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Kitchen Table Conversations are informal 45-minute small group discussions around a table, reminiscent of the original discussions around Ruth Van Reken’s kitchen table that led to the founding of FIGT. These are lively, interactive conversations around a focused, practical topic. Choose one from each group.
Cross Border Recruitment and Effects on the Family and Employer Cross border recruiting refers to sourcing and matching international and specialised talent in a certain labour market where there is shortage of skilled workforce. Skills, potential for cultural integration, medical fitness, training and immigration costs must match across borders to allow a longlasting fit in the new work environment. The trend is applicable for all categories of workers, such as manual, office, care, environmental. High-volume cross border recruitment is a field still being explored and understood. Have You Packed Your Communication Skills in Your Container? Get Equipped For Any Storm, in Any Given Moment, With Any Global Move! Why does Mindful Communications matter?
It is apparent with an ever-growing globalized world there is a strong need and demand to encourage the use of positive and compassionate communication tools. Talu will share her experiences from the past 20 years, to show how perceptions can cloud how we see situations, and how using mindful communication tools can lead to healthier relationships and build stronger connections. The Importance of Awareness in Understanding New Cultures Very often people believe that a good cross cultural training will help them to successfully connect with other cultures. Knowing history, languages, folklore, habits and all of these aspects are definitely important but are definitely not enough to live and work happily in a new enviroment. We will discuss the importance of knowing ourselves, our values, and our attitude towards change in order to understand and welcome a new culture into our lives and world of values. Third Culture Adults (TCAs): Exploring Questions of Identity and Belonging Ruth Van Reken and Daniela TomerA great deal has been written about identity formation and the sense of belonging for Third Culture Kids (TCKs)—those who grow up on the move. But what about Third Culture Adults (TCAs) those who make their first international move from the age of 18 and over? We are inviting TCAs to join us for a discussion to explore the reasons for their choice to move and what they have found to be the benefits and challenges. It’s time to hear the adults’ stories. Utilizing the Human Library™ Framework to Defy Stereotypes: Embracing Differences Through Story-Telling and Dialogue The Human Library™ aims to defy stereotypes through dialogue. In this interactive session, the presenters will share their experiences of hosting Human Library™ events in Tokyo by explaining the general framework of the Human Library™ and how we utilize it to bring out voices of adult Third Culture Kids to parents, educators, students and the general public. We will also present a step-by-step procedure on how to prepare and host Human Library™ events, along with specific ideas for recruiting human books, facilitating, and setting up a safe environment for a dialogue on sensitive and personal topics. The session will end with a discussion on how the framework can be used in various contexts to bridge and embrace differences. Becoming a Parent in a Foreign Land Starting a family while living abroad is challenging and sometimes utterly daunting. From the moment you find out you're pregnant, through giving birth, to making decisions about education, the views of the people around you can be very different from your own and sometimes confronting. In this discussion I will present my own experience which will lead to a sharing session where we have the opportunity to learn from each other. Bridging and Embracing Cultural Differences in Working Relationships Have you found yourself working closely with someone from a different culture? That cultural difference can create a chasm that is not easily crossed. Sometimes the divisions are caused by language but often it is the almost imperceptible cultural nuances that cause the greatest divides. What can we do to bridge that difference? In this discussion, we will explore how we build productive and meaningful relationships in spite and often because of cultural differences. We will tap the experience of the discussion leader and the participants to discover what it means to bridge a difference, how we can learn to embrace differences, the role of language, and the role of other soft skills. Distant Families and ‘Left Behind’ Kin: Creating Bridges to Sustain Transnational Families Across Generations Helen is neither an expat nor a migrant. She is, however, a New Zealand distant parent/step-parent and distant grandparent/step-grandparent. Her children have lived, or are living in Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, Sweden, USA, Pakistan, Senegal, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan. Five of her six grandchildren (3-20 years) were born and still live overseas. She regularly visits and shares their worlds. She acquired a strong interest and has read widely about the lives of the globally mobile. In her recent master’s thesis titled Being a Long-Haul Kiwi Distance Grandparent, she asked the question “How is distance grandparenting for you?” Come and join her for a chat about what they had to say; ponderings, ideas and suggestions … ways to bridge and enhance the differences between your ‘away’ world and our ‘at home worlds’. Loss and Grief in a Global and Blended Families: The Case of a European Teenager Lost in Her Family Role in Asia A case presentation of a psychoanalytic treatment of a young teenager whose identity was broken among five different countries and a broken family. Remarks on the points of connections of Third Culture Kids' usual relational issues with the dysfunctional outcomes of the processes of blended and remarried families. Same, Same but Different: The Challenges of Relocating as a Same Sex Couple with Children The session reflects on Scott's experiences as a same sex spouse who has relocated 4 times across 3 country. Each country - Thailand, Cambodia and the USA, has presented obstacles and stressors that are often the same as any family the relocating experience. However, he has also experiences unique to his “unconventional” family which have been challenging and frustrating but ultimately his relocations have each provided him with unique experiences and immense gratification. The journey can be a roller coaster but he has also seen himself as an unexpected educator challenging beliefs about what a family really is! Ten Ways to Make Your Temporary Place Feel Like Home Settling in a new place is the summit of the relocation process. And very often this means either dealing with a furnished place that does not reflect your taste or having to solve a puzzle with a space that is not ideal for all the furniture and belongings you shipped. However, embracing our new space and creating a home in our new country is one of the key factors to assure that our international assignment will be a successful one. When everything feels unknown is when we most need a real home away from home. This presentation provides a step-by-step guide for helping expats from the moment they start planning their move all the way into transforming a temporary place into their home abroad. Visibility at Work: African Professionals Embracing Differences to Unlock Opportunities A snapshot of a new wave of foreign professionals of African descent contributing to human capital globally. Participants will learn perspectives on how their embrace of western work differences and bridging cultural ethics elevates them to be visible at work, and hear real stories, beyond the refugee narrative of "taking," illustrating the "giving" contributions to the social economic development of their new communities. Before and After Accessible Technology: Embracing and Bridging the Different Newcomer Experiences from 2004 to 2019 How has the world of global transition changed in 15 years from 2004 to 2019? How do people feel about the newcomer experience now compared to 2004? Has accessible technology improved or challenged the human component of relocation? What resources can local communities develop to improve the newcomer transition. This session will summarise research findings from 2004 and 2019 and provide direct insights into the future world of families in global transition. Communicating and Connecting with Anyone, Anywhere: Embracing Differences with Knowledge, Skills, Attributes “You can’t understand a culture until you live it”. Cecilia reconnected with her own roots during her near 20 years in Asia. This has tremendously helped her to understand and better connect with herself, her families, her people, and many other aspects of the culture and how they play into business decisions and workplace cultures. Cultural facts are only one aspect to learn about people who are culturally different from us. Over-reliance on this knowledge may dangerously lead us to stereotype. Cecilia will share the additional two supporting components in cross-cultural understanding with her own model, to include skills and attributes. Understanding how these components complement, we can communicate and connect with all differences, no matter where people are from. How Your FIGT Membership Can Help You to Grow Personally and Professionally Being an FIGT member comes with valuable privileges including ways to understand and contribute to the globally mobile community. This session led by FIGT Membership Chair, Mariam Ottimofiore, will focus on how FIGT membership can help you to grow personally and professionally. We will discuss ways to contribute to FIGT and how FIGT can help you grow. These will include techniques to enhance your visibility and connections, share your expertise and assist you to collaborate within the FIGT community. Sharing Commonalities and Embracing Differences Sharing is caring. We, as non-native English speakers in global transition, have more challenges, yet also find many commonalities with other globally mobile families. Let us play a game and share our thoughts and reflections, with the goal of helping more families in this situation. Your Skills to Adapt on the Move: A Universal Adaptor Metaphor Through coaching tools, embodiment and experiential learning Sara invites you to explore different perspectives about living in a foreign country. Exercises of skill drill will reveal inner assets that are used every day while living, working and parenting between different cultures. |
