"Look Who's Talking"...at the 2020 Conference!
Mar 16, 2020We are excited to announce two of our invited speakers to you at this time. Our Opening Keynote Speaker is Shannon Murphy Robinson, M.A., CEO of BrainSkills@Work. Robinson is a highly sought-after organizational consultant, trainer and speaker as well as a long-time member of SIETAR USA. Robinson is a leader in the field of neuroscience and especially in how it relates to intercultural competence and development.
Dr Mai Nguyen Phuong, Associate Professor and Lecturer at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences will present the Plenary address for the Mind Track. With a background in journalism, cross-cultural management and leadership and change, Nguyen’s recent work bring a sharp focus on how the workings of the Mind affect our effectiveness in global contexts.
In recent interviews with Shannon Murphy Robinson and Dr. Mai Nyugen, Board Member Karen Lokkesmoe had an opportunity to learn more about their work and what they will be highlighting in their respective talks at the conference in October.
Meet Shannon Murphy Robinson, Opening Keynote Speaker at the 2020 National SIETAR Conference, Mind, Culture, Society.
WHAT LED YOU TO THIS FIELD - ESPECIALLY INTO THE INTERSECTION OF NEUROSCIENCE AND INTERCULTURAL WORK?
It started with a lifelong love of other cultures. Additional explorations of Mind/Body connections started me thinking about how the mind impacts how we react to others. Then, when my daughter was born with Down's Syndrome I really began to explore the connection of the neurological aspects with behavior and learning capacity. At first, I was concerned about all the negativity and focus on limitations and lack. However, the more I explored and learned about biochemistry and brain function I was encouraged. I discovered good news not only for my child, but for others as well. Having already been engaged in the intercultural arena, I naturally saw connections between what I was learning and human behavior when encountering differences.
WHAT CAN PEOPLE EXPECT TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR KEYNOTE ADDRESS AT THE CONFERENCE?
I will focus on two main points. First, neuroscience is much more prominent today with a great deal of research and publications. We now know that culture is hard-wired into the brain at a very deep level. Knowing how and where the brain learns, stores, and uses cultural information and behavior patterns helps us to know how to assist people in identifying their own hard-wiring as well as seeing ways to bridge cultural differences. Second, people tend to react from fear - fight or flight. Knowing how the brain works allows us to develop strategies to reprogram our responses to be more effective when working across areas of difference. Part of the exciting news in brain science is that our brains keep learning all our lives. We don’t quit learning as we grow older. This offers great promise for building greater collaboration across cultures.
WHAT IS SPECIAL FOR YOU ABOUT SIETAR AND THE SIETAR CONFERENCE? WHO DO YOU THINK SHOULD ATTEND?
SMR: For me personally, it’s the people, the community - it’s home. It’s my professional home. I don’t ever have to worry about someone wondering why I do this work - they just know. It’s also a great place to learn, and share the latest trends or research and get feedback. What works, what resonates with people, what is ready to take to the next level.
If you are someone who works across areas of difference, who wants to learn how to be more effective, how to help your teams or your company be more successful in the global marketplace - SIETAR’s conferences are right for you whether you work in education, the corporate sector or the public sector - you’ll find information, knowledge and resources to use.
Meet Dr Mai Nguyen Phuong, Plenary Speaker in the Mind Track and Guest Speaker for the April SIETAR USA Webinar: Change Management with Insight from Brain Science.
Q: WHAT LED YOU TO THIS FIELD - ESPECIALLY INTO THE INTERSECTION OF NEUROSCIENCE AND INTERCULTURAL WORK?
It was a combination of life circumstances and a happy accident. I have lived in three countries. and can honestly say that I feel at home in all three. Recently, a customs agent in Australia welcomed me back home as I went through security—I really feel more a citizen of the world. This led to a natural interest in multiple cultures. My early work was in global leadership and change management, but I kept asking myself how and why? How do we know what we know? Why do certain strategies work while others fail? Then, the happy accident—my partner gave me a book, Wired for Culture by Mark Pagel where I started to find some answers, and many more questions. The exploration of these questions led to a great deal of research and ultimately to the pursuit of a Masters of Applied Neuroscience.
Q: WHAT CAN PEOPLE EXPECT TO TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR PLENARY ADDRESS AT THE CONFERENCE AND YOUR WEBINAR IN APRIL?
My main message is about Hope and Hype. I will debunk some of the misconceptions or hype about neuroscience and interculturalism. In some cases, there are those who are misappropriating the research to excuse biases and intolerance. However, we must always be seeking, asking questions, challenging our current knowledge and understandings. This is how we grow and develop as interculturalists and as effective global leaders. We must continue to embrace ambiguity. I will also outline how what we are learning through the intersection of intercultural and diversity, equity, and inclusion work with neuroscience provides a widening knowledge base to better understand behaviors and challenges and to develop more effective strategies for success. An interdisciplinary approach gives us great hope for the future.
Q: WHAT IS SPECIAL FOR YOU ABOUT SIETAR AND THE SIETAR CONFERENCE? WHO DO YOU THINK SHOULD ATTEND?
SIETAR is special to me because it is inherently interdisciplinary. It draws on academia from a range of fields (communications, leadership, management, etc.) as well as from practitioners. It brings together people who work in domestic diversity and social justice and equity as well as those working internationally. We make each other stronger. I feel like I can have a great conversation with anyone at the conference and learn something valuable.
As far as who should attend, really anyone who works with diverse populations. Sharing and learning from each other in research and practice provides answers and questions to keep us growing.
FINAL NOTE: Mai is an engaging, energetic, and inspiring professional with a solid grounding in research and science as well as application in the field as a consultant. You won’t want to miss either of these opportunities to hear her speak.
