Goshen College to host Sept. 8 forum on Western and Islamic business cultures

GOSHEN, Ind. — Efforts to foster better relationships between the United States and countries in the Middle East and to reconcile their distinct business styles and systems will be the focus of a major public forum later this week at Goshen College.

The forum — “Doing Business in the Muslim World: Are Western Leadership Concepts Appropriate in Islamic Cultures?” — will take place at 7 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 8 at the Umble Center. Admission is free.

Goshen College President James E. Brenneman will participate in the forum along with three experts on business relationships in Western and Islamic cultures. The experts are:

• David E. Martin, a 1989 graduate of Goshen College, the founding chief executive officer of M-CAM, Inc., an international leader in intellectual property-based financial risk management based in Charlottesville, Va. Dr. Martin also is a Batten Fellow at the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business.

• Moustapha Ismail Sarhank, a scholar in the interdisciplinary field of leadership, psychology and religion. He also is honorary chairman of Sarhank Group for Investments, a holding company with headquarters in Egypt and Switzerland.

• Steffen Schubert, a banker and expert on the financial industry, is the managing director of Tejoori Limited. He previously was chief executive officer of the Dubai International Finance Exchange in the United Arab Emirates.

The forum is intended to promote dialogue between the audience and the three experts in the areas of leadership and international business as well as efforts to promote greater understanding between western and Middle East countries. Martin and Moustapha also are expected to discuss how they met in Dubai and overcame mutual distrust and dislike to become close friends and business associates. Sarhank and Schubert are on the board of director’s of Martin’s company, M-Cam, Inc.

President James E. Brenneman said the forum will explore important issues – the relationships between western and Islamic cultures and the future of commerce in the Middle East – three days before the sixth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and at a time when the U.S. military continues to be involved in Afghanistan and Iraq.

“As a community of passionate learners, we believe that God intends for all of humanity to live in peace and work for peace through peaceful means. We seek to promote understanding in many forms, including this kind of frank exchange of views about relationships between the United States and Islamic countries,” Brenneman said. “These are vital issues for us to consider.

“Goshen College has a 39-year history of international education and has always promoted intercultural understanding. We believe that a truly Christian liberal arts education in the 21^st century must prepare students to live, work and relate across cultures. And we seek to provide this type of leadership to the greater community.”

The Goshen College forum is being co-sponsored by The Center for Business and Entrepreneurial Education, the Yoder Public Affairs Lecture Series and the Peace, Justice & Conflict Studies Department.

On April 22-23, Martin, Sarhank and Schubert participated in a similar forum sponsored by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia and the International Business Society at Darden. That forum explored such issues as the differences and similarities between Western and Islamic organizations, leadership styles in both cultures, and efforts to create a more harmonious global business environment.

Editors: For more information about this news release, to arrange an interview or request a photo, contact Richard R. Aguirre, Goshen College director of public relations, at (574) 535-7571 or rraguirre@goshen.edu.

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Goshen College, established in 1894, is a residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S. News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu.