The potential to challenge stereotypes
traces of superiority/inferiority tendencies, since he interviewed mainly community groups. However, FNS staff has heard Guatemalans express that their country is “underdeveloped”, and witnessed a strong admiration towards Norway in conferences and gatherings, so the argument could have some relevancy also in the Central American and other regional contexts.
As for The ELIMU Programme, we find examples where stereotypical views being confronted and challenged. The Sagene group, friends with Rio Banco in Brazilian Amazonas, emphasize the programme’s importance as myth breaker, which they argue is the best way to learn. They admit they had a romanticized image of people who live in nature, as living simple, uncomplicated lives, conservative towards their traditional culture. In meeting Huni Kuin they got challenged on all fronts. The indigenous group was in fact very interested in renewing themselves and in cooperation. Many took higher education, also on PHD-level. They met people entangled in a complex set
A story that can serve as inspiration in this regard is the following; when the Verdal – Homa Lime group visited the local major, the Kenyan guests posed the question “what can we do to become like you?” Although it surprised the Norwegians at first, the question opened up for discussions about problems the Norwegian society face; a “Most surprising was the fact that Huni Kuin lost sense of fellowship and took more pictures of the Norwegians than the belonging, loneliness, psychic illness, drug abuse and other way around” a high rise in the need for psychic institutions. As such, it served as an eye-opener to the need to nuance the of worries, including the struggle for visibility towards the image of Norway to the visitors, and an opportunity to Brazilian state. Most surprising was the fact that Huni Kuin enrich the partnership. We take this story as inspiration, took more pictures of the Norwegians than the other way and return to the opportunity to take partnerships beyond around. stereotypical imaginations also for the south participants under recommendations. For some members of the group Stjørdal - Panajachel it served as a lesson that despite of financial difficulties, the visitors from Guatemala had no interest of moving to Norway; 4.2.4 Cross-cultural competence they rather communicated an admirable sense of identity Figure 16 shows that for The Community Programme 93% and belonging, as well as strong family ties, positivity, on average answer 4 or 5 to the questions “I understand happiness and solidarity. In contrast to in ELIMU partneranother culture a lot better now” and 91% rate the stateships, in the community groups, issues of superiority and ment “I have a more open attitude to people different from inferiority complexes were not apparent in the partnerme” to 4 or 5. Both questions are fairly evenly distributed ships. The participants were glad to be part of the proin all the regions though Palestine had a perfect score gramme but they also had a strong identity and linkage in (100%) on the first question. The statistics clearly illustrate their home area. A possible explanation for this difference that the project goal to contribute to better understanding in the programmes could be the age of the participants. between different people in a diverse communities and Those in the community group are older with the majority between the North and the South is achieved by The of respondents being over 20 years, and most often Community Programme. Increased openness is discussed between 31 and 65 years, and hence more experienced in detail below, as well as the contributing factors social and able to see things a bit differently. This could also competency tools and methods for cooperation, and explain why our researcher in Central America saw few finally language and oral skills. Figure 16: cross-cultural understanding 1: “I understand another culture better now”
cross-cultural understanding 2: “I have a more open attitude to people different from me”
High (4) HighHighest (4) Highest (5) (5)
25 % 25 %
60 %
42 %
25 % 26 %
26 %
40 %
40 %
40 %
40 %
20 %
20 %
20 %
20 %
71 % 42 %
42 % 75 %
75 % 71 %
71 % 65 %
65 %
0%
0%
0%
0%
East & Southern Africa Norway
Norway Palestine
Palestine Central America
Central America Average
Average
42 %
71 %
65 %
58 % 65 %
100 % 58 %
59 % 44 %
59 %
East & Southern Africa
Average
Central America Average
Palestine Central America
Norway Palestine
East & Southern Africa Norway
East & Southern Africa
FNS Evaluation Report 2014
25 %
60 %
12 %
60 %
12 %
60 %
28 %
80 %
38 % 28 %
100 %
80 %
38 %
100 %
80 %
51 % 44 % 100 %
100 %
80 %
24 % 51 %
100 %
24 %
38
High (4) HighHighest (4) (5) Highest (5)