Presentation of the association

| VISION | VALUES | MISSION | ORIGIN | KNOW-HOW |

Vision

“Because it is easier to be enriched by our differences when we understand them”

TellUs dreams of a world where human beings can benefit from their diversity. Together, let’s be the reference in the promotion of a better understanding between cultures. Today, there are countless reasons to meet cultures other than your own: traveling, immigration, expatriation, or simply with your work colleagues, classmates or neighbors. Our differences are opportunities for exciting discoveries that inspire us, intrigue us and sometimes disconcert us. How can we rise above misunderstandings and prejudice? The TellUs Cultures Association is taking up this challenge by offering its members in Rio de Janeiro, Dubai, New Delhi or even Montreuil, Seine-St-Denis, Paris (France) or elsewhere, to share their experiences and discuss around different points of view! That’s right, we believe it’s easier to grow from each other’s differences once we understand them.

Values

The values carried by TellUs Cultures guide us in the actions we conduct. They were brought to light through a participatory process by all active members of the association. They are:

Understanding others
Co-creation
Freedom of speech
Open-mindness
Respect for diversity

Mission

The main mission of TellUs Cultures is to promote a better understanding between cultures.

This includes the following 5 missions:

1. Collect

Collect intercultural experiences, these moments of daily life that question or inspire us when we are in contact with another culture

2. Catalogue

Archive, translate and setup the collected intercultural experiences

3. Research

Research explanations and offer theoretical background

4. Presente

Showcase the intercultural experiences and debate on the questions they raise

5. Broadcast

Promouvoir le travail de l’association pour participer à une meilleure connaissance entre les cultures

Origin

Two French friends since high school in the Parisian suburbs, Eleonore and Marine initiated the ANEKDOTA project in March 2011 on the shores of the Bosphorus. One was settling in Istanbul, the other was coming from Mexico. During the many discussions about their intercultural experiences (these noteworthy moments you live in another culture), questions triggered by their conversation remained unanswered and they dreamed of accessing those who could provide them, thanks to their own experience. In June 2017, they expanded the team and registered the association TellUs Cultures. Obviously ‘Tell us cultures’ to invite us all to share about cultures but also ‘Tellus‘ for the goddess of the Earth in Roman mythology. This reminds us that our cultures are the product of one and the same planet. Intercultural experiences started coming in from all over the world and the TellUs team initiated research for leads to help explain them. These are uncovered with locals and experts in the field of interculturality. The association was then open to the public and continues to offer debates around the questions that arise from the collected experiences.

Know-How

Showcase the intercultural experiences of our contributors
Orally or in writing, to unload the emotions tied to the moment, grow from others’ life experiences and find answers to our questions, with the intent of promoting understanding between cultures.
Lead intercultural interviews
With people from all horizons who wish to share and yield their experience to the association in order to extend the TellUs collection, refine the leads to help explain experiences and nourish the actions we offer.
Identify and debate intercultural questions
To transcribe authentically what the authors of intercultural experiences underwent and focus our actions, by theme or culture.
Create a space for dialogue between cultures
To promote conversation between cultures, that is hardly ever spontaneous, we offer workshops, activities or interactive readings for our members or on demand, within a nonviolent framework, and produce content in four languages (English, French, Portuguese and Spanish).
Train independent and nomadic project managers
To benefit from one another’s skills, unify practices and coherently uphold the values of the association, everywhere in the world.

Should you require personalized services, the TellUs team will happily assess your needs and design with you the action tailored for you : please contact us.