GCIV hosted a delegation of fifteen government and civil society officials from all over Africa June 10-14. As participants in the U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), the group met with local government officials and NGO leaders active in grassroots democracy efforts. The delegation consisted of representatives from Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote d'Ivoire, Congo, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal, and Togo. Click here to read more about their program.

She's here! GCIV Senior Program Coordinator Emily Bushey welcomed daughter Lola Grace on Wednesday, June 27th. Lola weighed in at 7 pounds, 9 ounces. GCIV is happy to report that mother and baby are both doing well. We wish Emily and Lola all the best in the coming weeks!

While Emily is on maternity leave, GCIV Program Coordinator Meena Nabavi will be in charge of international visitor programs.

Thanks to our partnership with the Atlanta Forum Network, five sessions of the GCIV Great Decisions Lecture Series are now available online. Click here to see the offerings. Speakers include Dr. Jeannie Grussendorf of Georgia State University, Ambassador Gordon Streeb, former U.S. ambassador to Zambia, Dr. Sylvia Maier of the Georgia Institute of Technology, Mr. Teodoro Maus, former consul general of Mexico, and John Kelly, former U.S. ambassador to Lebanon. If you are interested in starting a new Great Decisions discussion group in your area, please contact Ashley Mastin at 404-832-5560 x 13.

Did you know that fifty-nine countries now have consular representation in Georgia? These offices are essentially regional embassies; they provide services to expatriates and visitors from their countries as well as foster cultural and business relations between their countries and the southeastern United States. The Georgia Department of Economic Development maintains an updated list of all consular offices - please bookmark this page to have access to the contact information of our ever-growing Consular Corps.

International Paint Pals is a worldwide youth cultural organization which brings children together through the universal language of art. IPP would like to invite children in your country (ages 6 through 18) to send drawings and paintings for their Youth Art Exhibitions for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Their displays will be in Beijing, Atlanta, and the United Nations headquarters in New York City. These exhibitions will be held in June, 2008. Your assistance in enabling children to experience the Olympics through their art work will be greatly appreciated. The theme of the exhibition is peace, friendship, and goodwill in the spirit of the Olympic Games.

The final date for sending artwork is January 15, 2008. If you are interested in receiving complete details about participation guidelines, please contact Linden Longino, Director, International Paint Pals (a program of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Atlanta).

Recognizing that many people around the world have strong negative views of the United States, substantial majorities of Americans express concern about our nation's declining global reputation and believe it is more important than ever for Americans to repair relationships and build new bridges with the rest of the world.

Those are among the key findings of a just-released survey commissioned by Business for Diplomatic Action (BDA), an organization of multinational American companies working to improve the standing of America in the world by engaging the private sector in public diplomacy efforts. The survey of 1,000 likely voters conducted for BDA by Zogby International this April found that:

• 76 percent are concerned about America's global reputation;
• 74 percent believe the U.S. is viewed negatively by people in other countries;
• 66 percent of voters say U.S. relations with the rest of the world are on the wrong track;
• American voters pointed most often to U.S. foreign policy (72 percent), knowledge of Americans about other countries (69 percent), impact of American media (64 percent) and Americans' attitudes toward foreigners (53 percent) as the most likely factors negatively affecting the image of America abroad.

We are continuing with Vicki Flier Hudson's Fifteen Ways to Increase Cultural Competence. Vicki provides cross-cultural trainings for corporations, classrooms, and many other settings. Visit her web site at www.highroaders.com.

11) Don't get trapped in "A" or "B" dilemmas: Success in the global environment means thinking outside of the trap of two choices, neither of which serves your organization or your customers best. For example, "I either let my Mexican employee off for three weeks to go to Mexico for his grandmother's birthday or I'm culturally insensitive," or "Should I let working mothers have more flexibility or be fair to the whole department?" Why choose either? Instead identify the objective of solving the problem, not the problem itself. For example, "I want my student to succeed in the U.S. American school system and job market" (not "my student won't learn to speak English) or "I want to ensure the highest quality of my product and keep error rates down" (not "my Vietnamese employees won't tell me who made a critical error"). Start brainstorming creative ways to meet your objective. Don't choose only between "A" and "B" but also explore the rest of the alphabet.

12) Expand beyond silos: Diversity in corporate America largely still exists in silos. In the past, decision makers hesitated to place diverse employees in customer oriented positions such as Sales or Marketing; therefore, much diversity still resides in Human Resources, Finance and the like. While these employees make large contributions, companies should be encouraged to examine where they can expand diversity out of silo functions and into more wide-ranging roles.

This expansion will increase the cultural competence of other employees in the organization who may not otherwise be exposed to varied business practices and communication styles.

13) Offer win-win incentives: Promote global awareness in your organization by offering incentives that benefit all employees. For example, MFG.com in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, offers a unique vacation plan to encourage employees to increase their cultural competence. Any employee willing to take their vacation outside of the US receives $500 towards their trip, $250 for their spouse and an extra day of vacation time.

Be sure to check out the GCIV e-newsletter in coming months for more tips from Vicki Flier.

GCIV's membership is critical to the success of our organization, as it serves as an important indicator of community support for the U.S. Department of State and other agencies that rely on us to arrange programs for hundreds of international visitors each year. Becoming a member is easy - just visit our membership page to download an application.

Thursday, July 12th - 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
GCIV Global Lunch Forum: Multiculturalism in Italy
Join GCIV visitors from Italy for a lunchtime discussion. Mr. Bechir Ghoul, Mr. Adil Laamane, Ms. Lala Zineb Dafali Maarouf, and Ms. Zineb Traiki will talk about their work with Italian community organizations that provide services to new immigrants. The Global Lunch Forum will be at the GCIV office downtown. Participants can bring lunch or purchase a boxed lunch ($10). Registration is 12:00-12:10, and the Global Lunch Forum begins promptly at 12:10 PM. Contact Ashley Mastin at 404-832-5560 x 13 to RSVP.

Sunday, July 15, 1:00 PM
July International Dining Experience at Panahar Bangladeshi Cuisine
Get to know other GCIV members and hosts and share your questions, experiences and insights about hosting international visitors in your home. We are also inviting the group of six women participating in the U.S. State Department's Middle East Partnership Initiative. Panahar will offer a lunch buffet, and the price of $10 includes all food, drink, tax, and tip. Please note that Panahar encourages patrons to bring their own beer or wine. Contact Ashley Mastin at 404-832-5560 x 13 for more information or to RSVP.

Wednesday, August 15, 6:30 - 7:30 PM
GCIV Host Orientation
Learn the "ins and outs" of hosting while getting to know GCIV staff and fellow hosts. GCIV will organize host orientations once a quarter to help experienced and new hosts alike stay informed and become better citizen diplomats. Participation in an orientation is mandatory for all hosts. Please join us for one at your earliest convenience. The orientation will take place at the Regency Suites Hotel, 975 West Peachtree Street in midtown. RSVP to Meena Nabavi at 404-832-5560 x 17.