Corruption +++ transparency +++ Dubai +++ worker rights +++ Absolutely Intercultural 217 +++

Dubai
Reflections of Dubai

Did you know that Denmark regularly comes in at number 1 for global surveys of transparency and lack of corruption? Well I’m going to spoil all this by bringing you a show featuring only my family so there’s some nepotism right there! In this show we’re going to be talking about the dark side of visiting other cultures. We’ll start with my daughter, Mia, who has been doing a grand tour of the world. We are going to be a bit coy about naming the country she is talking about for reasons which will become clear later. But in this particular country she discovered how political corruption works. So what happens at election time?

And we’ll also be hearing from my brother, Greg, who has been on assignment in Dubai, about how abrupt some of the boundaries can be between one code of behaviour and another

Continue reading “Corruption +++ transparency +++ Dubai +++ worker rights +++ Absolutely Intercultural 217 +++”

SIETAR +++ Cultural Mentor +++ Sustainability +++ Absolutely Intercultural 215

Farah, Anne and Nawal at SIETAR Dublin
Farah, Anne and Nawal at SIETAR Dublin

At the end of May I attended the SIETAR congress in Dublin, Ireland, which was all about cultural dexterity for turbulent times. Welcome to show 215 of Absolutely Intercultural which today features three of the speakers from the Congress. Plus I was there to talk about the culture of sustainability
Continue reading “SIETAR +++ Cultural Mentor +++ Sustainability +++ Absolutely Intercultural 215”

India +++ Russia +++ ProfESus +++ IFHE +++ Absolutely Intercultural 212 +++

In show 212 we’ll be taking you to Russia and India as well as hearing about the global importance of the family unit.

How do foreigners react to India? According to Line Mark Rugholt, a Danish intercultural consultant, it can vary widely.

And what is the smallest social unit? Anne von Laufenberg Beermann lets us in on that.

And we will make another trip to Russia which supposedly dropped socialism in 1990 but Diana from Russia has a theory about why there are still so many socialist benefits in the country.
Continue reading “India +++ Russia +++ ProfESus +++ IFHE +++ Absolutely Intercultural 212 +++”

Russia +++ sanctions +++ Diversophy +++ N Korea +++ Absolutely Intercultural 211 +++

Binoculars
Not allowed in North Korea

Where in the world can you get one hectare of land for free and retire 5 years earlier than the rest of your countrymen?
What would it be like to do scientific fieldwork in North Korea?
Welcome to Show 211 of Absolutely Intercultural, the podcast about all things intercultural. My name’s Anne Fox and this show is coming to you from Denmark.
Continue reading “Russia +++ sanctions +++ Diversophy +++ N Korea +++ Absolutely Intercultural 211 +++”

Brexit +++ EU referendum +++ citizenship test +++ Absolutely Intercultural 208 +++

brexit-referendum-uk-1468255193y2pIn this show we will be talking about the UK referendum to leave the EU and some of the consequences it has had.

Many of the people that the referendum result would affect most did not have a vote and we talked to two of those. Once the result was announced there were reports about immigrants being abused and attacked. This made Ania, a Pole living in Scotland, a bit more careful when phoning home. And what about Britons who have moved to other EU countries. Will their status be safe? Gwen is a Briton who has lived her whole life in Denmark. Two years ago Denmark changed its law to allow dual nationality so Gwen decided she would like a Danish passport alongside her British passport.
Continue reading “Brexit +++ EU referendum +++ citizenship test +++ Absolutely Intercultural 208 +++”

Palestine +++ EAST Project +++ Glasgow +++ Gaza +++ refugees in Denmark +++ Absolutely Intercultural 207 +++


light-bulb-1407610_1280The theme of this show is Palestine from two very different perspectives. We’ll be talking about the challenges faced by a stateless Palestinian, Nizar, who, while already a refugee in Syria, was forced to flee the war and ended up once again as a refugee in Denmark. We’ll also be hearing about a joint project called EAST which involved the University of Glasgow in Scotland and the University of Gaza in Palestine.
Continue reading “Palestine +++ EAST Project +++ Glasgow +++ Gaza +++ refugees in Denmark +++ Absolutely Intercultural 207 +++”

Refugee journey +++ Global Educator +++ UK referendum on EU +++ Julie Lindsay +++ Absolutely Intercultural 202 +++

Radwan Abdullah
Radwan Abdullah, former Social Studies teacher from Syria

If you have ever wondered about the journeys of those thousands of refugees from Syria then you will want to hear Radwan Abdullah’s story of how he got to Denmark with his cousin and disabled daughter. We will also be hearing from Julie Lindsay about her new book on how to become a Global Educator.

What else? Well we’ve been nominated in the Podcast Awards and are waiting to hear if we will get in the final selection on May 22nd. If we do, we will let you know and ask for your vote. So keep an eye on our Facebook page and here on our webiste.

And you may have noticed that there is a referendum coming up in the UK on whether or not to stay in the EU. Continue reading “Refugee journey +++ Global Educator +++ UK referendum on EU +++ Julie Lindsay +++ Absolutely Intercultural 202 +++”

10 years! +++ Lithuania +++ Lebanon +++ Absolutely Intercultural 200 +++

 


We stacandles-588658_1280rted in 2006 exactly ten years ago. We started in March 2006 and this… is our 200th show.
Along the way we have collected a few awards such as the Edublog award for best educational podcast in 2006 and the European Podcast Award for Denmark in the non-profit category in 2010.

So how to celebrate?

We thought it might be fun to get in touch with some of the people from our first year.

Continue reading “10 years! +++ Lithuania +++ Lebanon +++ Absolutely Intercultural 200 +++”

Absolutely Intercultural 199 +++ Culture +++ Software of the Mind +++ Updates +++

blog-picture-software Absolutely Intercultural Show 199

Have you ever tried to explain something, and in the middle of it, you figured out that the best option would probably be to compare it to something else?

Hofstede did the same thing with culture and software, showing their similarities in his book “Cultures and Organizations – Software of the Mind“.

The metaphor of culture as the software of the mind works really well when we compare them in terms of installing, uninstalling and updating cultural software, for example.

In this episode, we listen to two interviews about Hofstede’s idea, on how you can easily see his theory present in your daily lives.

Continue reading “Absolutely Intercultural 199 +++ Culture +++ Software of the Mind +++ Updates +++”

neighbours +++ Social Learning +++ GROOC +++ McGill University +++ Absolutely Intercultural 198 +++

neighboursSo it is time for those New year resolutions which we don’t tend to stick to. Maybe we have too many? Maybe we don’t share them with anyone so that makes them easier to break? In this show I am going to be exploring just one idea. Maybe, just maybe, if we stick to one idea then we have a better chance of succeeding. And that one idea is about being a good neighbour. How about it? Worth a try?

Continue reading “neighbours +++ Social Learning +++ GROOC +++ McGill University +++ Absolutely Intercultural 198 +++”