As an immigration paralegal, you will interact with diverse populations on a daily basis. You will work for and alongside people who are similar and different from you. You will have clients from all over the world, with a wide variety of life experiences. This semester we are going to read The Culture Map by Erin Meyer and I hope it will help inform our understanding of U.S. immigration law and how we, as paralegals, can best serve the goals of our diverse clientele as well as work effectively and productively with bosses and coworkers of different cultures in law firm, nonprofit, or government office settings.So, to get us started, I want you to think about who you are and how you approach engaging with others, similar or different from you (recognizing that diversity can mean thingsseen and unseen).

• What does "culture" mean to you? How would you define your culture?
• Are you aware when you are interacting with someone from a different culture? How can you tell? Do you change how you interact with people of different cultures?
• Can you share with us a situation in which you feel like you handled a conflict of culture well (in your personal or work life)? How was it resolved and what do you think specifically helped to make all parties feel satisfied with the outcome?
• After reading the introduction to The Culture Map, how is the author Erin Meyer defining "culture"? What are the author's goals for her book- what do you think she wants us to get out of it? What do you want to get out of it?