One of many lessons I will take from the Germans- Say what you mean and mean what you say. I was very skeptical about coming on this trip. Excited, but skeptical nonetheless. I enjoyed our class meetings (even the Saturday mornings), but I wasn’t sure that our group would vibe once our travels began. Thankfully,
Our site visits to various organizations yesterday was the first time I encountered and endured a language barrier. Of course I have experienced situations where one’s native or best spoken language is different than mine, but yesterday was the first time it was ever genuinely explained to me and openly discussed. The large, non-profit organization
On Tuesday, July 23, a group of INEMA students and another University of Richmond student and I went to visit the VIJ association. The VIJ association is a place that helps immigrants and refugees who come to Stuttgart integrate into society in many different ways. The INEMA tour guides acted very differently than a student
Riding through the French countryside (I looked for any reason to say that) I can’t help but think about parallels to American “farm country”. I am wondering if France experiences similar economic conditions in the agricultural industry as the US, despite noticing clear differences in the produce in both countries. In relation to my “Now,
Before heading to Stuttgart, Germany I flew into Frankfurt, Germany where I spent four days exploring the city. This was my first time in Germany and I was pleasantly surprised with how friendly everyone was towards Americans and how many people spoke English or at least made an effort to. My previous experience in Europe
While on the plane, I’ve been reading The Far Away Brothers by Lauren Markham. Even though I’m not even halfway done with it yet, it presents a view of immigration, and its impact on children particularly, in an unobstructed way. I’ve really enjoyed the book so far and would recommend it to each of you taking
With LGBTQ being a prominent social change in the last 10 years or so, leadership and management styles have had to rapidly change and adjust their ways to accommodate different lifestyles and demands. While LGBTQ inclusion benefits are not necessarily new to United States companies, many are still figuring out the ropes and how to
After a day and a half in Paris, knowing how to successfully navigate to the metro, and butcher about 3 sayings in French, I can say with conviction that I’m ready to move here full time. In one of our first class meetings we discussed possible language barriers that may be present while we were
Society as we know it is constantly growing and forming with new norms, values, beliefs and mechanisms. Due to our ever evolving society the world is starting to rapidly see social changes. According to two sociology professors, Dr. Wilterdink and Dr. Form, “Social change can evolve from a number of different sources, including contact with
One of the things we discussed in our groups tonight was how small, grassroots organizations take steps to initiate a new project, like those mentioned in One Nation Indivisible. Oftentimes it’s small organizations or a few people that take an idea and run with it, hoping for the best and praying no one shuts it