The world is getting smaller, but people of different cultures still face immense challenges identifying with one another. Air travel, the internet, 24-hour media — these things can help expose us to different perspectives, but overcoming a lack of cultural understanding can sometimes require more than that.
Simply being aware that other cultures exist doesn’t help you become more inclusive. Instead, you have to make a real effort to incorporate new ideas into your life and ask questions. Gaining some context can genuinely help you identify with people of different backgrounds. Here are some ways that you can do that.
Visit Your Friends Abroad
Travel seems like the easy answer, but keep in mind that these days, it’s possible to venture very far from home without abandoning the security of a culturally homogenous experience.
Instead of staying at resorts and spending time with tour groups, you can gain some cultural insight by visiting people you know who live around the world. There’s no better host than one that can bring an authentic perspective to the place you’re visiting, and if you don’t speak the local language, having an interpreter can really open up doors. You’ll come away feeling a much closer connection to the place you visited.
If you don’t know anyone who lives abroad, look for ways to break away from the norms of staying in popular foreign areas and doing all the popular tourist activities. It will make for a more real experience.
Borrow a Dish from a Different Culture
Food has become one of our forms of expression as human beings — it transcends cultural and ethnic bounds. Cuisine from all around the world has heavily influenced our menu in the west. Access to specialized ingredients is good, because this means you can try your hand at making unique dishes without much hassle.
When you do, you’ll probably learn interesting things about the culture from the recipes. You’ll come to understand that culture a little better as a result, while expanding your palate.
Host a Student or Au Pair
The desire to travel and form new connections exists around the world. Many people who wouldn’t otherwise get the opportunity would love to visit the USA with you as their host. You can do this rather easily through foreign exchange programs, and parents or guardians can choose to do something enriching for their whole family such as hosting an Au Pair to live with you and help take care for your children.
Living around someone from a different culture is the best way to encourage an exchange of cultural ideals. You’d probably have to literally try not to learn any new words or try tasty new dishes.
Take in Some Foreign Lit or Film
Have you been avoiding foreign movies because they force you to read subtitles? Stop it! They’re a great way to get a look at other cultures — both how they are represented in the film and the filmmaking style. Bollywood movies are a huge part of Indian culture, for example, and they’re very different from what we know in the US.
The same is true of reading material. You can find the works of famous authors translated into many languages. These books can begin to expose you to new cultural ideas. If nothing else, read about world news on the regular. The importance of international news cannot be understated.
Read Travel Blogs
Even if you haven’t been out to experience many new places, you can get a feel for them by reading other people’s accounts. These days there are so many bloggers who post regularly from all corners of the globe that it’s possible to do research on just about anywhere. If you’re planning a trip, you should check these out.
Look in Your Own Backyard
Being cultured isn’t just about traveling — you are immersed in the culture where you live 24 hours a day. Sometimes we forget about that, and you can probably find many fun and interesting new things to do by getting out and exploring what’s going on around you. Check a local newspaper for events happening near you. There’s almost a guarantee that something new and exciting is coming up.
Opening up your worldview to incorporate new ideas and different perspectives can only help you relate to your fellow human beings and identify with strangers in ways you never could before. It’s one of the most rewarding things you can do, and with a little thought, it’s pretty easy.
Kate is a health and political journalist. You can subscribe to her blog, So Well, So Woman, to read more of her work and receive a free subscriber gift! https://sowellsowoman.com/about/subscribe/