to you on 3 December.

Until then – try to watch out for stereotypes – and

Bleiben Sie absolutinterkulturell! 

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta

Assistant Editors:  Natalia Obikhod,  Elene Mikeladze

 

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Cultural expectations+ Helpful expectations +++ Parental expectations +++ Community expectations+++ Absolutely Intercultural 267 +++

Hello and welcome to show 267 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will talk about “cultural expectations”. Whether we like it or not – we are all trying to meet cultural expectations in our daily lives. Some of us may struggle with those preconceived ideas. Others insist we conform to cultural expectations. Back at school, for example, we may have noticed that others expected us to conform to male or female patterns of behaviour.

Can the expectations placed upon us help us be succeed in this complex worldand should we be grateful for cultural guidance on our path to success? Or will these well-meant pieces of “you should be” and “you should feel” advice become a very heavy burden and limit our opportunities?

In this show we are going to listen to the stories of Leo, Adika and Pravesh, all threeconfronted with everyday cultural expectations in very different places, at home, at school or even in the street by a random person.

absolutely shameful

In our first category, “absolutely shameful”, Leo tells us that because of the gender expectations of the other school kids, he had to stop playing with his favourite toywhich his parents had given him for his birthday,  – it happened to be a baby doll.

absolutely small

In our second category, „absolutely small”, Adika, an exchange student from Azerbaijan, describes how a random stranger  approached her to help with her heavy bags outside the supermarket.

absolutely reversed

Finally, in our last category, “absolutely reversed”, Pravesh, from Pondicherry University in the South of India, explains that in Indian families usually the sons are expected to bring in money for the family. For him -this is different. In his family, the financial help actually comes from his successful sister.

What about you? Did you ever have to change your behaviour or your plans because of the cultural expectations that other people had for you?

Our next show will be coming to you on the 5th of November.

Until then – stay as diverse as you are – and

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell! 

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Esjona Musta 

Assistant Editors:   Alina Vor, Natalia Obikhod, Elene Mikeladze

 

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Erasmus Experience +++ International Friends +++ Life In A Cultural Exchange +++ Absolutely Intercultural 264 +++

Hello and welcome to show 264 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will listen to our chief editor Giorgi Sulaberidze from Georgia, Eastern Europe about his cultural experiences during his exchange semester in Germany.

How does the exchange program influence international students’ lives? What are the cultural challenges? Which aspects of life in a foreign country turn out easier than expected? How do our exchange students spend their free time during their stay abroad and what cultural insights do they gain from each other?

absolutely independent

In our first category, “absolutely independent”, Giorgi asked his international friends about things they did for the first time in their new cultural environment.

absolutely connected

In our second category “absolutely connected”, Giorgi tells us how the group of international students is spending their free time together and how they stay connected through sports and games.

absolutely standing

Finally, in our category, “absolutely standing”, Giorgi talks about cultural exchanges amongst the international students. His friend Rabee taught him that the most traditional Jordanian dish, Mansaf is eaten with your right hand while standing around the table.

Our next show will be coming to you on the 6th of August.

Until then, 

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell! 

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Giorgi Sulaberidze

Assistant Editors: Alina Vor, Natalia Obikhod, Natia Nikvashvili, Esjona Musta.

 

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Green Culture +++ Cultural Clashes +++ Green Challenge +++ Absolutely Intercultural 263 +++

Hello and welcome to show 263 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will talk about green culture. We have all heard about being vegan, consuming less energy, using paper-based packaging, reducing co2 emissions and driving sustainable vehicles. But is this really a culture, or just a trend brought by the 21st century? How does it affect our lifestyle? Is it always good to be green or it also has some disadvantages? Is it easy to adapt to green culture?

In this episode our guests attempted to take part in the green challenge – the experiment where everyone spent 4 days adapting to the green lifestyle: cutting meat, plastic and streaming out from their daily routine.

In our show, three students tell us a concrete situation, where they were the objects of stereotyping and how those stereotypes affected their personal lives. 

absolutely challenging

In our first category, “absolutely challenging”, Jan Lübke talks about the issues and challenges of being green in different cultures.

absolutely confronting

In our second category “absolutely confronting”, Rabee Jarrar from Jordan, tells us how can green culture clash with his own traditions and religion:

absolutely controversial

Finally, in our category “absolutely controversial” we set down with 6 participants of our green challenge which took place during the weekends for 4 days. We asked Jan, Ariana, Jency, Nikos, Lara and Moritz to try and adapt to the green culture, and after 4 days tell us what was the most difficult challenge they faced during this period.

What are your thoughts about this? Are you a green person or you are trying your best to contribute? Let us know in the comments.

Our next show will be coming to you on the 2nd of July.

Until then, 

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell! 

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Giorgi Sulaberidze

Assistant Editors: Alina Vor, Natalia Obikhod, Natia Nikvashvili, Esjona Musta.

 

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Intercultural Stereotypes +++ Gender, Age and Nationality +++ Absolutely Intercultural 262 +++

Hello and welcome to show 262 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we will talk about cultural stereotypes. We have all experienced situations where people tried to stereotype us, probably without even being aware of it. But what is it that makes a stereotype different from a personal opinion? Are stereotypes always harmful to the culture that is stereotyped or do they help cultures to stick together?

In our show, three students tell us a concrete situation, where they were the objects of stereotyping and how those stereotypes affected their personal lives. 

absolutely blonde

In our first category, “absolutely blonde”, Mona tells us about being stereotyped as a woman by a heating technician who assumed that she, as a young woman, would be “dumb and silly” and have no knowledge of the mechanics of the heater in her apartment.

absolutely unsuitable

In our second category, Lars tells us how he got stereotyped as “absolutely unsuitable” by an elderly gentleman in his seventies, simply because of his outer appearance.

absolutely African

Finally, in our category, “absolutely African”, Andreas remembers a story where even his own friends unintentionally stereotyped him.

Listen to it and share with us one stereotype you have heard recently!

Our next show will be coming to you on 4th June. 

Until then, 

Bleiben Sie absolut interkulturell! 

The host of this show is: Dr. Laurent Borgmann

Chief Editor: Giorgi Sulaberidze

Assistant Editors: Alina Vor, Natalia Obikhod, Natia Nikvashvili, Esjona Musta.

 

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Humour in Different Cultures +++ April Fools’ +++ Absolutely Intercultural 261 +++

Hello and welcome to show 261 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we talk about different cultures of Humour. It is obvious that no matter where we are in the world, we, humans, smile, laugh, joke, make and have fun. But, what exactly makes us laugh? It is hard to imagine that there is a universal formula of humour, and how well does humour travel?

In our show today our interviewees from Australia, the Czech Republic and Germany report about humour in their own cultures and share their personal experiences exclusively with you, the listeners.

Continue reading “Humour in Different Cultures +++ April Fools’ +++ Absolutely Intercultural 261 +++”

Motivation Culture +++ Workplace +++ Absolutely Intercultural 260 +++

Hello and welcome to show 260 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today we talk about different cultures of motivation. Can it be true that in our globalized world we still stick to our culturally determined motivation strategies? Our interviewees report about motivation strategies in their own national cultures. What is the best method to keep your employees from Albania, Georgia and Azerbaijan productive? Why do we seem to lose our motivation over time and how can we refresh it? Well, in today’s episode we interview students from three different countries about effective motivation techniques in their own cultures.

Continue reading “Motivation Culture +++ Workplace +++ Absolutely Intercultural 260 +++”

Fake News +++ Social Media Culture +++ Absolutely Intercultural 259 +++

Hello and welcome to show 259 of our podcast “Absolutely Intercultural”. Today’s show is about the culture of “fake news”. Is this really a new phenomenon? Did you grow up believing in Father Christmas or were you the critically thinking 5-year-old who pointed out that the house did not even have a chimney? Well, in today’s episode, we interview students from three different cultures about their experiences of fake news and how they personally define it and live with fake news.

Continue reading “Fake News +++ Social Media Culture +++ Absolutely Intercultural 259 +++”

Gender Stereotypes +++ Gender Roles +++ Keeping Tradition +++ Absolutely Intercultural 257 +++

Hello and welcome to show 257 of Absolutely Intercultural, Gender Roles, coming to you from beautiful Remagen in Germany. We are talking about what life is like as man or woman in different countries. Have you ever been the victim of inequality because of your gender? If you had a wish – what would you change? Well, in today’s episode, we interview students from three different countries about gender roles in their cultures and how those may differ from the views they are confronted within Germany. Continue reading “Gender Stereotypes +++ Gender Roles +++ Keeping Tradition +++ Absolutely Intercultural 257 +++”

Young vs Old +++ Learning Cultures and Age +++ Lifelong Learning +++ Absolutely Intercultural 255 +++

Luis from Portugal thinks age makes learning easier

Hello and welcome to show 255 of Absolutely Intercultural. Today’s show is about two different cultures, and they have nothing to do with nationality or geography. We are talking about the culture of young people and old people – and we will focus on learning cultures. Have you ever wondered whether YOU will carry on learning all your life or whether you will stop at some point? Or perhaps there is no age limit to learning? Do you believe in lifelong learning? We interview young and old learners to find out about their learning habits. Our first guest is Dr. Beatrice Blüggel from Germany, who is the director of a large adult education institution. Our  second guest, Luis Iglesias, from Portugal is a 29-year-old master student who is currently socializing with younger students during his semester abroad.

Continue reading “Young vs Old +++ Learning Cultures and Age +++ Lifelong Learning +++ Absolutely Intercultural 255 +++”