Category: Applied ICD

TalkingPoints: Connecting Immigrant Families to Teachers

Applied ICD

TalkingPoints uses technology to tackle barriers between parents and teachers across language and culture differences by creating two-way human and machine translation.

In addition, the app helps families support their children’s learning through in-app and text message content. At the same time, the app provides coaching, scaffolding, and professional development for teachers.

For details, watch the Ted Talk by Heejae Lim, the founder and CEO, as she explains both why she started the company, and how it works.

Why ‘Hamilton’ Is Tough to Translate

Applied ICD

Paulson, Michael. (2022, September 14). Six Lyrics That Show Why ‘Hamilton’ Is Tough to Translate. New York Times.

Translation is central to intercultural dialogue since there are so many different languages in the world. This article is a pragmatic example of the need to take context into account when translating. The example is a translation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical Hamilton from the original English into German.

There were many moments when Miranda et al. allowed the German translators to bend the original meaning in order to preserve lyricism and melody. But there were other moments when they insisted on literalism…

Six specific sections of the musical are analyzed in detail, focusing on different issues from avoiding hyperbole, to quoting rap songs, from providing new imagery to prioritizing meaning. The translators worked hard to display intercultural competence. (For a one-page introduction, see KC3: Intercultural Competence.)

 

Taos Institute: Collaborative-Dialogic Practice (2022)

EventsCollaborative-Dialogic Practice: Relationships and Conversations that Make a Difference Across Contexts and Cultures, Taos Institute, 18 October 2022, 12:00 – 1:00 pm EST (New York time, online).

A dialogue with Harlene Anderson and Diane Gehart, the authors of the book Collaborative-Dialogic Practice: Relationships and Conversations that Make a Difference Across Contexts and Cultures. Please join them in discussing the latest theoretical developments in collaborative-dialogic (CD) practices in addition to highlighting the many cultures and contexts that CD practices are being used, including in education, medicine, social justice, climate activism, indigenous communities, community outreach, research, and daily life experiences. You are invited to dialogue, ask questions, share your experiences, and join Harlene and Diane as they explore the possibilities of CD practices in our rapidly evolving and shrinking world.

 

How Sound Challenges Stereotypes

Applied ICD

Liu, Yuer. (2022, August 25). Soundscapes of the UAE: How Sound challenges stereotypes. Smithsonian Folklife Festival Blog.

A photographer uses their camera as a way of seeing the world. The audio recorder is my tool for hearing and understanding the world…A big part of the soundscape is about challenging people’s thinking and breaking down the barriers of misunderstanding.

-Diana Chester

The Smithsonian Institution’s Folklife Festival in 2022 presented the sound installation, “Living Landscapes, Living Memories.” It was created by the artist Diana Chester and her team to present the sounds of the United Arab Emirates. Chester’s argument is that “careful listening can break down stereotypes.”

Multiple soundscapes are presented in the article as examples. Most of the sounds are based on the recordings by Chester and team, but “sound recordings act like time capsules,” as Al Jneibi, one of the team members, told the Festival audience, and so recordings of locations that no longer exist have also been included. “We perceive sounds through a cultural lens,” as pointed out by Al Blooshi, a third team member.

 

Intercultural Cities: Refugees & Diverse Societies Videos

Applied ICD

The Council of Europe’s Intercultural Cities Programme has prepared 2 versions of a video (about 10 minutes long and 3 minutes short) on refugees and diverse societies, and made them publicly available.

Their goal is to raise awareness among policy makers, practitioners and the wider public to the main principles of the intercultural cities successful approach to refugee inclusion. The longer version includes examples drawn from ICC member cities. The shorter version is intended just for general awareness of major issues.

The Intercultural cities programme supports local and regional authorities worldwide in reviewing their policies through an intercultural and intersectional lens, and accompany them developing comprehensive intercultural strategies to help them manage diversity positively and realise the diversity advantage. The programme provides a set of analytical and practical tools to help local stakeholders through the various stages of the process.

A Pot of Courage: Food and Intercultural Dialogue (Australia)

Applied ICDA Pot of Courage in Ballarat, Australia, is a not-for-profit social enterprise cafe empowering women of diverse cultural backgrounds through hospitality training and employment opportunities.

Sharing stories is what. . .breaks down cultural barriers.

A Pot of Courage founder Shiree Pilkinton turned a women’s group into a cookbook and a not-for-profit, converting cooking skills into income. “We call it an intercultural cafe because it’s more active than a multicultural cafe,” says Pilkinton. “Whether you’re Anglo Australian, Aboriginal or Persian, it doesn’t matter – there’s a place for you here.”

See the original article: Levin, Sofia. (11 July 2022). This Ballarat hidden gem empowers women through a culturally diverse cafe. SBS.

Threads on Threads: Cultural Heritage and Intercultural Dialogue (Sri Lanka)

Applied ICDThe European Union (EU) Delegation in Sri Lanka and the Maldives together with the Threads of History Museum presents ‘Threads on Threads: an exhibition on the textile heritage in Sri Lanka, South Asia and Europe’. The two-week exhibition is an initiative of the EU Cultural Heritage Series.

Because the exhibition showcases the longstanding trade relationship between Sri Lanka, South Asia, and Europe, it can be seen as a good way to encourage intercultural dialogue.

Cultural heritage can be an important vector for peace, reconciliation, mutual understanding, intercultural dialogue and sustainable development.

Denis Chaibi,
EU ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives

See these articles for more information: 

European Union External Action. (2022, June 24). Threads on Threads: An exhibition and conference on textiles in Sri Lanka, South Asia and Europe.

(2022, July 17). Threads on Threads: An exhibition on textile heritage in Sri Lanka. The Sunday Times Magazine.

(2022, July 15). Threads on Threads: An exhibition on textile heritage in Sri Lanka. Lanka News Web.

Using Music to Start Intercultural Dialogues

Applied ICDLuis Gimenez Amoros is an accomplished guitarist from the Valencia region of Spain. He combines traditional music from the Spanish Levant with musical influences from Europe, Asia and Africa, starting intercultural dialogues with other musicians as he travels.

Amoros conducts workshops, performs concerts, and records albums with the musicians he meets, and has been quoted as saying: “Music has its own map that goes beyond borders” (Abdullah, 2022). He also lectures on ethnomusicology for various universities, and publishes academic articles, such as:

Amoros, L. G. (2018). Nubenegra records and Saharawi music: A musical and social interaction beyond transnationalism. Expressions maghrébines, 17(2), 187-202.

For further information, follow the link to his website, where there are lots of other videos available, or read this article about one of his recent trips:

Abdullah, M. (2022, June 22). A musical journey from Spain to Egypt: Reconnecting cultures through sound. Egyptian Streets.

Intercultural Competence Training for Local Officials

Applied ICDWebinar: Intercultural competence training for local officials: Why and how, Intercultural Cities Programme, EU. 7 July 2022, 3-5pm CEST.

The ICC programme is pleased to open the registrations for the webinar “Intercultural competence training for local officials – Why and how”. The webinar will be held on Thursday 7 July 2022 from 3 pm to 5 pm (CEST). It is open to the public, and free to attend. This event will present the benefits of intercultural competence training for city staff and zoom in on how cities can work to implement large scale training for all local officials. The webinar will combine presentations from cities, ICC experts and ongoing projects to present the many ways intercultural competence training can be implemented across local authorities. Don’t forget to register if you want to be kept informed about the webinar and receive the link to attend.

Intercultural Cities: Good Practice Examples

Applied ICD

The Council of Europe’s Intercultural Cities Programme has documented extensive examples of good practice, and made them publicly available.

The Intercultural city aims at building its policies and identity on the explicit acknowledgement that diversity can be a resource for the development of the society. The first step is the adoption (and implementation) of strategies that facilitate positive intercultural encounters and exchanges, and promote equal and active participation of residents and communities in the development of the city, thus responding to the needs of a diverse population. The Intercultural integration policy model is based on extensive research evidence, on a range of international legal instruments, and on the collective input of the cities member of the Intercultural Cities programme that share their good practice examples on how to better manage diversity, address possible conflicts, and benefit from the diversity advantage. This section of their website offers examples of intercultural approaches that facilitate the development and implementation of intercultural strategies.

The Intercultural cities programme supports local and regional authorities worldwide in reviewing their policies through an intercultural and intersectional lens, and accompany them developing comprehensive intercultural strategies to help them manage diversity positively and realise the diversity advantage. The programme proposes a set of analytical and practical tools to help local stakeholders through the various stages of the process.