Bridging Cultures 2015
02. November 2015
“If we are to have peace on earth… our loyalties must transcend our race, our tribe, our class, and our nation; and this means we must develop a world perspective” – MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
Globalisation has seen world economies become ever more interlinked and interdependent, but what effects has it had besides the economic impact? Through globalisation the world is now much more socially and culturally closer too.
However, what barriers or consequences may result from this?
For 2015, the Bridging Cultures program has hosted three trainers; Ritu Priya a human rights lawyer from India in Asia, Hanna Haile a social worker from Ethiopia in Africa, and Alexa Cuello a political scientist of Uruguay Latin America who have attended several schools to teach pupils about their culture and to provide further education on certain social issues.
Ritu Priya presented to pupils facts about Asia before specifically discussing societal
issues within India. The societal issues which Ritu Priya discussed with pupils included women’s rights, the concept of ‘dowry’, the disaster of female foeticide, internal migration and the effect that these issues have had on Indian society.
Furthermore, Hanna Haile introduced the students to Africa; teaching them that it was a large and multifaceted continent and not a country. Moreover, Hanna Haile discussed her home country of Ethiopia and deliberated on the pressing issues of religious tolerance, the complexity of poverty, and migration from the refugees’ perspective.
In addition, Alexa Cuello acquainted the pupils to Latin America; its differing landscapes and cultures. Alexa Cuello’s home country of Uruguay was discussed; in which pupils came to learn of issues of racism amongst indigenous and afro communities, inequality, and the human rights abuses of the country’s previous governments in the region.
The trainers have visited six schools in Berlin this year in which seven workshops were held. The students were encouraged to question stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination and to contribute creative solutions to the issues discussed during the project.
Furthermore, the Bridging Cultures project has provided participants with a better understanding of the globalised world in which they live and they have transcended their race and nationality to develop a ‘world perspective’.
