The International Academy for Leadership in Business and Administration proudly announces its new program "Golden Fleece – the Georgian Contribution to the World". Preliminary events have been held at the Davos World Economic Forum, the U.S. Congress, and Harvard University . Most recently, we presented the program at the World Heritage Conference in Tbilisi, on July 15, 2010, which was attended by representatives of the United Nations, as well as by members of the parliament and the government of the Republic of Georgia.

Why the "Georgian contribution to global culture"?

For a number of years now, we have been "looking at Georgia through the eyes of foreigners." To be precise, we have been collecting recent narratives of people who had an enriching experience in connection with Georgia . These narratives are from American and European businessmen, scholars, administrators, artists and students. Their experiences are experiences of living, working, or traveling in Georgia, as well as of interacting with Georgian friends and partners and their culture. The stories clearly show that there are a number of unique features of the Georgian culture, which are important and useful for members of the global community to know about. In short, people can learn something from Georgia and the Georgians, or in other words, Georgia and Georgians have something to give to the world. The first goal of our program is to demonstrate and explain this Georgian contribution as precisely as possible, and the second goal are to disseminate these insights as widely as possible.

Why the "Golden Fleece"?

The "Golden Fleece" is an appropriate metaphor for the "Georgian contribution." It refers to the well-known Greek myth about Jason and the Argonauts, who crossed the Black Sea from Greece in search of the legendary "Golden Fleece" – a symbol of wealth and abundance. Their quest found success in the Kingdom of Colchis, which was situated in today's Western Georgia . Therefore, we suggest comparing present-day visitors to Georgia to the Argonauts seeking and finding the deepest values of contemporary Georgian culture.

Who are the "Global Georgians" and what is their role?

In recent years, a new layer of Georgian society has developed, a group of people we call "Global Georgians" – i.e. people whose outlook is global, who have proven their ability to adapt to modern, civilized ways of doing business, and managing resources including human resources. They are striving to maintain the same standards of ethical behavior as their partners in the rest of the world. However, as opposed to those, they are doing this in a much more unstable, aggressive and risky situation. In other words, they are keeping themselves to standards that are not yet part of their regular social and economic environment.

In addition, these "Global Georgians are culturally located "between Europe and Asia," as well as between developed and developing countries and are, therefore, in a unique position to build bridges between these cultural spheres. More precisely, in their projects and endeavors, they are able to combine effectively the advantages of three different sets of values: 1) traditional values – the orientation towards fundamental norms and rules, towards hierarchies of power, stability, and patriotism; 2) modern values – the orientation towards results, hierarchies of success, rationality, scientific progress, economic achievement, and innovation; and 3) postmodern values – orientation towards process, pluralism, equality, validity of all perspectives and viewpoints, multi-culturalism, concern for minorities and socially underprivileged people, and concern for the environment.

These abilities of “Global Georgians” put them in an advantageous position to represent the Georgian contribution to global culture: on the one hand, they are part of the traditional Georgian culture and represent its values. On the other hand, they are also connected to the West and to the rest of the world, by having adapted to modern and postmodern values. For this reason, "Global Georgians" play a particular and important role in our project: through their stories and experiences, the contemporary "argonauts" can find access to what is valuable in Georgian culture.

The Georgian "Supra" as "appreciative space"

To present one very clear example of the Georgian contribution to global culture, we would like to talk briefly about the "supra" – the Georgian feast- and its relationship to an important concept in contemporary management and business administration, the concept of "appreciative space."

The supra is a very widespread cultural practice in contemporary Georgia . It is a feast, in the sense that people get together to eat and drink, but it is much more than that. At the core of the supra is the "toast," a concept that goes much beyond similar practices in other cultures, where people also say the equivalent of "cheers" or "here's to …" before they take a drink. In contrast, the Georgian toast is a true art form: the "tamada" – the toastmaster has the task of integrating the event and giving it a certain order. Toasts are often poetic, they contain philosophical musings, and, most importantly, they reflect on the people present, their relationship to each other and to the larger community (local, national, global). The focus in this context is always on the positive, on what can be appreciated, even during times of crisis and need.

In this sense, the Georgian feast can be interpreted as the creation of an "appreciative space," and many Georgians are true masters of this art: the best supras can attain an almost spiritual dimension, where people speak from their hearts, where true and lasting connections are forged, and where genuine psychological transformation can occur.

The supra, therefore, has a very strong "integrative force": again, it is not only about food and drink – but it is true "commensality," i.e. the communion of human beings created through eating together, reciting poetry together, making music together, and appreciating each other's company. The supra, therefore, integrates various dimensions of human life – physical, emotional, mental, spiritual.

Our usage of the term "appreciative space" is associated with the organizational development theory called "appreciative inquiry" or "appreciative approach" (Cooperrider/Srivasta). An appreciative approach focuses on the positive elements of every situation. It "fosters positive relationships and builds on the basic goodness in a person, a situation, or an organization. In doing so, it enhances a system's capacity for collaboration and change." "Appreciative space," therefore, is any situation or event, at which an appreciative approach is used.

As indicated above, the Georgian supra is an excellent example of such an appreciative space. However, as opposed to the "appreciative approach", which is a theory and practice used in the area of business consulting, the supra is embedded in an authentic, cultural context. Appreciative inquiry is more like a technology, or a mechanism, albeit a very successful one, whereas the supra is a living practice, energized by the Georgian people and their traditions. In the "appreciative approach," the appreciative space has to be created deliberately and artificially. In the Georgian supra, it emerges naturally.

Goals

Our suggestion, therefore, is that by connecting these two phenomena – the American management concept on the one hand, and the Georgian cultural practice on the other – both will be enriched: first, the appreciative approach will be strengthened by using the traditional features of the supra. By involving Georgian expertise, we are involving people for whom the appreciative behavior required at a supra is second nature. Since it is part of the their culture, it is also part of their individual identity, as well of the set of their unconsciously acquired skills. Georgians acquire this behavior and the associated beliefs and convictions with there "mother's milk," so to speak. Secondly, for the Georgians themselves the enrichment comes from the fact that their cultural practice will.

Become more than just a Georgian phenomenon: it will be "demand" by members of other cultures, it will, therefore, become a bridge between different cultures, and it also will become a prime example of Georgia 's contribution to the global culture.

In sum, the program's goal is to demonstrate how the core values of the Georgian culture are needed on an international and intercultural level. The program intends to:

a) Highlight, emphasize and popularize the strengths of the Georgian culture;

b) Ensure recognition and acknowledgement of these strong sides by the international community;

c) Systematically apply the strengths of the Georgian culture to various international projects in the areas of business, research, and education.

All these goals can be achieved through the involvement of the "Global Georgians" and their unique expertise.

How are we planning to implement the program?

There are three interrelated parts to the implementation:

a) Bank of narratives – these are the success stories of Global Georgians, as well as the stories of the people visiting, doing business and otherwise interacting with Georgia, particularly, their stories about interacting with Global Georgians. Of particular interest here are stories about fruitful collaboration between Georgians and Non-Georgians.

b) Network of participants/allies– business, political, educational, academic and cultural leaders from different regions of the world, who recognize and acknowledge the relevance of the Global Georgians, as well of Georgian cultural traditions, particularly, the supra and its value as "appreciative space."

c) Series of events – surrounding the principle of "creating appreciative space." The best success stories of Global Georgians will be presented, using a combination of business presentation and celebration. These events can be seen as an innovative type of "supra."

Most importantly, there is a relatively wide range of possible projects and events, and we will be glad to begin a dialogue with any potential partner or otherwise interested party.