Heather Bowe has studied, lived and worked in Australia, the USA and the Middle East. She earned her Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Southern California, where she also taught English to international students. Heather's major academic publications include two books on Australian Aboriginal languages, one on the Pitjantjatjara language of central Australia and the other, a language reclamation study of the Yorta Yorta Aboriginal language from north eastern Victoria. Heather's interest in intercultural communication was sparked by her personal and academic background and was also encouraged by students, who were eager to apply their linguistics knowledge to the global context. Heather was the Executive Director of the Monash Language and Society Centre for over ten years, working with its founder, Professor Michael Clyne, for much of that time. The first edition of Communication Across Cultures, which Heather co-authored with Ph.D. student Kylie Martin was sparked by her interaction with students and colleagues at Monash University, Melbourne, where she pursued her academic career in Linguistics for over twenty years until her retirement in 2010. Heather continues her involvement as a Monash University adjunct staff member.