Day 1

Wow, with five concurrent sessions to choose from I found myself repeatedly studying my program guide and constantly reconsidering which sessions to sit in on. In the end, I was very satisfied with the choices I had made. Although I had difficulty in relating to my first session, which covered the challenges for organizations in dealing with intercultural communication issues arising at a community level, the speaker noted several issues that are relevant when dealing with diversity in larger contexts. A coherent vision between an organization and its mediators, as well as the need to dig deeper to understand the linguistic and locational needs of mediation are both areas which can be pivotal in creating successful outcomes.
The second session was a complete turnaround. Moments of quiet reflection and introspection resulted in some pretty powerful dialogue. The self-discovery session definitely lived up to its name, and was aided in the fact that several of the visiting cohort of Libyan scholars were also very enthusiastic in sharing their unique perspectives. Time betrayed us in the end and the conclusion of the session was rushed, but it seemed like everyone had gained from sharing with each other on a more personal level.
Lara Logan's 60 minutes piece was extremely poignant and her subsequent political commentary very entertaining. I appreciated her frank and thoughtful way of speaking although I really felt like I needed a little more time with my giant piece of cake.
Two semi-related sessions followed lunch, both were discussions about intercultural education. The first of the two presented a method of assessing intercultural compentency for educators, its particular emphasis on nonverbal communication, while seemingly obvious to those of us who have been exposed to various related theories, is undoubtedly huge in getting educators to become aware of their own potential areas for gaining new knowledge. Creating culturally-cohesive classrooms is no easy task for many reasons, and any progress is good progress. The second session made me quite proud to be a student in SIS. Listening to our faculty and staff list the sizeable range of international programs reaffirmed why I was so attracted in coming to this school. It's amazing the extent that everyone involved in SIS goes to in order to truly create opportunities for its students to become involved as active participants in the global context that we learn in. As someone who has considered a MA dual degree program since the beginning, it was fun to see the thoughtfulness that goes behind creating such a wide range of relevant programs.
Even a downpour couldn't deter many from the chance for good conversation over wine and cheese. It was a privilege to be able to speak with a few of the professionals who are doing such good work, and to hear their insights as to where they have come from and where they are going. Looking forward to a less wet but equally productive and busy day 2.