Intercultural Ambassadors

Project development with support from a staff mentor 

You will receive support from a staff mentor who will help you and your team deliver your allocated project.   

Some projects involve working with the local community outside campus, some projects involve running activity for students on campus, including activities that will be part of LUU’s World Unite Festival.    

You can express a preference for the type of project you would like to work on. You may not get your preferred choice, depending on demand, but we’ll definitely offer you a great project giving you the opportunity to inspire, connect and grow!  

Training sessions and socials events

You’ll receive training to help you deliver your project and develop your intercultural skills  and you’ll have  the chance to put what you have learned directly into practice while you’re on the programme.

Our training sessions will cover project management, teamwork, cultural awareness, event management and effective communication skills. There’ll also be socials that you can join after our sessions to connect with other ambassadors in an informal way. Please find a breakdown of our training sessions and social below.  

You will also present your project as part of our Intercultural Ambassador showcase!  

Networks and connections 

The Intercultural Ambassadors programme will give you opportunities for personal development and provide invaluable experiences that you can use when applying for jobs or future study.  

In addition to this, the programme aims to connect students from different study levels and help you build and maintain contacts with a network of people from a wide range of backgrounds.  

Crossing Boundaries

In collaboration with the Reach for Excellence team, Ambassadors created an interactive workshop for 200 16-17 year old school students, raising awareness of the diverse environment on campus and  offering advice on how to overcome fears and boundaries before and during their time at the University of Leeds.

Global Conversations

Ambassadors created a workshop with guest speakers and participants from different backgrounds on the theme of breaking stereotypes. Topics included gender discrimination, refugee crisis, racism, LGBTQIA+ rights and ageism which aimed to support an intercultural dialogue on global concerns and tap into the diverse experience of our University community.

 

Screening of the world

In collaboration with Hyde Park Picture House, Ambassadors hosted a film screening and group discussion about the themes of overcoming language barriers and experiencing cultural difference in the Indian 
film "English Vinglish”.

 

Intercultural Escape Room

As part of World Unite Festival, Ambassadors invited students to save the world from zombies in a zombie themed intercultural escape room. Watch the Intercultural Escape Room video time lapse 

 

Intercultural experiences for older people

Ambassadors brought intercultural experiences to older people at Moor Allerton Elderly Care. Pot painting and planting cultural flower seeds, and music from around the world, gave plenty of opportunities to exchange stories and interact with each other.

• Watch the intercultural experiences for older people video project.
• Read more about Maryam’s experience of taking part in this project!

Something new for guides

 

In collaboration with Girlguiding, Ambassadors celebrated and delivered activities for a local Guide and Ranger unit on International Women's Day. Activities included Trinidadian mask-making, Chinese paper cutting, Polish egg-colouring and a puzzle creation station to help children and teenagers broaden their understand of different people, culture and #embracequity. 

Community bistro

An evening bringing together students and local people, run in partnership with Rainbow Junktion Café. Ambassadors cooked up recipes from Asian countries using food that would otherwise have gone to waste, while keeping guests entertained with a quiz, live music and a K-pop performance, helping to raise over £600.

Watch the Community bistro video 

 

Happy to be here

On the UN's International Day of Happiness Ambassadors hosted a stall at Leeds University Union where students were invited to take a break and create cheerful, encouraging cards to spread happiness around campus.

Watch the ‘Happy to be here’ video 

Global Conversations 

Inspired by the concept of living libraries, Ambassadors hosted an event with different interactive stations related to the topic of "Cultural Preservation in the Modern World" during Leeds University Union's World Unite Festival. Station discussion topics included "balancing culture and religion with the modern workplace: the NHS", "museums and the dynamics of cultural preservation", "traditional culture in the modern world", and a "world festival moment photo station".

 

Crossing Boundaries 

In collaboration with the Reach for Excellence team, Ambassadors created an interactive workshop for 130 16-17 year old school students, raising awareness of the diverse environment on campus and offering advice on how to overcome fears and boundaries before and during their time at University. 

 

Intercultural Experience for Older People 

For this project, Ambassadors brought intercultural experiences to older people at Moor Allerton Elderly Care. Using Artificial Intelligence, the team created an image of "life at MAECare" which was hand drawn onto canvas for the participants to paint. A geography quiz and cultural snacks gave plenty of opportunities for Ambassadors and participants to exchange stories and interact with each other. 

 

#InspireInclusion  

On International Women's Day and as part of Leeds University Union's World Unite Festival, Ambassadors hosted a panel session with diverse staff and student panelists discussing various topics concerning gender equality. 

 

Something New for Guides 

In collaboration with Girlguiding, Ambassadors celebrated and delivered activities for a local Guide and Ranger unit. The Guides and Rangers drew Rangoli and learnt about Diwali, made cherry blossom and learnt about Sakura season in Japan and reenacted a scene from a classic Hong Kong film called the Chinese Ghost Story. 

 

Something New for Scouting 

In collaboration with Scouting, Ambassadors celebrated and delivered activities for a local Scout Unit. Activities included cultural photos, fun facts, stories, and cultural activities that included Ambassadors childhood games "Jianzi", played with chopsticks and "Oq teragim kolk terak". The unit listened and guessed traditional and modern cultural songs and tried lots of cultural snacks. 

 

Ambassadors into Schools  

In collaboration with Students Into Schools, two groups of Intercultural Ambassadors visited local state schools to share their passion and excitement for cultural exchange in a series of fun and engaging extra-curricular activities. 

 

What are the aims of the programme? 

• Help students and local people benefit from the global community of students at the University  
• Enhance students’ global employability and intercultural competence  
• Create meaningful interaction between people from different cultural backgrounds  
• Increase the number, variety and uptake of intercultural opportunities on campus and locally  

What projects are available? / How will I know which project I'll be working on? 

• During one of the initial training sessions, we will ask you to give us your project preferences. You will rate each project from 1 – 10.  
• We will decide who works on which project. We will consider what you have told us on your application, what your strengths and interests are, and how you work and interact with others.  
• Based on this information, we will create ten groups which we think will work well together as a team and on the project. 

What is the commitment? How much time will I spend on my project? 

If your application is successful, you must attend all training sessions and commit at least 2 – 4 hours a week to work on your project. This could include independent work, group work, meeting with your project mentor and completing preparation tasks  

What are we looking for in applicants? 

• Committed to attending all training sessions, completing project preparation work, and giving a significant number of hours to developing, delivering and evaluating a project  
• Open minded, with an interest in interacting with people from different backgrounds  
• Interested in enriching other peoples’ understanding of the world and able to motivate others to engage in intercultural activity  
• Able to work well in a team  
• Able to communicate clearly and confidently with a range of audiences  
• Able to listen effectively to others  
• Pro-active and able to use own initiative  

I’m disabled, can I join the programme? 

 Yes! As part of your application form you can tell us about any access requirements you’d like us to be aware of, including invisible disabilities. If you’d like to speak to a member of the project team about this before you apply please email globalcommunity@leeds.ac.uk.