10/09/2006 - 10/10/2006

BBC to Start Farsi-Language TV Channel

The British Broadcasting Corp. plans to start a Farsi-language television channel to reach Iran.

The news and information service, which is scheduled to begin in early 2008, will be based in London and available via satellite or cable ``in the region,'' the BBC said today in a statement on its English-language Web site. The U.K. government will cover the operating cost of 15 million pounds ($28 million) a year, said the BBC, the world's oldest public broadcaster.

Expat Focus Announces New Guide to Moving Abroad

Drawing on over six years of experience listening to the stories of those moving to another country, Expat Focus has released "The Expat Focus Guide to Moving Abroad," a 130+ page downloadable PDF file/e-book which aims to help readers avoid the most common problems encountered by new expatriates.

Rod Morris, founder of Expat Focus, explains, "Although it has never been easier to locate the information you need to start a new life abroad, most expats still fail to plan adequately for what is a truly life changing experience. From considering the reasons for going to another country, to building a social network at your destination, this new guide has been specifically written to save new expats time, money and stress."

book release: Handbook of Workplace Diversity

Pushkala Prasad, Professor of Management and Business, is a co-editor of the Handbook of Workplace Diversity (Sage Publications Ltd., 2006).

The publisher calls the book a first-of-its-kind showcase of international perspectives on a hotly contested subject.

The handbook is divided into three parts. The first (Chapters 1–7) covers major views in the field and suggests how scholarly analysis can enrich the study of workplace diversity. The second (Chapters 8–10) critiques quantitiative and qualitative research methods. The third (Chapters 11–21) compares and contrasts a variety of workplace groups and critiques the literature on the subject.

"One of the benefits of bringing the different genres of workplace diversity research together into a single volume is that scholars are provided with the full array of approaches available to bring to bear on any particular research question," the editors conclude in the book's introduction. "If scholars find that research approaches within familiar genres are overly limiting for achieving particular research aims, awareness of other possibilities may provide alternative avenues of exploration."

Bolton is a good multi-cultural model, says Bishop

The Bishop of Bolton has added his weight to claims that the Government is favouring Islam over other religions -and told ministers they should follow the lead of Bolton in bringing different faith groups together.

The Rt Rev David Gillett said he agreed with the conclusions of a paper prepared by the Archbishop of Canterbury's adviser, Canon Guy Wilkinson, which accused ministers of showing political preference to Muslims, sidelining the Church of England.

word of the day: perorate

perorate \PUR-uh-rayt\, intransitive verb:
1. To conclude or sum up a long discourse.
2. To speak or expound at length; to declaim.

These people don't talk, they perorate, pontificate, bombast. -- Jean Charbonneau, "Biographer's quest becomes self-searching journey", Denver Post, January 28, 2001

Our mother favored a staccato, stand-up style; if our father could perorate, she could condense. -- Annie Dillard, "The Leg In The Christmas Stocking: What We Learned From Jokes", New York Times, December 7, 1986

Culture and Mental Health: The place of identity and religion

27th November 2006 - www.bme-mentalhealth.co.uk - book online or download PDF for more information.

About the conference

Mental health care in the UK is embedded in Western science and medicine, which has historically been characterized by social exclusion and inequality. Mental health and illness are socially and culturally constructed. How appropriate is it to transfer western psychiatric diagnosis and treatment models onto an increasingly diverse UK population? How can we develop mental health services within both the voluntary and statutory sector that respect different cultural understandings? How can we foster closer working relationships between both sectors?

Cultural misunderstandings between patient, family members and clinicians, professional biases, and the fragmentation of mental health services still deter many minority communities from accessing appropriate care. Culture influences help seeking behaviors, coping mechanisms, social support systems and the extent to which stigma is associated with mental health problems. How can we as mental health professionals and service users and carers meaningfully challenge the traditional psychological and psychiatric approaches that seek to locate problems within the individual? How can we encourage mental health services to recognise the impact of spirituality and socio-political forces on health? How do we challenge the 'one size fits all' approach, which is dominant in the majority of mental health services? How do we develop mental health services that respect different cultural understandings? How can we encourage innovative practice?

The government and the Department of Health are committed over the next four years via the "Delivering Race Equality" initiative, to improving the experiences and outcomes for users, relatives and carers from Black and minority ethnic communities. This conference aims to support this work. This conference will attempt to explore the diverse effects of culture and society on mental health, mental illness, and mental health services. It will also encourage the exchange of different perspectives, ideas and practical suggestions to make our services more culturally competent.

foreign businesses "just don't get it" when it comes to diversity

US corporations such as Pitney Bowes, Xerox and General Electric have developed nationwide reputations for their inclusive hiring practices and for their belief that a diverse work force leads to enlightened business strategies.

But foreign-owned companies that have operations in the United States have a different attitude about inclusiveness, according to a Fairfield-based organization that annually posts its "America's Top Organizations for Multicultural Business Opportunities."

"They just don't get it. It's a different game. They're coming from homogeneous countries," said Kenton Clarke.

Ethnic diversity 'breeds mistrust'

Ethnic diversity seriously undermines the trust and social bonds within a community, according to important new research that casts a gloomy shadow over optimistic theories about the benefits of the social melting pot in immigrant societies such as Australia.

The worrying findings about the effects of ethnic diversity were developed by Robert Putnam, a Harvard University political scientist whose previous research on community dynamics has been highly influential among policymakers in the US and cited by Australian prime ministerial aspirants Peter Costello and Mark Latham.

new expat weekly launched

There was a need for a common platform for expatriates living all over the world, to say their stories, news, events, entertainment and their life. Expatriate Weekly is launched for all expats and non residents living worldwide and people with expat interest.

Germans fight back against English invasion

The deliberate mangling of the German language by generations of comedians has kept the British laughing since the end of the Second World War. Now the Germans are desperately trying to defend their tongue against a modern English invasion.

While the French have been fighting a losing battle against Franglais for years, the Germans are only now beginning to take seriously the threat to their language from the rise of Denglish – the bastard child of Deutsch and English.

Angered by the emergence of such phrases as "Das ist cool" (that is cool) and "Eine tolle latte to go" (one large milky coffee to take away), German politicians and academics are demanding that their language be enshrined in the country's constitution to save it from extinction.

Collaboration formed to take multilingualism forward

A national language centre in the UK will advise a European Commission on formulating the next stage of its policy on multilingualism. Isabella Moore CBE, Director of CILT, the National Centre for Languages, will meet with EU Commissioner Jan Figel throughout next year to discuss a broad range of topics including languages and research, new technologies for translation and interpretation and strategies to promote language learning.

Speaking on the joint initiative, she said: “We need to develop a better understanding of how multilingualism contributes not only to educational and cultural life, but to the functioning of our shared economy. This group provides a unique opportunity to share knowledge and develop our thinking and I am relishing taking part�.

English now the second language in most London primary schools

English is now a foreign language in most primary schools in central London, new figures have shown.

In 348 of inner London's 695 primaries, at least 50 per cent of the pupils do not have English as their mother tongue.

Primary schools across the capital are having to accommodate children with parents not just from traditional immigration hotspots such as Pakistan and Bangladesh, but also more recent arrivals from eastern Europe.

china to overhaul translations

Visitors to China wanting to exit a gallery or a shop are often confronted with signs that read, "Go Out," or "Way Out." There are even signs saying, "Export," which aptly recognize the visitors' international stature.

The owners and managers of places wanting to "export" their visitors do have an excuse. "Export" and "exit" are expressed in Chinese with the exact same characters. But there still needs to be more effort in this important area of public communication.

The English levels reflected in road signs, placards and tourist notice boards is not encouraging, considering China is to host the Olympics and the World Expo over the next few years.

word of the day: braggadocio

braggadocio \brag-uh-DOH-see-oh; -shee-oh; -shoh\, noun:
1. A braggart.
2. Empty boasting.
3. A swaggering, cocky manner.

. . .all charm and "aw shucks" humility one moment, full of braggadocio the next. -- David S. Broder, "An Opportunity Missed", Washington Post, January 26, 1995

David was charming, offsetting his usual braggadocio with vulnerability. -- Tom King, The Operator