Global Fluency Training Update: Working with University Students

March 22, 2019

By: Simran Ali - CCWA Intern

Simran Ali – CCWA Intern

As a student, a world traveler, and a global education enthusiast I wanted maximize my interests and skills as an intern at the Columbus Council on World Affairs. The organization’s mission to raise global awareness and education in central Ohio is inspiring to me.   

I was first exposed to CCWA through a Global Fluency Training (GFT) that Brad Gosche, Vice President, Education & Communications, hosted at my school, Denison University. As a liberal arts student with exposure to multiple cultures, including several study abroad trips, I was not sure how much I would learn from a GFT session. However, even in a short amount of time, my class utilized our personal experiences to enhance the GFT for our specific group and we all learned many new concepts along the way.

The Global Fluency Training stood out to me significantly from other global workshops I have taken. First, it allowed me to be exposed to ways that I can grow my cultural competence, and how I can continue to expand on an understanding of the world and the people of various backgrounds, experiences, and cultures that we connect with. Further, it gave us exposure to how we interact across cultures in professional environments and not just personal interactions. With every new culture comes a set of rules in which we need to be aware of to be able to produce results that are beneficial to all. Brad did a fantastic job in providing hands-on practice through various activities that allowed us to notice and discuss different cultural habits within our own classroom and the world beyond our class walls. 

Just recently, I was able to assist Brad at another GFT session at Denison where I was able to see the other side of this training and students’ learning process. As a Global Commerce major with a concentration in Middle East North Africa, my goal has always been to expose myself to new ways of globalization and how it impacts us today. CCWA continues to strive to use GFT to impact not only professionals and educators, but also college students like myself, to be able to utilize cultural competency and become more involved in our global community and how to demonstrate what it means to be a global citizen.

Being an intern at CCWA has allowed me the added bonus of working alongside the people who develop these high-quality and incredibly influential trainings. My time as an intern and with the added help of GFT, has helped me grow significantly, and I hope to utilize these skills as I make my way into the real world/professional world upon my graduation.