About us

Prof. Dr. Adelheid Iken

Professor for Intercultural Communication

Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg, HAW Hamburg)

I take great pleasure in sharing the knowledge and experience I have gained through a range of international assignments, both in development work and teaching, in countries such as the Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mongolia, New Zealand, Portugal and China. Furthermore, I relish the challenge of doing this through developing innovative ways of teaching and processing scientific evidence.

Andrea Voigt

Head of animacon – Business Consulting

I have many years of experience in virtual intercultural teamwork and also have led a global team in an international consulting company. As a trainer and coach I love to work and learn together with people from different backgrounds. So I really liked the creative work on the VIT course in a virtual intercultural team (!) where everyone shared ideas, insights and also: cookie recipes.  😉

Thu Phong Vuong

Head of China verstehen – Training & Beratung – Interkulturelle Kommunikation

"The problem with the world is that the fools are so sure of themselves, whereas the wise people are full of doubt" (Bertrand Russell).

Cross-cultural encounters have the power to take away our usual sense of security and cast doubt, but they are also an amazing chance to look beyond the horizon of our own upbringing.

For over 15 years, I have had the great pleasure of accompanying people from many different organizations on this journey as a consultant and coach – most recently with this course, which I hope you will enjoy.

Prof. Dr. Kirsten Nazarkiewicz

Professor for Intercultural Communication

Fulda University of Applied Sciences (Hochschule Fulda)

Before I was appointed as a professor for Intercultural Communication at Fulda University I have been working as a passionate trainer specialized on the topics of intercultural communication and (leading) virtual intercultural teams.

Digitalization and concurrent e-learning I consider as a huge chance for culture reflexivity, my favorite approach to foster multiplied perspectives and a flexible mind. I strongly believe that we need complex methods to tackle complex challenges.

Along the way, I relax at times by enjoying the simplicity of a mug of hot water. This always helps.

Prof. Dr. Yeliz Yildirim-Krannig

Professor for Intercultural Business Communication

Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW)

Putting theories and models into practical use to better understand intercultural encounters, and use science as a basis for reflecting on behaviour and develop strategies for actions are some of the strongholds of my contributions.

Dr. Peter James Witchalls

Course Management Coordinator, English Teacher

University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)

Yes I'm the voice behind those amusing videos! Please concentrate on the later ones because I seemed to get better as time went by!

I have a background in intercultural communication, coming from London but having lived in Germany for over 20 years. I also gained a PhD in the subject and now teach intercultural communication as well as applied English at Hamburg university. As well as writing one of the sessions, I also edited the English on the website, written by the star academics who I am proud to work with on this project.

Enjoy the course!

Holger Finke

When text layouts collapse into wild anarchy, when miserable placeholder notes show up instead of gorgeous images, and hyperlinks lead straight into "Error 404: Not found" nirvana, it is a great relief to know who is responsible for this flipping mess. Well, look no further: clearly, I am the one who blew it.

My secret hope is, however, that everything works quite as it should and that you will enjoy exploring the contents of this course as much as I enjoyed putting them into shape.

Olesia Zabavnova

Fulda University of Applied Sciences

Interculturality and team work have always been my passion.

Long before coming to Germany I started working in this sphere as a translator and interpreter.

This project charged me with valuable input. One more time did it prove that we all are so different and these differences make us so alike.

Elena Martou

Student Research Assistant

Master's Student of Intercultural Communication and European Studies at Fulda University of Applied Sciences

My favourite quote comes from Socrates:

"To know, is to know that you know nothing. That is the meaning of the true knowledge."

Marie Seeberger

Illustrator, Hamburg

Matthias Ries

Illustration & Animation, Hamburg

In consultation with the project leaders we took the basic ideas of the project and translated them into easily accessible visual language.

From this we developed a narrative context that helps users to understand abstract concepts by making them personally relevant. Hopefully this will motivate them and enable them to find their way onto the topic more swiftly.

Prof. Dr. Jürgen Bolten

Interkulturelle Wirtschaftskommunikation

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

Mathilde Berhault

Academic Assistant at the department Interkulturelle Wirtschaftskommunikation

Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena

At the Friedrich-Schiller Universität Jena we are, among other things, responsible for coordinating the Glocal Campus with regard to contents as well as the technical aspects, besides working in many third party funded projects. We enjoy travelling through the world on academic business and so, at the moment, we are hoping for this to be possible again soon. Digitally we are very active and we are always ready for pursuing new ideas and projects with enthusiasm.

Prof. Dr. Rüdiger Weißbach

Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg (HAW Hamburg)

As a business IT specialist, I am constantly working at the "seam" between IT and specialist discipline. This makes the topic of interdisciplinarity a central challenge.

Prof. Dr. Francisco Javier Montiel Alafont

Professor of Intercultural Business Communication

Karlshochschule – International University

I am a professor of intercultural business communication and expert in management and diversity. I think that, like a good Spanish red wine, life is brighter when its flavor is unexpected.

Jakob Kopczynski

Arbeitsstelle Studium und Didaktik

Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften Hamburg, HAW Hamburg)

I am a pssionate Media Educator and Media Producer, especially when it comes to open education. I like to help others to find the right digital tools and to use them wisely, always trying not to lose sight of the appeal.

Hamburg Open Online University

EduBoxes