At FEBA, both staff and students are concerned about how to turn our faculty and university into a real international community in which students from a large variety of nationalities are keen on working in multicultural teams. At this moment we have quite a few foreign students, but they seem to mingle only reluctantly and preferably with students from the same nationality. Although this is understandable, we must train students to leave this part of their comfort zone and to seek to study in an international community. Wim Swaan, the intercultural co-ordinator at FEBA, has convinced me that getting to know each other and building confidence and credibility across students is key in working in international teams. Over the weekend I was thinking about these issues when I participated in De Nacht van Gulpen.
De Nacht van Gulpen is a walking tour of 70 km in the “Heuvelland”. The start is on a Saturday evening at 22.30 (10.30 PM) and the first 60km you walk in a group with a speed of strict 6 km per hour, which is quite fast in particular given the hills that are part of the track. In the last 10 km you can choose your own speed (see www.nachtvangulpen.nl).The arrival in Gulpen (the day after, around 14.00 (2 PM)) is fantastic with a lot of people alongside the track and the survivors receive a big welcome. I have walked De Nacht myself once (more will come) and last weekend my 2 sons participated (and succeeded) while I was catering them during the Nacht. While I was catering and talking to a lot of people I remembered that when I walked De Nacht, I actually met quite a few people that I did not know before. But “the common suffering” made it quite easy to start small talk during the tour and to help each other through the night. Might it be a good idea if a group of international students (say 20 students and at maximum 2 students per nationality in the group, preferably the students have met before only occasionally) would take the challenge to walk De Nacht. Walking De Nacht is an excellent opportunity to mingle up with colleague students and share experiences. There is ample time for this. I will be more than happy to organize the “pampering” during De Nacht and see to it that you will get a warm welcome in Gulpen. When? 12-13 June 2010.