Since its beginnings in 1974, the aim of CultureGrams has been to foster understanding and appreciation of the world's countries and peoples by creating and publishing excellent content. Today the CultureGrams series is one of the most trusted and widely used cultural reference and curriculum products in the education, government, and non-profit arenas. In 2004, the CultureGrams product line was acquired by ProQuest, a global leader in collecting, organizing, and distributing value-added information to researchers, faculty, and students in over 160 countries.