Presentation on Afghan culture and best practices of working with newly arrived Afghans by Naweed Ahmadzai. Naweed is a first-generation immigrant from Afghanistan currently managing workforce development pathways to employment programs at the City of Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. He is an Afghan-American who grew up in Kabul, Afghanistan and came to the U.S. in 2009 as an exchange student and later applied for a political asylum. Naweed speaks from personal experience with insight for those working with and supporting newly arriving Afghan evacuees coming to Minnesota.
The presentation will address the following topics of interest:
- the context out of which Afghan evacuees are arriving to Minnesota (early and contemporary history)
- the diverse demographic of over 15 different ethnic groups in Afghanistan
- language and communication tips for better cross-cultural connecting
- some of the main differences between Western and Eastern interactions and concepts of time
- overview of gender and family structure and implications for the workforce
