Diaspora Seminar Series

The GW University Seminar on Diasporas, Policy, and Development brings together scholars from the Greater Washington, DC area to present research in progress and completed, exchange ideas, and generate new understandings about the relationship of diasporas to development. For information or to request to join, please contact diaspora@gwu.edu

2007 DIASPORA SEMINAR SERIES

Diaspora Seminar Series
BRIDGING THE DIASPORA-HOMELAND CULTURAL DIVIDE: Diaspora Organizations and Homeland Investment
February 1, 2007

Little is known about why diaspora members invest in their homelands or why investment intensity varies among diaspora communities. The authors draw on theory from anthropology, economic psychology, international business, and sociology, to generate a multi-level conceptual model of diaspora homeland investment. Their model examines the effects of inter-diaspora cultural differences, diaspora organization support, and three types of investment expectations—financial, social, and emotional—to shed further light on this phenomenon.

About the Authors:
Tjai Nielsen is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Behavior and Development in the School of Business at The George Washington University (GWSB).  He earned his doctorate in Industrial and Applied Psychology from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville and holds his undergraduate degree in Psychology from Virginia Tech.  Dr. Nielsen has authored more than 25 research articles, book chapters, and technical reports on cultural intelligence, cross-cultural management, and work teams and has conducted more than 20 refereed presentations at national conferences across the country.  Recently, Dr. Nielsen received a Best Reviewer Award from the Academy of Management at its 2004 annual meeting.  He currently serves as an editorial board member for the Journal of Organizational Behavior and the journal, Group & Organization Management.  He teaches in the full-time, part-time, and executive MBA programs and teaches the primary research methods course for GWSB doctoral students.

Prior to joining GWSB, Dr. Nielsen worked as a management consultant for RHR International, a premier corporate psychology consulting firm founded in 1945.  In this role he worked with a variety of organizations within the retail, service, pharmaceutical, chemical, and utility industries in North America, Europe, and the Middle East.  Dr. Nielsen is a member of the Academy of Management, the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and the American Psychological Association.

Liesl Riddle is an Assistant Professor of International Business and International Affairs at The George Washington University.  She holds a BA and MA in Middle Eastern Studies, a MBA in International Business, and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Texas at Austin.  Dr. Riddle has written extensively on the topics of trade and investment promotion and diaspora roles in homeland economic development.  She co-authored the first diaspora-focused article to appear in the top international business journal, The Journal of International Business Studies in 1999.  She has conducted fieldwork in Egypt and Turkey and among Middle Eastern diaspora communities in the USA.  She is one of the founding members of GW’s Research Program on Diasporas, Policy, and Development.  She is also the faculty coordinator for GW’s Center for International Business Education and Research (CIBER) Research Program on Business and Society in Critical Countries.  Dr. Riddle teaches executive, graduate and undergraduate courses, including Cross-Cultural Management, Managing in Developing Countries, and International Marketing.  She has won several teaching honors; she recently received the 2006 GWU School of Business Teaching Excellence Award. Prior to entering academia, Dr. Riddle was the director of research for an international market research company.

2007 EDITION of the DIASPORA SEMINAR SERIES

“Development Finance via Diaspora Bonds: Track Record and Potential”

Thursday, October 25, 2007, 12 - 1:30 PM, Duques Hall 357

Dr. Dilip Ratha, Senior Economist at the World Bank

"Political Involvement of the Jewis Diaspora in Israeli Politics"

Monday, November 12, 2007

Dr. Yossi Shain, Professor of Diaspora Politics, Georgetown University and Professor of Political Science and Head of Hartog School of Government, Tel Aviv University

"Kindship and Disporas in International Affairs"

Monday, November 12, 2007

Dr. Yossi Shain, Professor of Diaspora Politics, Georgetown University and Professor of Political Science and Head of Hartog School of Government, Tel Aviv University

"Perfect Political Diaspora"

Friday, November 16, 2007, 12 - 1:30 PM

Dr. Peter Spiro, Charles R. Weiner, Professor of International Law

"Leveraging Remittances: Best Practices"

Thursday, December 6, 2007, 12 - 1:30 PM, Duques Hall 357

Dr. Manuel Orozco, Senior Associate and Executive Director of Remittances and Rural Development Project, Inter-American Dialogue