This interactive presentation will focus on the implications of identity for ourselves, each other and for our as is possible from intercultural practitioner’s point of view and interventions. It will address the role of socially constructed and mediated narratives in how identities as we know them are shaped and maintained. It will highlight the importance of identity formation by the self and with others, particularly in the contemporary environment which is experiencing new challenges: the flood of news media and the tools now available to create and disseminate information, true and fake. We will look as well as the challenge posed by developments in Artificial Intelligence that are potentially invasive of privacy and even threaten to modify or supplant personal autonomy. This is increasingly important in a globalized environment where rising populism and nationalism are fostered both by unconscious stimulation of fear of the other and by deliberate control of popular narratives through the efforts of cultural mediators. The presentation will describe. explore and sample successful areas of practical activities or developed by the presenter in which identity and social connectivity can be used to refresh identity and the narratives that support it. These include identity focused private journal writing, personal name creation and exploration, cognition and self-talk, individuation vs. connectivity and the potential of gamification. The role of art in exploring what is normally hidden in everyday life will be briefly addressed and expressed via the inclusion of several poetic reflections on identity challenges.
George Simons
Dr. Georg Simons created the award-winning diversophy® game for developing intercultural competence for training programs and online learning (www.diversophy.com). He authored and edited EuroDiversity: A Business Guide to Managing Difference, addressing EU cultural challenges. Currently he is focused on developing tools and expertise for the management of societal cultural challenges. he delivers consultation, coaching, training and training design worldwide. Recent clients include Alstom, the Asian Development Bank, UNHCR, BNP Paribas, Deutsche Post, Olympus, PMI, and John Deere Europe. He has been a regular lecturer at ESPEME and JAMK and has served on the governing boards of SIETAR Europa and SIETAR France.