Author: Christopher Sturm

GSGS Partners with One World Play Project in Giving Campaign

One World Play Project believes in the transformational power of play. They turn this conviction into reality by bringing the opportunity to play to disadvantaged youth in refugee camps, disaster areas and other communities around the world.

GSGS is proud to announce that they’re joining forces with One World Play Project in their Play Together giving campaign designed to deliver ultra-durable One World Futbols to refugee kids around the world. These balls never need a pump and never go flat!

GSGS has committed to matching up to 50 balls purchased during the campaign. When donors purchase a ball for $25, GSGS will donate a matching ball. If they purchase a ball for $39.50, GSGS will donate a ball and One World Play Project will donate a ball, as well.

One World Play Project is the brainchild of Tim Jahnigen and his wife, Lisa Tarver. The company uses play to teach conflict resolution, gender equality, health awareness and other skills.  They believe play empowers and provides hope, opportunity and optimism to youth devastated by war, disaster, and poverty.

The first thing the project did was to create an ultra-durable soccer ball. These balls are both the symbol and the instrument of One World Play Project’s power-of-play initiative. By 2014, the company had contributed more than one million One World Futbols to communities around the world.

GSGS President Chris Sturm says, “We’ve seen the positive effect that something as simple as a soccer ball can have on kids living in difficult situations. That’s why we’ve undertaken this giving project. We will match your contribution and deliver a ball to the refugee kids around the world who need all the support we can give. Help us deliver play – and hope!”

Donate a ball and help us deliver hope and play to refugee kids around the world, visit oneworldplayproject.com.

Play saves lives. It helps us recover from trauma, cope with challenging situations and gives us hope for a better tomorrow. Please help by donating these ultra-durable soccer balls to refugees today.  Thank you!!

 

 

Congrats to Army ROTC Cadet Teddy Sims from Washington University in St. Louis. Teddy has been awarded the Truman Scholarship, one of the most prestigious and selective scholarships in higher education.

Teddy’s proposal, which helped him win this scholarship, advocates for an, “increase in cultural competency” for future Army leaders, and more specifically, “The creation of a Cultural Handbook” to help military units be successful in a given region.

GSGS could not agree more…Teddy is ahead of the game and will no doubt go on to influence the Army in positive ways!!

See more of Teddy and his scholarship proposal at:
https://source.wustl.edu/2016/04/teddy-sims-selected-truman-scholar/

Whats wrong with this frame from DC Comic’s Superman/Wonder Woman Annual #2:

‘Pakistanian’ is not a language. It’s not even a word. People in Pakistan (Pakistanis) speak Punjabi, Pashto, Sindhi, Urdu, and Balochi… English is also an official language in the country alongside Urdu

It’s an innocent mistake to make, but a woefully ignorant one. For some comic readers, maybe most, this may be there only exposure to Pakistan.

Is DC Comics trying to disrespect an entire culture or nation?…Of course not.

Is it understandable that Pakistani people feel disrespected that DC Comics could not to do some basic research about the people or language of Pakistan before inserting this into their story?…Of course.

A little bit of Cultural Awareness can go a long way…

But then again, Starbucks, one of the world’s biggest coffee chains, still has chai tea on the menu, which, as we all know, means tea tea!

Africa is big. But do you realize just how big?

It’s immense – probably much, much larger than you thought. Africa’s true size is 30 million square km…almost 2x the size of Russia. Africa is so big it easily swallows the USA, China, India, Japan…. AND Europe.

The US can actually fit comfortably into Africa three times….The UK can fit into Africa over 120 times!

We’re all probably guilty of generalizing when we think ‘Africa’…yet there are 54 nations in Africa each with countless cities, towns and villages.. There are 1,250 to 2,100 and by some counts over 3,000 languages spoken natively in Africa. This is not a piece of land that can be generalized!

Source: Why Africa is larger than maps cause us to think it is

“No Culture can live if it attempts to be exclusive.”  – Mahatma Gandhi

In the global market – knowledge, awareness, and skills not only mean influence, they also mean survival. Cultural competency is one of the most challenging aspects of operating globally. A strong foundation of cultural competence and proficiency is mission critical in building, operating, and succeeding beyond the homeland; making cultural competence and intelligence crucial to both public and private sector enterprises seeking to advance objectives across international boundaries.

Understanding the customs and cultural norms of other nations and people is usually only gained through personal experience. However, effective cross-cultural training can serve to bridge the gap between lack of personal experience and the need for understanding subtle differences between cultures. Recognizing and understanding these differences are critical steps in ensuring effective communication

Both multinational corporations and the public sector understand the need to prevent cultural misunderstandings and boost competitiveness in a global marketplace. Using effective strategies that include:

• Cultural Profiles – Demographics, religious breakdowns, dominant languages, political landscapes, and general cultural understanding. Cultural profiles target countries and respective regions, tracking general propensities in areas such as decision-making, communication (verbal and non verbal), negotiation styles, and orientations to time, risk and hierarchy.
• Surface Culture vs. Deep Culture – In order to really know a new culture, it is necessary to understand the distinction between surface culture and deep culture. Surface culture refers to the observable behaviors (habits, customs, mannerisms, etc.) and physical objects (artifacts, literature, tools, etc.) associated with a group of people. Deep culture refers to the commonly accepted attitudes and beliefs shared by a group of people. These two components should not be viewed separately as they are very much intertwined. Understanding any culture requires not only knowledge of its surface features but also some knowledge of the deeper, shared pool of attitude and belief which is often passed from one person to another.
• Awareness Training – Tailored data, gathered by experienced country specialists, on issues such as protocol, etiquette, greetings, entertaining, tipping, gift-giving, meetings, working in established relationships, and more;
• Simulation – Case studies and create real world scenarios to match client objectives, that allow participants to identify where cultural differences can block successful interactions.
• Achievement Plans – Cultural learning put into actions toward real-world objectives. Creating real work action plans for key tasks/responsibilities participants need to accomplish to be effective in a global environment.

Aquifers and Wells