European Visitors Make Connections in Unexpected Places in the U.S.

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The group of Young European leaders arrives at Meridian International Center in Washington, DC. (Photo Courtesy of Philip Brown)

If you’re looking for a place to partake meaningful dialogue with Europeans leaders, you might want to try North Dakota. Earlier this summer, 15 young European leaders and professionals mingled with local residents in the small, but growing, town of Minot, North Dakota. The European visitors participated in a United States Department of State International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) project, administered by Meridian International Center. The purpose of the project was for these young leaders to witness and converse about current political, social, and economic issues in the United States. and similar issues faced by their home countries. Why...

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Special Relationships: UK MPs Shadow US Reps Around the Country

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Four Members of UK Parliament come to the United States with the 37th British-American Parliamentary Group exchange program.

You may have heard of the “special relationship” between the United States and United Kingdom (UK).

The term sounds rather mystical, but is actually based on over 200 years of political, cultural, economic, and military relations between the two countries. It characterizes the nations’ close cooperation and alignment, most famously emphasized by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in his 1946 speech, “The Sinews of Peace.”

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Water: A World Crisis Too Big To Ignore

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International Visitor Leadership Program participants discuss water resource protection.

Water scarcity is a global issue and soon every region of the world will have to face the challenges it brings. Pollution is tainting the already dwindling freshwater supply we have left and arid and urbanizing areas are overusing water at high rates.   A dwindling supply Irrigation and agricultural uses are the biggest divergences for freshwater supplies followed by household and industrial usage. Ninety-six percent of the world’s freshwater resources are in difficult-to-access glaciers in the North and South Poles. This remaining 4% is found in groundwater, land glacier, and surface water resources. Of these other resources, the...

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Gaming for Change: 10 Digital Games Impacting our World

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International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) project on Social Change Through the Arts explores social impact gaming.

Playing games can change the world.

A pretty bold statement, but that’s precisely the idea behind organizations such as Games for Change, a company that facilitates the creation and distribution of games used as tools in humanitarian and educational efforts. These aren’t just any games, they are “social impact games” designed to present social issues in a way that is uniquely engaging and easy to understand, especially for students and young people.
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