WORDFEST ASHEVILLE’s purpose is to create an intercultural poetry festival and broadcast it live via internet, radio, and public television and make events available to schools, educators, and communities worldwide for future use. The cultural heritage of the mountains of Western North Carolina and the cities of Asheville and Black Mountain is rich with diversity. Our goal is to continue this legacy and develop a stronger connection between the diverse communities while honoring each community’s integrity. We believe poetry facilitates this community–building venture by virtue of his ability to present a disparity of ideas in a whole, synthesized form. Poetry, by its very nature and practice, at once unifies cultures and preserves cultural identities. By making the material available in DVD, podcast, and download from the internet, we aim to convey the material of WORDFEST to populations who might otherwise not consider attending a poetry festival or other intercultural event for purposes of distance, economic obstacles, or previous unawareness of poetry’s role in promoting cultural interconnection and overcoming personal and regional isolation.