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Tonight, the International Diplomacy students experienced the Cross-Cultural simulation! In this simulation, the students are split into two groups across the hotel from each other. Each group is given their own distinct cultural group with their own nuances to communication and trade. After the groups learn their own culture, they send “visitors” to the opposing culture to observe and interact. These visitors are tasked with decoding the other culture’s language, values, and trade practices, and reporting back to their own group. Eventually, the teams try to communicate with each other, but with limited success due to not properly understanding the other culture. This activity lets the students experience in a hands on way just how challenging it can be to negotiate and communicate across cultural lines, and shows them just how important open-mindness and understanding is to International Diplomacy.