Culture Shock: Bug Buffet (source foodista.com)

Bug Buffet, source foodista.com

Sorry, I know it’s sophomoric, but when I wanted an image to communicate Culture Shock (from a United States/Western European perspective) I couldn’t resist the photo of basically a ‘bug buffet.”  I know I’ve heard they are full of protein, even tasy, but from my own cultural perspective, I don’t see myself digging in!

But that was not really the topic of the day.  I’ve spent the last three days at a conference on Higher Education and International Volunteer Service, presented by Partners of the Americas, the International Volunteering Project at Brookings, and the Building Bridges Coalition. 

Over 300 people from across the US and across the Americas have convened to look at ways to work in partnership with government agencies, NGO’s, Universities and Volunteer Service Organizations to spread the power of Person to Person Diplomacy via international volunteer service.

I facilitated a session on “Preparing, Training, Tracking and Reinegrating volunteers.  Combined, the members of my panel, in just the past year alone had sent 11,000 volunteers to 75 countries to work in partnership with local entities on service projects:   Projects-Abroad, United Planet, University of Minissota Learning Abroad Center, and World Learning Global Dialogues.

A highlight of the conference was the participation by the Youth Ambassadors, teens from across Central and South America who were able to participate in the sessions and prepare to move into the role of leaders of tomorrow.
Partners of the Americas (full disclosure, I’m on the Board of the Illinois/Sao Paulo Chapter) is planning to lauch a blog in the coming days as a central source of information for volunteers across the Americas who want to volunteer and get involved in making the world a better place, one relationship at a time.