What Do Conferences Do for You & Me?

I spent the past week attending back-to-back conferences in Boston, MA and Charlotte, NC. I attended these conferences to support the trends of education abroad, and work-integrated learning programs, and to market our programs and services. At Cultural Embrace, we organize programs that support students, alumni, faculty, and educational institutions to go abroad to enhance their academic, professional, and personal endeavors.

In Boston, colleges and universities' career service departments met together to discuss the trends of internships and cooperatives. The vision of many career services parallel the vision of Cultural Embrace, and how professional workforce may enhance student's education, and it's ability to improve continuous learning.

In Charlotte, the Forum of Education Abroad's conference brought faculty members who are passionate about education abroad under one roof. The conference focused on "articulating the vital nature of education abroad and the many benefits that it brings to students, organizations, institutions, communities and societies."

Cultural Embrace's Internship and Volunteer programs provide individuals and groups to go abroad to gain first-hand experience with large, mid and small size companies, non-profits, and NGOs throughout Africa, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, and Europe. We pre-arrange and guarantee placement based on one's work & education background, personal, professional, and academic goals with the needs and availabilities of the local employer and community.

Internship placements are classified as professional and technical jobs, such as but not limited to: architect, business, computers, engineering, nursing/medical, education, fashion, law, etc. Volunteer placements may be in similar related fields, but usually with non-profits, NGOs, and humanitarian efforts. Most placements are 'unpaid' due to visa regulations, with the exception of Brazil and China. Cultural Embrace tries to negotiate and encourage our local partners and employers to compensate our participants based on their work performance and duration (ie: airfare reimbursement, pocket allowance, transportation, meals, housing, sight-seeing activities, etc).

Our Teach and Work placements are great ways to get paid while you travel abroad. Paid teach opportunities are available for semester and year-long commitments in Mexico, Chile, Guatemala, China, India, and Thailand. Most schools require bachelor's degree in any major, and foreign language knowledge is helpful, but not required. Short-term unpaid tutor English placements are available in Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica, France, Italy, Spain, India, and China. These placements include room and board, which provide a very affordable way to travel abroad with flexible work schedule.

Work placements are available in the non-technical, childcare, farm, and hospitality fields. Cultural Embrace pre-arranges placements in France, Italy, Spain, and Germany, and provides job placement assistance in Australia and New Zealand for 18-30 years old of many nationalities.

Our Austin office will work with individuals and groups to learn more about their background skills, schedule, budget, and goals. We will phone interview, pre-screen, and help each participant prepare for a cultural experience abroad. Cultural Embrace has English-speaking local coordinators in every country we work with, so they work with the local employer, nonprofit, NGO, and make the local arrangements for housing, transportation, etc.

Attending conferences allow me to meet and discuss with education and workforce leaders about the latest trends and opinions of how to improve your future. It allows me to know what is needed, and how we may better serve you, schools, communities, and the world.

Embracing the Culture called Social Media

The time has come for me to bite the bullet and embrace...social media. You would think for someone that started a business, enjoys writing, and thrives off of connecting people to life-rewarding experiences, I would relish off of this phenomenon. Unfortunately, I tend to live in the Flintstones age when it comes to technology, yet I will put the turkey leg down, ignore the 'would ofs,' 'could ofs,' and 'should ofs,' and move forward, to say...WELCOME, and THANK YOU for reading this!

My friends, family, staff, and clients frequently ask me where I am, what I am doing, and how to keep in touch. I travel a lot to promote Cultural Embrace, attend industry conferences, visit sites, meet partners, see friends and family. So hopefully through my blogs, Twitter, Facebook, and other social media tools, together, we are able to connect, learn, grow, and explore exciting life-rewarding experiences. I stress the word, together, because I want to hear what you have to say, and encourage you to share your opinions, questions, and feedback.

I want you to know what Cultural Embrace is all about. You deserve to feel comfortable with a company that is trying to make you feel at-ease with going abroad. I started Cultural Embrace in 2002 as a direct result of 9/11/01 attacks. My main drive was to initiate peace, cultural sensitivity, and to re-awaken the 'tourism' industry, but selfishly, I wanted to combine my passion and 'hobbies'--travel, education, helping others, with work. (I'm sure I will blog more about C.E.'s history later, so if you have any questions, please ask away.)

I may have a lot to learn about utilizing social media, but am excited to keep you informed of what is going on at Cultural Embrace. So here is to another adventure...one that doesn't entail a passport, a map, or guidebook; but practice, for it to become my new hobby.