Global Village Square

The Global Village Square series is designed to promote awareness of and appreciation for diversity of cultural customs, religious values/ practices, political understandings, and family traditions. GVS features speakers, performers, films, and international cuisine as diverse as our residents. The overarching goal is to provide a series of interactive events that nurture a global living learning community for the international (including American) community of Ann Arbor.

This semester, we are very excited to have U-M Ford School’s Diplomat inResidence, James Ellickson-Brown, presenting at ECIR on January 17 at 7PM. He has served in Cyprus, Greece, Haiti, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Norway. He will share stories on his experience working abroad for the U.S. Department of State.

In addition, our new board member, Raj Raja (Ramalingam Raja), will be presenting on theology and non-violence on March 14 at 7PM. He taught at Wayne Sate University and has extensive experience providing training on diversity. He is also a recipient of the Noble Peace Prize for his work on Gandhi.

We also have visiting scholars and graduate students among our residents who will be contributing their creativity, knowledge and expertise. Levon Petrosyan, for instance, is a Religious Studies scholar who is currently teaching a course on Armenian Christianity through the U-M Near Eastern Studies Program. He will present on Ecumenical Dialogues on February 8 at 7PM.

We have many other events, which are listed on the schedule. All the events are free and open to the public.

Global Village Square Winter 2012 Schedule

Global Village Café

Jan. 13, Fri. at 6:00 PM

International cuisine prepared by residents and shared with friends, neighbors, & strangers followed by salsa dancing lessons taught by residents, Maya Ben-Ari and Mert Turkol.
Global Village Lifeways

Jan. 17, Tues. at 7:00 PM

James R. Ellickson-Brown, diplomat in residency at the Ford School of Public Policy shares his experiences while working for the U.S. Department of State . He has served in Cyprus, Greece, Haiti, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Norway.
Global Village Voices

Jan. 25, Wed. at 7:00 PM

Residents share original written work. Mary Daniel is a fellow in theU-M creative writing program. Olujide Adebayo Begun specializesin fiction in the same program. Suzanne Mol is a visiting scholar atthe U-M School of Education researching early childhood literacy
Global Village Lifeways

Jan. 31, Tues. 7:00PM

Dr. Bruce D. Martin, Director, ECIR, & Cultural Educator/Field Officer for the Great Lakes Region at Penn State University, explores indigenous ways of learning and knowing among the Ojibwe.
Global Village Voices

Feb. 8, Wed. at 7:00 PM

Resident and visiting scholar, Levon Petrosyan, presents on religion and ecumenical dialogues. He has taught classes such as. The Economics of Religion and Armenian Christianity.
Global Village Theater

Feb. 17, Fri. 7:00PM

The documentary, Home,  explores the diversity of life on Earth and how humanity is threatening the ecological balance of the planet.
Global Village Café

Mar. 9, Fri. 6:00PM

International cuisine prepared by residents and shared with friends,neighbors, & strangers. Connecting and building the community.
Global Village Voices

Mar. 14, Wed. 7 :00PM

Raj Raja, new ECIR board member whose father worked along side Gandhi, will be presenting on topics of theology, non– violence, and global diversity.
Global Village Voices

Mar. 20, Tues. 7:00PM

Judy Dyer from the U-M English Language Institute presents. She has worked in China, France, Britain and the Czech Republic. Her interests include the teaching to international and Generation 1.5 students, language and identity, dialects and language acquisition.
Global Village Café

Mar. 30, Fri. 6:00PM

International cuisine prepared by residents and shared with friends, neighbors, & strangers. Connecting and building the community.
Global Village Voices

Apr. 4, Wed. 7:00PM

Resident and PhD candidate in economics at U-M, Bill Lincoln, presents his research on the H1-B Visa and Innovation in the US.
Global Village Theater

Apr. 13, Fri. 7:00PM

Filmed using time lapse photography, Baraka  is a kaleidoscope, a global compilation of both natural and human events on Earth. It includes footage of various landscapes, churches, ruins, religious ceremonies, and cities thrumming with life.