What exactly does it mean to be a close friend? With smart phones, social media and the Internet, the technical barriers to making new friends and keeping up with old ones have all but disappeared. What remains are more subtle borders resulting from cultural diversity, and these can be much more perplexing to navigate. These cultural differences in close friendships are the primary focus of Friends Beyond Borders.It turns out that we in the U.S. think quite differently about our friendships compared to people in many other cultures around the globe. Cross-cultural research shows that people from various cultures can have very different, even conflicting, ideas about what it means to be a good friend. One's friendly intentions can be seen as patently unfriendly by someone from another culture—they simply wouldn't fit with how others think about, feel about, and behave toward their close friends. In Friends Beyond Borders, Roger Baumgarte demystifies these differing approaches to friendship. He describes six distinct cultural styles of close friendship, each comparing what might be typical in the U.S. with what would be found in contrasting cultures. Although each culture might have a dominant style of friendship, he makes it clear that all six of these styles can be found within any given culture, especially one as diverse as the U.S. You will come away from this book thinking about your own friendships, whether or not they cross cultural borders, in new and creative ways. You might very well gain a renewed enthusiasm for your closest friends. Beyond cultural issues, there's also a chapter devoted to Facebook, taking primarily a social research perspective, attempting to explain and defend clearly and empirically what social media have to do with close friendships. The results of these studies surprised even the author. There's a chapter entitled “Friends make good medicine” which reviews the empirical research demonstrating the numerous benefits, including health benefits, of cultivating close and satisfying friendships. People who regularly make time for their friends tend to live much longer, have lower levels of stress, and are even less likely to catch a cold. These are but a sampling of those benefits.Friends Beyond Borders will inspire you to invest more in your close friendships, and help you to appreciate more fully these important people in your lives. Written with a touch of humor and genuine affection, Friends Beyond Borders offers both a researcher's perspective and numerous personal anecdotes about the roles that culture and gender play in our experience of close friendship.

Across half a century, from the division of Germany through the end of the Cold War, a cohort of thirty women from the small German town of Schönebeck in what used to be the GDR circulated among themselves a remarkable collective archive of their lives: a Rundbrief, or bulletin, containing hundreds of letters and photographs. This book draws on that unprecedented resource, complemented by a set of interviews, to paint a rich portrait of “ordinary” life in postwar Germany. It shows how these women—whether reflecting on their experiences as Nazi-era schoolchildren or witnessing reunification—were united by their complex interactions with official power and their commitment to sustaining a shared German identity as they made the most of their everyday lives in both the GDR and the Federal Republic.

"Friendship Beyond Borders: An Informal Guide for Expats Seeking Connections" is a comprehensive and engaging guide that provides practical strategies for expats eager to create authentic and meaningful connections in their new overseas environment. In the book, you will discover how to best prepare for the experience of living abroad, managing anxiety, and leveraging online resources to connect with like-minded individuals. You will explore various ways to meet new people, participate in group activities, attend social events, and utilize social media. This book will lead you in breaking the ice and forming authentic relationships, emphasizing the importance of being yourself, actively listening, and finding common ground with others. You will address common challenges faced by expats, learning how to overcome loneliness, language barriers, and cultural differences, while acquiring tools to tackle any obstacle with determination. You will uncover the value of both friendships with locals and fellow expats, appreciating diversity and enjoying the unique benefits that each type of friendship can offer. Lastly, you will learn to maintain lasting friendships and extend your support to newcomers, creating a network of mutual assistance in this international adventure. "Friendship Beyond Borders" is essential reading for anyone seeking to live an overseas life enriched by authentic and meaningful connections. You will be fully equipped to explore new horizons and build deep bonds with the world around you.

What if the traditional narrative about immigrant women--that those who come to the United States will succeed as long as they work hard, stay focused, and have supportive families--is a lie? Of the 73 million women in the US workforce, 11.5 million are foreign-born. The truth is--even in the midst of headlines and political debates about immigration reform and in the wake of MeToo and other female-centric movements--millions of immigrants, especially women, aren’t living their fullest potential. Based on her personal experience and the stories of trailblazing women from around the world and in diverse industries, author Chinwe Esimai shares five indispensable traits that make an ocean of difference between immigrants who live as mere shadows of their truest potential and those who find purpose and fulfillment--what Chinwe refers to as their immigrace: Saying yes to your immigrace, an immigrant woman’s expression of her highest purpose and potential Daring to play in the big leagues Transforming failure Embracing change and blending differences Finding joy and healing These five traits are the foundation of the Brilliance Blueprint, a step-by-step guide to help readers achieve to their own extraordinary results and build their own remarkable legacies.

*"This superb anthology of short stories, comics, and poems is fresh, funny, and full of authentic YA voices revealing what it means to be Mexican American . . . Not to be missed."--SLC, starred review *"Superlative . . . A memorable collection." --Booklist, starred review *"Voices reach out from the pages of this anthology . . . It will make a lasting impression on all readers." --SLJ, starred review Twenty stand-alone short stories, essays, poems, and more from celebrated and award-winning authors make up this YA anthology that explores the Mexican American experience. With works by Francisco X. Stork, Guadalupe Garcia McCall, David Bowles, Rubén Degollado, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo, Diana López, Xavier Garza, Trinidad Gonzales, Alex Temblador, Aida Salazar, Guadalupe Ruiz-Flores, Sylvia Sánchez Garza, Dominic Carrillo, Angela Cervantes, Carolyn Dee Flores, René Saldaña Jr., Justine Narro, Daniel García Ordáz, and Anna Meriano. In this mixed-media collection of short stories, personal essays, poetry, and comics, this celebrated group of authors share the borders they have crossed, the struggles they have pushed through, and the two cultures they continue to navigate as Mexican Americans. Living Beyond Borders is at once an eye-opening, heart-wrenching, and hopeful love letter from the Mexican American community to today's young readers. A powerful exploration of what it means to be Mexican American.

This book asks how we understand the relationship between ethics and power in humanitarian action.