We know that:

• The world is inevitably becoming more multicultural, as increasingly mobile people reaffirm their unique cultural identities.
• Cross-cultural contact frequently leads to increased ethnocentric tension and violence.
• Intercultural sensitivity and communication competence are necessary to counteract ethnocentrism and to foster respectful and productive multicultural teams/organizations/communities/nations/regions.

We see that:

• The pace of cross-cultural contact is increasing due to refugees from climate change and war, along with traditional forms of migration.
• Political/economic/social tension and ethnocentrism is predictably increasing worldwide.
• Intercultural communication training/education as practiced (in a relativist paradigm) is often inadequate to the task of counteracting the movement towards intergroup hatred and violence

We therefore need to:

• Affirm the constructivist roots of intercultural theory and develop new forms of post-relativist intercultural communication practice.
• Recognize a constructivist form of intercultural communication as the key element in the social evolution of global organizations
• Establish constructivist intercultural consciousness as the key to creating a climate of respect for cultural diversity in multicultural organizations and communities

The Intercultural Development Research Institute affirms its solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the unceasing attention it brings to the systemic denial of equal humanity woven into the fabric of American society. We agree that, until that fact is acknowledged and rectified, there can be no real progress in moving towards building a just multicultural society.

We do not think that the default condition of humankind is social justice, nor that removing the impediment of prejudice will let justice prevail. On the contrary, humans have mostly exalted their own familiar groups and derogated others in endless real or imagined struggles for survival. Building social justice therefore demands much more than restructuring racist institutions, although recognizing personal and systemic prejudice is a necessary beginning. The larger imperative is to restructure consciousness itself – to extend our perception of self beyond our particular group and into larger constellations of diverse peoples.

We are committed to pursuing these goals in the following ways:

• To resist the commercial temptation of offering half-measures to create the appearance of anti-racism, and instead to insist that diversity, inclusion, and intercultural programs always target the development of new consciousness as the major goal.
• To focus on building critical masses of people who recognize the deep roots of racism in our consciousness and who are committed to co-evolving new forms of adaption to human diversity.
• To support any critical group that is willing with the writing, research, and resources of the Institute, particularly by framing social justice within a more general coherent development of intercultural consciousness.

The Intercultural Development Research Institute was formed in 2006 to support the development of a coherent, practical, and relevant research-based perspective on domestic and international intercultural relations.

In the USA, IDRInstitute is a non-profit 501(c)(3) foundation registered in Washington State, USA. Internationally, IDRInstitute Europa is a non-profit association located in Milano, Italy.

The IDRInstitute is not affiliated with any religious or political organization.