Personally, being questioned about my level of global citizenship before attending the International Business Study Tour the response would have been quite positive. However, during the study tour, we tangibly experienced other cultures, causing a startling realization that my internal definition of global citizenship was figuratively accurate yet substantially different than reality. The definition of global citizenship normally contains many elements including awareness of culture, language, social relationships, and politics. Further definition of global citizenship extends to elements such as different types of food, entertainment, social functions, behaviours, and conventions which are quite unfamiliar. Surprisingly, knowing about language barriers is much different than experiencing them in person especially when being placed within an unfamiliar city. Applying this logic to other circumstances serves to highlight the potential for miscommunication especially with respect to complex political topics.

Considering, the study tour is nearing completion and we have experienced three distinct countries, with three distinct national identities, histories, languages, cultures, foods, and entertainment styles, our level of global citizenship has certainly developed. Originally, in Vienna, the differences seemed substantial and somewhat overwhelming. However, entering each new country we were provided with opportunities to exercise our newly developing skill set. Slovakia was easier to navigate than Vienna, and Budapest was easier to navigate than Slovakia, which directly resulted from skills learned during this study tour. Basically, the skills learned throughout the tour have prepared us for interacting with cultures on an international basis. Knowledge of the laws, institutions, and businesses in each respective country have provided multiple perspectives on important characteristics for consideration. In summary, being a global citizen involves personal willingness to interact with new cultures, learn new languages, try new foods, develop patience and keeping an open mind. 

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John and Cassidy