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Relocation manager LaShell (Shelly) Tinder stepped up as FIGT Treasurer for 2019-2020 when she saw the organization’s need. She values “our ability to relate with one another and ensure our humanity is always at the forefront of what we do and how we treat others.” (And she’s bringing her TCK daughter to FIGT2020!)

Can you please describe your FIGT role?

As Treasurer, my job is to ensure transparency around the budget, to elevate the FIGT Board members’ knowledge of our financial solvency, and to guide team members in fiduciary decisions to ensure the organization can support the community with scholarships, information through our website, and events.

What inspired you to stand for this particular office?

I didn't initially seek out the role of Treasurer; however, when I learned they didn't have applicants and I knew I had the background needed to fulfill the duties, I adjusted my vision of how I could contribute to the organization.

Anything you particularly hope to accomplish this year? What do you look forward to?

My plans are to: 

• Meet with the accountants to see if we can change the way in which information is presented to make it easier to review.

• Look at our banking relationship to see what options exist and ensure we have a sustainable supplier solution given the distance / locations of our board members and the need for digitized banking solutions.

• Meet with Scholarship, Sponsorship, and Membership team members to see how I can support them in their work.

• Contribute as a thought leader to the Executive Committee where I have experience from my own expatriate experiences and a seat at the corporate table to drive mobility practices for families. 

What I’m looking forward to is attending the conference! It has been a number of years—I haven't been to a conference since it has been held outside of the US. It will be great to connect with everyone again! 

I am also bringing my daughter, Kate Pellegrino: TCK, born in Belgium, grew up in Venezuela and Ecuador, repatriated to the US when she was nearly 11. She’s on a professional journey and I think connecting with other TCKs and CCKs will give her lots of inspiration. She spoke at the 2016 Worldwide ERC Global Workforce Symposium in Boston and left the crowd enamored with her...proud Mama moment! 

Your favorite thing about being a part of FIGT?

When I first attended in 2004, I found “home” in the community and realized I wasn't alone. After living abroad for 11 years, repatriation was quite challenging. FIGT gave me a great base to get reacquainted with my homeland and feel OK about not liking everything. 

A few years later when my children began to struggle with their “TCKness,” I brought home Third Culture Kids: Growing up Among Worlds to them. Steve and Kate both said, “This is our bible.” They found pieces of themselves in the writings and it helped normalize what they were experiencing. 

I am so thankful for the support and community with FIGT!

Can you share a random piece of info about yourself please?

I was becoming more adept with Spanish and was standing at the window to get my cedula in Venezuela. The woman asked me, “Su altura” (your height). I very confidently responded, “Cinco pie y tres pulgas.” I proceeded to scratch my head as it was quite hot and I felt a bit itchy. The woman stepped back a bit.

It was then my husband turned to me smiling and said, “You just told her you are 5 feet 3 fleas.” We have had a good laugh over that one a few times.

Please share some words of wisdom for FIGT members and other globally mobile people.

In this world of globalization, digitized conversations, and hurried communication, we risk losing our greatest trait—our ability to relate with one another and ensure our humanity is always at the forefront of what we do and how we treat others. 

Being a part of FIGT is a constant and easy reminder to bring your humanity forward to all conversations. By doing this, we become more tolerant, at ease with others, and hone our cultural agility.

Look for Shelly and her daughter at FIGT2020! (And read about another FIGT mom who brought her daughter to the FIGT conference). You can learn more about Shelly in the board member bios section. 

Families in Global Transition is deeply honored to announce that our generous Anonymous Donor has chosen to sponsor again this year at the Platinum level.

In keeping with their desire to maintain the focus on FIGT and its mission as a welcoming forum for globally mobile individuals, families, and those working with them across cultures, they are once more electing to remain nameless.

Who is this generous FIGT supporter, and why the secrecy? 

Our Anonymous Donor wouldn’t tell you any of this, but I will. 

They are a longtime member of FIGT and a highly respected, staunch advocate of the globally mobile community. They know firsthand what it’s like to find oneself in a new culture, experience culture shock, transition from old to new—over and over again—and understand that it’s only by embracing the different pieces that we create the fullest meaning of such a life. 

They know the seasons and stages of life: raising TCK children, maintaining a strong partnership, developing a robust career, modeling how to exit that with grace and excitement when new opportunities and interests come calling—creating an equally impressive second career, all the while giving of their time, talent, or treasure whenever possible. 

They recognize the value of using their voice on behalf of others. They know the importance of social impact. Always building, networking, connecting, bridging.

So it isn’t all that surprising that our Anonymous Donor chooses not to identify themselves. In a world where voices are often clamoring for attention, sometimes it is the silence that speaks loudest.

Be a part of this community and join us at the FIGT 2020 Conference!

Deborah Valentine may have just started a new tradition for her 18-year-old daughter: attending FIGT conferences. She muses how FIGT might create a space for our younger family members to engage and interact.

By Deborah Valentine

I had my reasons, but the results surpassed my expectations.

Taking my 18-year-old daughter to FIGT2019 was a plan I hatched in the months before the conference. I felt she could benefit—by seeing, hearing and being with people like me, like her. That the trip was taking place just before her final exams caused some ‘surprise’ from my ex—but with promises to study every now and then, and good grades going into her finals, we went ahead.

Why?

My whole life I have been on the move. From the day I was born, to the year I turned 40, I had moved every four years—more or less. My father is Canadian, my mother a Jamaican immigrant to Canada—and I and my two brothers have three different birth countries. This was, and is, my normal.

After my studies I started my own global career, married a Dutch diplomat and had two children in two different countries, and continued my career. 

As life would have it, the journey which was to have continued stopped. My (ex)spouse and I separated but I continued to live in his passport (now also my passport) country. The children—then 5 and 3—began their journey in one place, at a local school. A place where they were locals—and yet ….

In recent years I had observed in my daughter some unspoken wrestling with identity; observed what I considered to be feelings of ‘the other’, sometimes not fully understanding her mothers’ identity, and the many layers it has acquired over the years. 

Who knows what the spark was that led me to suggest she join me in Bangkok. But, her answer was yes! She knew it would not be a vacation/tourist kind of trip. I would be ‘working’ during the conference, and would ask for her help. And, I wanted her to write about the experience afterwards.

Rewarded

Her reception—by my fellow Board members, interactions and experience with conference attendees, the help and support during the conference—were, truly, an experience to be cherished. 

While I had made the suggestion to come—for her sake—it was I who was enriched. By seeing her flourish and by the conversations resulting from presentations heard and experiences lived—not only with me, but with the strangers she met...this mama’s heart could not have been fuller. 

And, while I am still waiting for the review of her impressions, I know, in my heart, that she heard and experienced things that perhaps will help her understand herself better, and her mother too. 

Many conference attendees expressed surprise, admiration even at my bringing her. I had not expected that but the resulting conversations made us all realise: here we were at a conference talking about ‘families/children/TCKs etc.’ and yet, very few of them were actually present—sharing their own impressions, listening and contributing to the dialogue. 

So, if one person’s experience can be a source of inspiration, let me say this: I would encourage those who can to bring their children—young adults—to the conference. They will enlighten, but also be enriched by the experience. 

Who knows, maybe there would be room for ‘off-site evening sessions’ for these young bright minds of the future to reflect with and for us on their own perceptions of what we are collectively sharing. I am told, the ‘early birds’ may not be up their alley ;)

Oh, and as a final note: she passed her exams! But I am still waiting for her ‘impressions’ LOL.

Deborah Valentine is a Canadian, born in Germany; her parents are from Canada and Jamaica; she lived in three countries before the age of six, and since then relocated every four years until she ‘hit’ Holland. After 11 relocations, five languages and experiences as ‘child of’, ‘spouse of’, ‘mother of’—not to mention expat professional herself with the UN—she more than understands what it is to live and work in other countries, and is passionate about the tribes she is a member of. Currently she is Executive Director of ACCESS, a not-for-profit volunteer organization in the Netherlands.

Anastasia Lijadi joins the FIGT Board in the newly created role of Research and Education Director. She paints her vision for FIGT as a knowledge hub where people can find best practices and latest info to promote the wellbeing of TCKs and globally mobile families.

Can you please describe your FIGT role?

My vision is to establish FIGT as a hub where researchers and counselors can share the latest findings and best practices to sustain the wellbeing and quality of life of people crossing cultures around the world — as declared in FIGT’s mission.

Need opinions on the best time to move your children? What should I consider when choosing the right school for my TCK? What options do “trailing spouses” have to thrive in the new home? How to cope with the emotional roller-coaster of repatriation? Who can TCKs approach for advice in dealing with adulthood? 

The FIGT would be the go-to place to find answers.

FIGT has rigorous research-based information, recommended books based on personal experiences or an ethnographic lens on high-mobility populations. FIGT has connected and collaborated with schools and educators around the world and is linked to a global network of affiliates, professional coaches, and counselors.

Hence, in my role, I focus on establishing this hub to connect with researchers, educators, and experts in the field, and to engage with and acknowledge their work in our annual conference.

What inspired you to stand for this particular office?

I want to quote Martin Seligman, the positive-psychology guru: 

Just as the good life is something beyond the pleasant life, the meaningful life is beyond the good life.

For me, one way to make a meaningful life is serving as Research and Education Director in FIGT.

When I was a trailing spouse with two small TCKs, I went back to university and pursued my doctorate. I found that one way to understand the phenomenon that was happening around me (high-mobility lifestyle, identity confusion, and shifts in human values due to social change such as migration and crossing cultures) was through research, where plausible and valid knowledge and guidelines were offered.

Furthermore, I believe that schooling is still the best way to transfer knowledge. 

In this Research and Education Director capacity, I hope to facilitate knowledge transfer from research — through education — to empower all stakeholders involved in the lives of people crossing borders.

Anything you particularly hope to accomplish this year? What do you look forward to?

I believe in aiming big but starting by taking small steps and collaborating with other FIGT volunteers. For example, to engage researchers, FIGT needs to create a space for them to exchange views and to share their work. I value the inputs and collaborations from my colleagues of the FIGT Research Network Affiliate and will maintain good communications with co-chairs Sarah Gonzales and Danau Tanu. 

I also appreciate the support from the Program Director, in supporting research-based presentations at the annual conference. 

To reach out to educators, I will collaborate with the Membership and Affiliate Directors.

Hopefully, in the upcoming FIGT2020 conference in Bangkok, we will see a greater presence of researchers and educators based in Thailand and Southeast Asia, who will hopefully become FIGT members.

Your favorite thing about FIGT / being a part of FIGT?

The best thing about FIGT for me is that I don't have to explain myself too much. FIGT has a language that every member understands.

Can you share a random piece of info about yourself please?

I love to paint, even though my best fans are limited to my mother and my family. During my adolescent years (30+ years back, living in Jakarta, Indonesia), most of my paintings — pointillism only with black dots — were of snow, huge lakes, and mountains, created using just a Rotring pen. But when university, work, and seeing the world took over my life, my passion for painting became neglected.

After globe-trotting for many years, my career led me to Bali, Indonesia, where I met my husband and got engaged. When I called my mother to share the good news, her first question was not what I expected. 

Not who he is, or what he does, or what I like about him. She asked me simply where his hometown was and I answered “Austria.”

There was silence for a while, then my mother softly reminded me that I have always dreamt of living there. 

She faxed one of my paintings, a panorama of lakes surrounded by snowy mountain — I was unconsciously drawing Austria! Well, I fell in love with a man that fulfilled my dream! Am I truly blessed or was it simply coincidence?

We have (partially) repatriated to Austria since 2017; you may say I have been living in a dream ever since!

Please share some words of wisdom for globally mobile people.

Bloom wherever you are (re)planted! 

You can learn more about Anastasia in the board member bios section. FIGT members can see Anastasia's presentation "The international school is not so international after all: The experiences of Third Culture Kids." She also led an Early Bird Forum on "Sustaining Quality of Life in Repatriation" at FIGT2019.

Also: learn more about the FIGT Research Network Affiliate.

For globally mobile families, traditions and rituals provide an important thread of continuity and identity. Even more so if you are a TCK and an international adoptee, shares Anna, who was adopted from India by a Swedish couple and grew up in the Middle East and Southeast Asia. 

By Anna Svedberg

Growing up as a Third Culture Kid can be complicated enough, navigating different cultures and customs while still maintaining the common thread of identity. Add another layer, such as being an international adoptee, and you have to be both consistent and adamant in how you raise your children for them to gain a healthy sense of identity while navigating the tricky waters of a child growing up as a citizen of the world.

This is my family's own story of how we maintained some sense of constant normalcy through cooking and celebrating traditional holidays together with other Scandinavian families while abroad. Staying in touch with family friends of various cultures strengthened my sense of identity and connection with both my birth culture as well as my passport culture while appreciating and respecting local customs and traditions. 

Cooking, food, and sparking memories

Growing up overseas, my first few memories are always of my mum cooking or baking in the kitchen with my sister and I helping and tasting the goodies. Food and traditions in general are quite important in my family. My mum explained much later to me that having adopted two beautiful girls from India, my parents were quite adamant to instill Swedish culture and traditions in us, especially as my sister and I grew up overseas. 

This meant that whether we were stationed in a very traditional trade city in the desert or in the hustle and bustle of a mega Southeast Asian city, my sister and I would always have access to Swedish cinnamon rolls for any given holiday and the traditional Swedish smorgasbord for Christmas and Easter, including the world-famous savoury Swedish meatballs and cured salmon. 

Since my mum loved cooking, she of course learnt how to cook local dishes wherever we were stationed, which meant that my sister and I acquired an international palate from a very young age. If we missed our hometown from years ago, my mum would cook a meal to take my sister and me back taste-wise and it was almost like being there.

I have a particular memory of my family living in the Middle East and participating in local Eid celebrations. In those early days, mothers and children were invited to local family homes to partake in Eid festivities, which always included lots of delicious food as well as giving and receiving traditional Eid greetings. As a child, my friends and I felt honored that we were so graciously invited to strangers’ homes. The generosity I experienced while growing up overseas is something that I will always be grateful for. 

Also, while living in a Southeast Asian megacity, my family would celebrate the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival with other families at the beach, lighting lanterns and sending them out to sea ceremoniously at night. My parents explained that as guests in a local culture, it's important to observe and respect local culture and traditions. 

Traditions, festivals, celebrations, and local networks

My mum instilled in us Swedish traditions by decking our homes with festival-appropriate decorations, often hand-embroidered or hand-painted. 

With traditional cooking, festival-appropriate decorations and celebrations no matter where we were stationed in the world, my sister and I received a solid foundation of continuity in our upbringing. This was further strengthened as we enjoyed close ties with a network of Scandinavian families wherever we lived, with whom we could celebrate our traditions. 

Local festivals and traditions were usually widely recognized through school activities as well as in family social gatherings, so we learned from a young age to respect and enjoy the local culture and customs wherever we were stationed.

Regarding our Indian heritage, growing overseas was a blessing as it allowed my family frequent trips to see family friends in India and close school friends with Southeast Asian backgrounds. Together with my mum’s love for cooking Indian food, this enabled me to seamlessly blend my Indian heritage and Swedish identity together. 

By teaching your child about their birth country as well as their passport country, while at the same time encouraging them to immerse themselves in local customs, your child will not only gain a healthy sense of self but also a respect for all cultures and walks of life — a mark of a true citizen of the world.

Tips for globally mobile families with adoptive TCK children 

Here are some tips for families with children growing up in a globally mobile family as TCKs and as international adoptees.

Strengthening your child's sense of identity

• Talk early on about adoption and what it means.
• Educate your child on their country of birth and culture so your child can from a young age form an understanding of their heritage.
• Also teach early on about your child’s passport country, culture, and language, so your child can easily repatriate if they would like to as an adult.
• Show a genuine interest in the local culture to educate your child that respect for all cultures is important to develop empathy for fellow human beings. My parents emphasized that, living as an expat family overseas, we were always a guest in someone’s country.
• Foster healthy family traditions that your child can hold onto as a common thread through your international moves.

Network: Your family’s tribe while living the globally mobile lifestyle

• Surround your family with close friends — either locally or via distance — who can act as your family’s inner network, a safe constant in your child’s sometimes turbulent globally mobile life.

Anna Svedberg is a Swedish repatriated adult Third Culture Kid. She is a social media volunteer for FIGT and a staffing consultant for multinational clients. She loves writing children’s stories on themes such as TCKs and international adoption. Anna is adopted from India by Swedish parents and was lucky enough to grow up in the Middle East and Southeast Asia thanks to her parents' careers in the Swedish Foreign Service as well as in the private sector. She and her family frequently travel back to childhood stomping grounds to visit family friends, as well as for some sun and warmth during the winter months! 

Anna would love to collaborate with you on projects close to her heart: international adoption, repatriation, and globally mobile families. FIGT members can find her in the Member Directory for Members Only.

Jodi Harris joined the FIGT board for the 2019-2020 term. She talks with us about her role and aspirations for FIGT, and shares a beautiful story about her family’s “space box”.

Can you please briefly describe your FIGT role?

As Vice President, I'm a member of the Executive Committee. I support the President and serve as her backup when needed. I am FIGTs go-to person for organizational bylaws. I help keep an eye on our finances and support the Board in adopting and maintaining best practices. 

I oversee the Research & Education Director and Affiliate Director Board roles and support those directors in meeting their goals. I also work closely with the Membership and Sponsorship Directors to help them in broadening and diversifying our global community and outreach.

What inspired you to stand for this particular office?

The short answer is that I believe passionately in the role that FIGT plays in supporting and advocating for the globally mobile community and I wanted to play a more active role in that mission.

When it comes to the role of Vice President, I looked at what I thought I could bring to the table. I love connecting people and creating community. I enjoy being a cheerleader for the globally mobile and I have a lot of energy and passion for getting the word out about what FIGT offers. The VP role felt like the perfect fit.

Anything you particularly hope to accomplish this year? What do you look forward to?

I am super excited about the FIGT Conference 2020! This will be our second year in Bangkok and I'm really looking forward to seeing the ways in which we're able to build on the energy of last year's first conference in Asia. 

In my role as VP, I have a mantra that I'm keeping in the forefront of my mind: no globally mobile person should NOT know about FIGT. 

My goal is to outreach, talk, share and connect as much as I can so that we bring even more people under our umbrella.

Your favorite thing about being a part of FIGT?

Community. I love the FIGT community! There is nothing quite like that feeling of being in a room with people who instantly get your experience. 

And, because technology connects us so well with people all over the world, the FIGT community is stronger than ever!

Even if you can't make it to the conference every year, you can still join an affiliate, connect personally and professionally with people, and contribute to the conversation online. 

FIGT is a place with open arms and you feel that no matter how you get involved.

Can you share a random piece of info about yourself please? 

My husband and I first met in the summer of 1998. I was just starting my senior year of university after a year abroad in Spain. He had graduated a couple years earlier and had been traveling in Europe and doing some work in Austin (where we're from). By the time I graduated in May 1999, we were headed together to Japan to teach English. It was a time of great transition and the beginning of our life around the world, together.

I remember one night we were having this conversation about feeling homeless — excited for our future and all of the adventures we were having, but also feeling a sense of not having a space to call our own, a place that really felt like home.

At one point in the conversation, he said something like, "I just don't feel like I have a space. I have nowhere to collect my things or unpack what I've acquired." 

A few days later I was out shopping and I saw this beautiful little box. In my head I started imagining what it would be like to visualize all the places we'd been — the memories, the sights, the sounds, the smells — in one place. 

I bought the box and presented it to him as his "space box" — a way to ritualize the coming and going, to collect what you're leaving and carry it forward to the next home. Soon after, he bought one for me.

All these years later (twenty years!) we still have the same space boxes. It's a ritual that we honor with each move — the boxes stay open the entire time we live somewhere, collecting the memories. 

When it's time to move, in a moment of silence and reflection, we mentally collect our memories and then close the box. When we arrive in our new home, we do the ritual in reverse — releasing the memories of the old home into the new one.

Please share some words of wisdom for FIGT members and globally mobile people in general!

The world is complex. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming to look around and see so much that needs attention, nurturing and perspective. As globally mobile people, we're in a unique position to speak from a broad and diverse perspective. 

And yet, it's too much for any one person to take on individually. We are all better when we seek to connect and create community across borders and when we work together to make the world a better place for everyone. 

I think our international perspective is a gift we share with the world; FIGT provides a way for you to do that with others, in the spirit of understanding and solidarity.

So step up and step in — together!

You can learn more about Jodi in the Board Member bios section. FIGT members can also see her presentation on "Cultivating Stillness in a Fast Moving World" (FIGT2019). Stay tuned for more from our new 2019-2020 board members!

Every year, the David C. Pollock Scholarship brings new voices to the FIGT conference. Please welcome the six FIGT2020 Scholars who will be carrying on David Pollock’s legacy to support and develop global-minded, intercultural souls. 

FIGT is excited to announce the FIGT2020 David C. Pollock Scholars.! First-time conference attendees Karla A. Fraser, Jacob Daniel Huff, Asako Noda, Tracy Oyekanmi, Jessi Vance, and Maddie White will be joining us at FIGT2020 to bring their unique expertise and points of view to the discussion.

Each year, the David C Pollock Scholarship provides highly motivated individuals working or studying in the intercultural and transnational mobility fields the opportunity to attend the FIGT conference.

The Scholars “represent a missing voice at FIGT,” explains Scholarship Director Matilda Criel-Ewoldt. “The scholarship is an outright recognition that all voices must be heard.”

Inspired by David Pollock’s tireless support, vision, and dedication to families in global transition, the scholarship epitomizes FIGT’s aim to attract, involve, and educate emerging, global-minded, intercultural souls—all within a safe space for all.

Learn more about the David C. Pollock Scholarship.

The 2020 Pollock Scholars

True to its mission and in line with the FIGT2020 theme “Embracing and Bridging Differences,” the 2020 Scholars come from different realms of the globally mobile community.

Karla A. Fraser is an adult TCK, expat, global educator, educational consultant, expat career coach, and entrepreneur. Karla has lived in six countries (USA, Jamaica, United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Commonwealth of Dominica, and Singapore) and has travelled to 45+ others.

In 2019, she founded Roseapple Global, LLC, which provides expat coaching and student administration consulting services. Inspired by her life experiences as a TCK, global work experiences and travels, Karla wants to help others achieve their goals of expat living.

SEE: More from Karla about her commitment to promote awareness of the global diaspora of black and brown people.

Jacob Daniel Huff is an international educator. Growing up, he moved across three different US states and then went from a farm in Arkansas to Vietnam. As an adult, Jacob has lived in four different countries with his Korean-born American wife and their daughter.

Now Elementary Principal at Oasis International School, Kuala Lumpur, he is working on his doctorate in curriculum and instruction. Jacob is fascinated how students develop a sense of identity in an international context and is passionate about helping them develop the skills to thrive in their internationally mobile and multicultural lives.

SEE: More from Jacob about his project on multigenerational TCKs.

Asako Noda is involved in starting up a new international school in Tokyo and implementing children’s creative writing programs in educational institutions. Asako was born in Singapore and grew up in the UK. She did not fully identify as a “returnee” when she moved to Japan and only discovered many years later that she may have been a TCK.

Asako is passionate about creating an environment of better understanding towards a more diverse Japanese society. She is currently a trainer at an international NGO which organizes children’s cross-cultural camps.

Tracy Oyekanmi is a marketing communications professional with over a decade of experience working with multicultural teams across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. She hosts the “Visible At Work” podcast, where she shares practical insights and brings guests to discuss their experiences of working abroad. Her goal is to help professionals develop communication skills to navigate their workplace in a new country.

Tracy is rounding up her master’s degree in strategic communication at La Salle University, Philadelphia, while living with her family in Vancouver.

SEE: More from Tracy about her passion to support professionals working abroad and to spread awareness about globally mobile professionals from Africa.

Jessi Vance grew up in Central Asia, graduated from Hope International University (Fullerton, CA 2013) with a specialized degree in Third Culture Kid Care and is uniquely equipped to connect with and advocate for a growing, culturally confused population.

In 2013, Jessi founded Kaleidoscope, a non-profit committed to seeing third culture kids not just survive but thrive. She's currently based in New York and survives on a steady diet of airplane food and coffee.

SEE: More from Jessi about her upbringing and how faith is an important part of the TCK conversation.

Maddie White is an adult TCK who was born in the US and grew up in Fiji, Australia, Thailand, and South Africa, before returning to the US as a teen. She currently works at Smith College Special Collections as their Processing Archivist.

Maddie is particularly interested in documenting and preserving the histories of TCKs who are non-white, disabled, LGBTQIA+, and/or non-Western. She believes community archiving could help foster belonging in the TCK community, through storytelling and a connection to our history. 

SEE: More from Maddie about her aspiration to document and preserve the histories of underrepresented TCKs.

Congratulations and welcome to all! We look forward to meeting and learning more from you.

For the Scholars’ full bios, please see Introducing the David C Pollock Scholars 2020.

Support the Scholarship!

Each year at conference, we hold a Lucky Draw to raise funds for future Scholars. We hope many of you will support our Pollock Scholarship Fund and take part! The Scholars will be selling tickets during FIGT2020—so do say hello to the Scholars and get your tickets from them.

We are also happily accepting donations for the Lucky Draw, such as books, coaching sessions, and workshops. The Lucky Draw provides a great platform for people to hear about your services and raises funds for a good cause—continuing the Pollock Scholar legacy! 

Please contact Matilda Criel-Ewoldt, Scholarship Chair, for further information at scholarship@figt.org.

When the mobile life puts your life in turmoil, traditions and rituals take on a new significance. For November 2019, FIGT focuses on the theme “Traditions and things that preserve our identity.”

Moving in general, and moving abroad in specific, brings our lives into turmoil. Things that have been taken for granted such as access to familiar foods, stores, or locations. Time difference to friends and family might challenge communications with loved ones and language issues might impact the ease of building up a new social network. 

In these difficult times, traditions and artifacts from our home culture allow us to find comfort and to settle in more easily. Over time, some of these traditions (and collection of local artifacts) might change and be enriched by new experiences which make the global life so colourful and satisfying. 

A move is often perceived as a chance to 'Marie Kondo' our lives, but we need to be careful to preserve, and to cherish, traditions, artifacts, and experiences as they are a piece of ourselves. We hope you enjoy our content this month and find some inspiration.

To access the content: Please join us on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter. Video content will be available for the month and then archived to the members’ only section of this website.

(Items with * require FIGT member log-in.)

From this month's social media

• TCKs & Identity: Navigating a Childhood Overseas as an International Adoptee (Anna Svedberg)
• Interview videos*

• • Traditions & Rituals: Keeping Your Identity Alive (Monica Gadaleta)

  • Connecting Through Music (Melissa Indot)

  • Connecting Cultures Through Food (Alaine Handa)

  • Traditions and Rituals for Kids (Emily Rogers)

  • Traditions and Rituals: How to Create a Family Culture on the Move (Mariam Ottimofiore and Florence Chabert D’Hieres)

Related articles

Expat Living: What Does It Take To Make You Feel At “Home”?

As part of adapting and adjusting, most expats find some combination of strange and different alongside the familiar and comforting, even with the fundamental of our traditions: food. Jonelle Hilleary reminisces about the quest for home foods among expats living in a country with few options.

From FIGT resources

New School Year, New Self-Care Routines 
Health and wellness coach Stacey Arsenault explains the 5 dimensions of self-care:  physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual, and social. She reminds us to ritualize self-care, to make it part of our routine. Although targeting students, this article is relevant for anyone entering into a new phase of life.

VIDEO: What is 'family' culture shock?
Family members go through culture shock at different paces. “Expert expat” Robin Pascoe suggests that the ritual of family meals is a powerful way to help family members get back on the same page.

Proactive Steps for the Holiday Blues
It’s common to get acute homesickness as the holidays roll around. Barbara Berthiaume, MSW, explains why that is and gives practical tips to navigate the special holidays, especially in a new country, to avoid the brunt of the holiday blues.

Stepping up as our 2019-2020 Scholarship Chair is Matilda Criel-Ewoldt, herself a former Pollock Scholar. While researching TCKs’ coping mechanisms, Matilda was losing her own sense of her culture. She shares how overwhelming it was to finally feel understood.

Can you please briefly describe your FIGT role?

My role is to select the Pollock Scholars for the FIGT2020 conference — those who represent a missing voice at FIGT, who would be unable to attend without a scholarship. The scholarship is an outright recognition that all voices must be heard, regardless of financial situation.

As Scholarship Chair, it will be my privilege to be a supportive presence for the Scholars throughout the conference. I want to be their point of reference throughout an overwhelming time, when they are meeting new people yet feeling a sense of belonging. I believe this will be my most important role.

I’ll also oversee the lucky draw to raise funds for next year’s Scholars! I am excited about this, as it will encourage me to learn more about FIGT members and their contributions to the global nomad field.

What inspired you to stand for this particular office?

The first reason was my own experience as an FIGT2019 Scholar. I felt accepted and inspired. I bonded with my fellow Scholars and learned so much about supporting the global community, especially through exchanging ideas with experienced and knowledgeable people. It made me realize the amazing support and resource that FIGT can be. 

I presented my doctoral research on TCKs and was grateful that, for the first time in my life, I did not have to explain what a TCK was, how they might think differently or have a different identity due to their upbringing — it was already understood.

I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to experience it through the scholarship.

Another inspiration was Jody Tangredi. She was the last FIGT Scholarship Chair and my main reference throughout the FIGT2019. Jody was such a helpful presence and a great emotional support, providing me encouragement and guidance and introducing me to so many different people in our community. She made me feel valued and that I belonged. 

Finally, what inspired me to be Scholarship Chair was my own research background. I am currently working on my doctorate in psychology and my main focus has been on how cultural factors might affect the therapeutic alliance. 

I want to provide a safe, helpful space for Scholars to discuss their own experiences with culture and their ability to cope with difficult transitions. I believe that such a space for self-exploration is necessary, especially within the socio-emotional focus of FIGT. 

And I firmly believe that this platform can help us gain greater knowledge of ourselves and how to move forward. 

Anything you particularly hope to accomplish this year? What do you look forward to?

I look forward to meeting the 2020 Pollock Scholars in person! I hope that I can provide a space for sharing and be a helpful guide for their FIGT experience. And I look forward to sharing ideas and experiences with the Scholars and FIGT members in general.

This year, I also hope to integrate with the FIGT community. As a newer member, I want to learn more about the members of this community. 

Finally, I’ve been discussing with fellow board members many ideas for the Scholars and am excited for what is ahead! 

Your favorite thing about being a part of FIGT?

The best part about FIGT is the sense of belonging. After living for quite a while in southern California, I felt lost in my sense of what my culture was and where exactly I fit in within the American culture.

FIGT gave me the courage to not feel I had to “pick” between my cultures, but rather live within the ambiguity of it all.

The presence of other people who understand the feeling of not truly fitting in anywhere was an amazing experience. For the first time, I felt heard and understood. I have never had a place to just be; the FIGT2019 was a great place to do so.

Can you share a random piece of info about yourself please?

I will be vulnerable and share this... At FIGT2019, the last day when it was all over, I cried! I felt so overwhelmed. FIGT made me feel understood and gave me such a sense of belonging that I was really sad to leave. For the first time, I felt like I had a space to talk about all of the emotions of growing up as a TCK. It just all came out that last day! 

My favorite place in the world would probably be my grandparent’s apartment in Rome... When traveling all over the world, their home was a constant. It made me feel at peace — no matter how hectic our lives became, their home would stay the same. It gave me some sense of constancy when I felt like my life was turned upside down. 

Please share some words of wisdom for FIGT members and globally mobile people in general!

Be okay with being yourself. For a long time I tried so hard to mold myself to new places so I could feel like I belonged. Now, I am working on letting go and just letting myself be. It’s a lot easier said than done and I still have a long way to go! But one step at a time.

You can learn more about Matilda in the board member bios section. FIGT members can also check out her FIGT2019 poster presentation on TCK coping mechanisms. Don’t miss more from our new 2019-2020 board members! 

It's been a great month to see #FIGTMembers shining all around the world. We round up the news for November 2019.

Huge congratulations to #FIGTMember Amanda McCue who has been elected as the next President of the ACT Division of the Career Development Association of Australia. You can read more about Amanda’s work in supporting military spouses and advocacy in partner employment here.

It was great to see that the social media account for The Expatriate Archive Centre on Twitter @WeAreXpats featured two #FIGTMembers as its guest curators. Well done to both #FIGTMembers Cath Brew and Alaine Handa for talking about FIGT during their takeovers.

We were also really excited to see #FIGTMember Sundae Schneider Bean introduce her Expat Coach Coalition program aimed as a professional development opportunity for coaches, counselors and psychologists who want to add to their toolset to serve those in global mobility.

Congratulations to #FIGTMember Lisa Ferland for launching the second book in her children series! First came, When The Clock Strikes on Halloween, followed by When The Clock Strikes on Christmas Eve. We can’t wait to see what she comes up with next!

It is also lovely to see when #FIGTMembers join forces to work together! We are excited to hear that #FIGTMember Melissa Parks and Dr. Sonia Jaeger are working together to create an online community for location independent therapists and mental health coaches. For more information, sign up here.

Last but not least, we are very proud that alongside FIGT who has been shortlisted for the Forum for Expatriate Management's EMEA EMMA Awards, so have a few of our members too! Congratulations to #FIGTMember Deborah Valentine from ACCESS Netherlands, #FIGTMember and Board Member Dr. Anne Lesle for her research on expatriate spouses and #FIGTMember Alan L. King from King & Mayr for making the shortlist.

If you have some news to share, please let us know! You can submit your news via the online form or contact membership.