Though it has only been one week since our first meeting, I have greatly enjoyed the program thus far! Upon completion of the IDI (Intercultural Development Inventory), I realized that there exists a great deal of work to do so as to attain the level of cultural competency that I ultimately hope to have. Being from a small, homogenous town in Soldotna, Alaska, my primary and most extensive exposure to various cultural communities has come through my involvement with Duke’s undergraduate international orientation as Co-Leader of the IHOP (International House Orientation Peers) program, which I have participated in for the last two years. Frankly, assisting with IHouse events and orientation has been among my most insightful – and meaningful, more generally – experiences since coming to Duke, and it has been fantastic to have been given the opportunity to interact with so many other students with such unique perspectives and backgrounds.
As a Global Fellow, I hope to further develop my intercultural competency so that I can more effectively engage with, and support, those identifying with cultures different from my own. I have also come to realize that one of the greatest resources directly available to us, as humans, is the unique and idiosyncratic experiences of one another, and these can certainly be more fully recognized and embraced by fostering the skills necessary to do so, which represents the purpose of this program. I hope to further develop my leadership abilities within the context of more culturally diverse organizations. For me, success would mean that I have surpassed my current developmental orientation, minimization, to that of either acceptance or adaptation, simply meaning that I have become more cognizant of cultural differences as a source of immense opportunity, and I will know that I have made considerable progress towards attaining these goals when I am better able to articulate my cultural views and values, as well as how these may be similar or different from those of others. One component of serving as a Global Fellow is collaborating with a language partner; I was matched to a Mandarin Chinese and English language and cultural exchange! My partner and I have met twice so far, and we will continue to meet weekly until the end of the program, and I believe that we will stay in contact after that, as well. It has been an exceptional experience, and I am very excited for the rest of this program!
Ling Jin
Hi Ethan, thank you so much for sharing your reflections! It’s great that you’ve recognized that, in order to become interculturally competent, we first need to better understand and articulate our own cultural views and values. Self-awareness is truly important!