University of North Carolina Center for Global Initiatives

Most UNC programs and funders working with students conducting international service, service-learning, internships and/or research offer general information on liability, health and safety, and logistics to help prepare participants for their experience.

The GO! Initiative is designed to help students evaluate expectations, anticipate potential cultural and ethical challenges, prepare for engagement in communities, and develop intercultural competencies. In addition, GO! provides an avenue for students to network and interact with others traveling to similar areas of the world. Upon their return, students will have the opportunity to get together at a peer gathering to discuss their experiences as well as strategies for readjustment and remaining connected to important issues and populations they engaged with abroad. GO! will:

• provide an introduction to intercultural competency
• address challenges of working with non-governmental organizations, community-based organizations, and communities
• provide a framework for addressing ethical issues of working in communities
• address the importance of sustainability and the potentially negative effects of unsustainable efforts
• provide information on country and culture specific issues, values, and norms
• provide information about health and safety issues (country/region specific, where possible)
• help students develop more realistic expectations about their time abroad
• encourage students to be responsible for learning in advance about the region and country where they are traveling