Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication
New Interculturalists' Program
Master of Arts in Intercultural Relations
Intercultural Certificate Program
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
We welcome you warmly to an intercultural place where your work still matters, and the vision of a better world survives the pervasive changes of the past year.
As we adapt to financial exigencies, we recognize the danger that intercultural relations may once again be brushed aside in the sweep of losses on campuses, corporations, and agencies. We know now, more than ever, that we must support the concerns, the missions, and the organizations we want to survive today, tomorrow, and the years ahead.
However, this challenging context also provides an opportunity for our work to demonstrate its power as a cost-effective intervention to improve multicultural work teams, as a vital component of education, as a readily accepted approach to global citizenship, and as a core aspect of social justice. In 2009, it is up to us as interculturalists to establish that cultural competence is not a luxury, but a necessity in this new world of unparalleled challenges.
The Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication (SIIC) has a 33-year history of providing professional training and development to people who want to make this effort. During its first ten years at Stanford University as the Stanford Institute for Intercultural Communication, and for the last 23 under the auspices of the Intercultural Communication Institute in Portland, Oregon, SIIC has become a creative community of intercultural scholars and practitioners from many cultures that meet each year to renew their energies and commitments.
The learning experience at SIIC is characterized by its intensity, its relevance to the professional development of the participants, its balanced emphasis on knowledge and skills, and the respectful and supportive atmosphere in which it takes place. A vital aspect of SIIC is the interactive learning environment it maintains. Discussions extend over long mealtimes and the social receptions scheduled every night. Notably, workshop leaders reside on campus and are available at meals and evenings for informal talks with participants.
The SIIC atmosphere is inclusive—all participants should expect that their cultural differences will be appreciated and that there will be interest in mutual learning about those differences. Learners can anticipate a lively week (or two, or three) of intense engagement with intercultural issues and resources—networking, reading, researching, listening, asking, and delighting in the company of diverse but similarly dedicated professionals. Please join us for what again promises to be a unique and significant learning opportunity.
The Intercultural Communication Institute
8835 S.W.
Canyon Lane, Suite 238, Portland, OR 97225 |
ici@intercultural.org |
Phone / Fax: 503-297-4622 / 503-297-4695
© 2009 Intercultural Communication Institute
