Climate change. Extreme poverty. Sustainable food production.
If we are to address the major challenges the world is facing, increased understanding and improved information sharing across borders is a necessity. And it all begins with people-to-people links and relationship building.
If you’re reading this, chances are that this rallying call is nothing new. You have probably seen firsthand how international exchange programs can broaden perspectives and open doors that were previously shut.
As Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Richard Stengel put it: “We need a new 21st century toolkit for public diplomacy.”
The United States has always played a central role in bringing governments and people together around the world. Since 1940, the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) has been a tried and true testament to those diplomatic efforts by cultivating lasting personal and professional relationships, and successfully spreading the evolving story of America.
But the game is changing, and quickly. The pervasiveness of the Internet and technologies that connect people has forever altered the accessibility of information and how we communicate with one another.
As Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Richard Stengel put it: “We need a new 21st century toolkit for public diplomacy.”
Today, practically anyone with an Internet connection any place in the world can share their point of view. With old boundaries removed, new opportunities abound to extend and amplify the impact of exchange programs through the use of technology.
Beginning this October, an important first step toward leveraging technology and innovation took place as Cultural Vistas, together with the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Embassy in Reykjavik, Iceland, launched the first virtual project in the International Visitor Leadership Program’s storied history.
Think about that. After 75 years and nearly 200,000 exchange participants, it is not every day that one of the U.S. government’s longest standing public and citizen diplomacy programs encounters a “first.”
It’s approximately 2,803 miles from Reykjavik to Washington, DC. During a time when our society is confronted with many environmental challenges, we are proud that neither our budgets nor geography will curtail efforts to work together and build lasting connections that help us become better stewards of our natural resources.
Over the course of this three-month IVLP project, professionals representing several of Iceland’s leading environmental organizations are engaging with American counterparts via web-based video conferencing to discuss and explore key issues facing both nations.
The participants in this IVLP project are examining U.S. environmental policy and advocacy and exploring how NGOs operate, build local constituencies, and develop sustainable funding models. They are doing this through a series of facilitated discussions with Americans working on these issues from a variety of levels and perspectives.
Virtual exchanges represent a cost-effective means of extending the reach of people-to-people interactions with the United States.
To date, the participating Icelandic professionals have forged connections with everyone from representatives of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to a Fairbanks, Alaska-based nonprofit that spurred ideas around advocacy for Arctic preservation (if you’re wondering, in the case of Alaska, that is a 9-hour time difference!).
Like all IVLP projects, this initiative also includes a staple of traditional people-to-people exchanges—cultural activities. This aspect of the program has posed a new set of challenges. How does one attain an authentic experience of America without being physically present? Thus far, our Icelandic participants have taken part in home hospitality with embassy staff, where they were treated to some old-fashioned American BBQ, and are slated to take a series of virtual field trips to major U.S. landmarks.
Virtual exchanges represent a cost-effective means of extending the reach of people-to-people interactions with the United States. While few experiences can replicate that of experiencing life in another culture first-hand, the ease through which technology can bring people together to share ideas and learn from one another should not be understated.
When it comes to establishing personal connections, face time and a firm handshake are not going anywhere. And neither is technology.
By Anthony Naglieri, Cultural Vistas