2nd of 5 days of Blended mobility training, project US & THEM, funded by the ERASMUS + program, organized and streamlined by ANJAF in Lisbon. Today we counted with the presence of Dr. Jorge Humberto Fernandes panel streamliner "Adult Educators training on core competences to develop multicultural Skills and Dr. ° Cristina Afonso on the panel" communication and Multiculturalism ". A day full of content and Group activities, where everyone left more" rich "at personal and professional level.

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Projecto US & THEM, financiado pelo programa ERASMUS +, ANJAF.
Intervenção no Encontro da ANJAF
Tema orientador:
‘Adult educators training in core competencies to develop multicultural Skills’
Dia 27 de Setembro de 2016
Madams,
Gentlemen’s.
Dear colleagues,
Good Morning.
First of all, I would like to thank ANJAF, Sofia Silva and the other colleagues the invitation
and the opportunity to be here in order to share with you some experiences and
knowledge, achieved over the years regarding issues of multiculturalism and
interculturalism, both personally and professionally. I would also like to give you a warm
welcome and thank for your presence and your willingness.
I hope I can be useful in discussing some matters with the aim of achieving a certain
level of training in effective behavior in a multicultural context. Mainly about some tools
which may enable us to act positively in multicultural contexts.
My name is Jorge Humberto, I graduated in Communication, Marketing and Public
Relations, Master of Communication in Organizations, professional trainer in behavioral
areas and communication since 2002 (two thousand and two). I have wide experience
dealing with multicultural audiences especially the public with origin from African
Portuguese-speaking (Angola, Cape Verde, Mozambique, Sao Tome, Guinea), Brazilian

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and lately I have had some contacts with people from eastern Europe, Moldovans,
Ukrainians and other Europeans.
I was born in Angola, my mother/father was from Cape Verde but I grew up in Portugal.
I also have some American relatives because my father and some of my family live there.
Like any Portuguese-Cape Verdean I have family spread in the 4 corners of the world,
especially Europe, Africa and America. I live in the city of Amadora, which is a territory
with a strong presence of people originating from former Portuguese colonies in Africa.
I was an association leader and maintain a strong relationships with the Luso-migrant
associative movement specially the Luso-African associations. I am coordinator of the
Conference series called amarCulturas, and annually that since 2010 (two thousand and
ten) leads to Amadora city experts to discuss and share materials held in multiculturalism
/ interculturalism, policies and development. I am a consultant in communications,
marketing and public relations, and in the past, besides being a professor in Jean Piaget
Higher Institute, I directed a newspaper that was intended to the relations between
Portugal, Cape Verde, its Diasporas and the Lusophone community.
I contextualize myself in space, in time and in society in order to find that I am immersed
in these issues of multiculturalism, and after all we are part of a great multicultural
network unavoidable the today that we live. And thats good.
How is perfectly natural, the existence, permanence and the inter-social dynamic in the
multicultural context it is not easy and straight-line, and the cultural diversity restricted to
a specific space, territory, local or context whether professional or other, it is permissible
to friction, misunderstandings and finally to conflicts of several kinds. And it is here that
we as training professionals and as individuals interested in being able to solve the
problems that may arise, have to have a set of instruments at our disposal, so that you
can ... 1. Analyze and quickly assess the situation ; 2. stop and avoid conflict; 3.
Feed a new and harmonious situation.
So there is a set of assumptions or mechanisms of human-social nature, and even
political when means dialogue and negotiation with the others, that we should take to
minimize the possibility of conflicts of multicultural nature. That is, conflicts caused by
disagreement with others based on the difference of cultural background of the
interlocutors.

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Certain assumptions towards multicultural contexts are wrong, such as assuming that
others understand us perfectly and accept your messages passively, clearly and
positively. For example, those who belong to a different cultural background should
accept us as we are, but without us accepting them also with their cultural differences. It
is this acceptance of ease and ignorance towards the cultural experience of another
person that allows often radical behavior, discrimination and often violence. When we
talk about violence clearly we speak about all forms of violence that can have on other
people, groups, communities and territories that exists in the cultural difference before
us.
Given the cultural diversity the way we should go is the acceptance, interaction and
valorization of the multicultural context, with this serious, conscious and true position, we
are building a better world. Better in all aspects, being that, in the first place, we will avoid
the conflict even if there are clever ideas in confrontation, and the relations in the social
environment of cultural diversity, interculturalism, should allow us to build a strong
multicultural awareness. Thus, we present what I believe as the main instrument for
development and professional training; so that we can enjoy and help us grow positively
towards the multicultural contexts.
Video – Diversity – 7:39
In other words, we need to have or develop our Multicultural Awareness. Multicultural
Awareness involves our psychosocial ability of understanding, of sensitivity and
appreciation of the history, of experiences, of values and of the way of live of those who
have a different culture from ours. Being that differences the race, ethnicity, gender,
sexual orientation, religious or political orientation, socio-economic status, mental or
physical development.
This Social Multicultural Awareness confronts us with benefits that result from
multicultural relationship, such as an enhancement of our multicultural self-conscience
awareness of the other, develop new friendships, better relationships, ability to better
understand the differences, ability to overcome negative stereotypes, promotes good
relations and harmony and enables us to live in a multicultural world. Multicultural
Awareness will allowed us a relationship with others in a positive and harmonious way.

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To achieve the degree of Multicultural Awareness, in fact, the first step is with our reason
take contact that cultural diversity exists. Then, we must deconstruct in our minds the
negative stereotypes and proceed to the discovery of the differences as socio-cultural
enrichment factors. So with psychological availability we can increase our multicultural
awareness knowing the others culture, devote our time to know the history, the formal
and informal cultural aspects, learning new languages.
We can live with people from different cultures and their habits, visit anthropology
museums, museums about humanity, about ethnicity, about multiculturalism, attend
courses on cultural diversity, attend concerts, theaters and activities of other cultures.
These actions and others that you can identify will add value to the building of yours
positive Multicultural consciousness. You should never leave for the multicultural
relationship attached to negative stereotypes.
Multicultural Awareness is the key element in a positive assumption that differences
enrich individuals culturally and socially, and finally the groups, with clear benefits for
society.
But along this route for the construction and presence of the Multicultural Awareness, is
necessary the development of a set of psychosocial assumptions to allow us the
commitments needed to achieve harmony in multicultural relations. Obviously, these
goals are not achieved from one moment to another, but each of us must do their effort,
in our time, but always with the focus to be better in the future. Therefore, you will
contribute so that group and the society in which you operate can also return, be
consistent regarding the actions undertaken by its authors.
Video Workplace Diversity – 4:30
Knowing the weaknesses of multicultural contexts, knowing that whoever feels different
because of the unfriendly, open and available multicultural context can adopt bad
behaviors and little assertive attitudes ... it is here that we must apply our interrelationship
skills. But these abilities/skills, in some cases, are inborn or we can develop them, but
always with the focus that we want to reach a certain stage of Multicultural Awareness.
So we have, in this fragile contexts that allow conflicts of several kinds, develop the
capacity/the skill of Patience. Yes Patience. Patience is one of those compelling tools
that we must have and use, if we want to have a balance, healthy, harmonious and

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positive relationship. We have to know that because the multicultural context is based
on socio-cultural imbalances for obvious reasons, and often in interrelationship there is
a high tendency for lack of patience for the other. Here, we must apply our patience
capacity developed through the ages and training so that different points of view, different
forms of action and common understanding of something cannot generate conflicts. This
means that we have to have an attitude of tolerance towards what is different and not
allow us to comment on situations unknown to us, or simply that we do not agree. But
we will accept our interlocutor smoothly, open-minded and available to understand and
accept another person from different culture.
Another important element for the construction of Multicultural awareness can also be
based in Respect. Respect as a psychosocial element to a relation in multicultural
context, is an important ability that cannot be ignored, if we want to be positive in
multicultural contexts.
In this sense, respect as a fundamental value in social relations, is a basic capacity to
be developed or applied, it should be seen as fundamental to the acceptance of
differences. Multiculturalism implies different situations that goes from politics, religion,
sexual orientation, cultural and social norms of each people, of each ethnic or social
group, of each social cultural, of each social tribe, so we should have the ability to respect
all practices, whether professional or not. Of course, always in strict respect of space
and cultural social actions of each person, to not put into question the existence of each
one in its sphere of action and social and cultural interaction. If you don’t known, do not
comment, but go learn, go study, go take notice, so that in another similar situation you
can comment assertively and constructively.
The Sensitivity; it is another important element of ability which should be consciously
developed for achieving intercultural relations. This point obviously relates to all others
and is an aspect that many people may interpret as a weakness, but it is precisely the
opposite. The sensitivity to certain situations in intercultural relations in some
multicultural contexts is a proof of social maturity of the individual. Thus, in certain
situations such as when we are with someone who committed a gaffe or inadvertently
missed a procedure, we must with all the tranquility help him/her to overcome the social
embarrassment that might result therefrom.
This attention and consequent help, either taking account of the situation or correcting
the error, must be exercised wisely and smoothly. If we cannot help directly address the

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situation, we should look for someone who can make a contribution so that it can
minimize the embarrassment, the error, the conflict. So we value the other person, we
give importance to her/his message or action and give a sign of comfort in how she/he
can be calm. This sensitivity relation towards the socio-cultural differences is a sign of
multicultural awareness maturity.
The relations of multiculturalism or interculturalism can only be positive through the steps
and the capacitation we are being enunciating, but another capacitation factor that we
must also have to evidence, that guides, and success is our Will of Learning. Yes. Will
of Learning for all that is different for us, and that our readiness for learning about other
cultures, about the people who come from different cultural and social backgrounds infer
in us a challenge that leads us to act or not. Thus, our will of Learning about others
transmits the possibility of an environment and a good-will relationship. It is important
that our attitude towards the differences, the unknown, others in a multicultural context
should be honest, open and available. Only on this basis we can help build a free
environment of prejudices and stereotypes. Assuming the will of Learning it is already
implied that we will do it with good will in a sincere way, and that the purpose to achieve
this should be frank, with positive relations, and general development.
To finalize I could tell you more about one more ability that we should have for a
successful integration and relationships in a multicultural context, to the success and
development of individuals and organizations, that is the Communication Ability. But I
must have the necessary Sensitivity to understand that this issue will be addressed by
my colleague and I Respect the fact that she was the one chose to explain the subject.
I show also my Patience, despite the fact of my taste to talk about these matters of
Communication.
To short it, I must stress the importance that we should have for the Psychological
availability capacity to relate in a multicultural context in a consciously and humbly way,
assuming that relationships are moments of cultural enrichment of all parties involved,
open to the world and smoothly. A well-managed multicultural context may can be unique
moments of learning, development and enjoyment of travel through the various cultures.
Jorge Humberto Ramos Fernandes
Lisboa, 27 de Setembro de 2016