The international exchange of culture has existed since the dawn of time. However, most of the events that created international exchanges, as we know them now, happened in the 20th century.
With the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) approaching its 75th year, this article highlights a few of the events in history that pre-date, and played a part in, the creation of this important cultural exchange program.
I have a rhino; at least, an adopted one. Her photo hangs behind my office desk. Bryce gave it to me last year when we were in Bozeman on the final day of his State Department International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) study tour. “Whenever you make the trip to Zim, I’ll take you to see her,” he pledged. Despite Bryce’s best efforts, I’m not sure he will be able to keep his promise. He didn’t have enough manpower to save Maria, another rhino. Bryce Clemence runs Aggressive Tracking Specialists (ATS), a private company that conducts specialized anti-poaching training for...
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Last month, Meridian hosted an International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) group of chefs, foodies, and culinary experts from the Middle East. They came to the United States to discuss economic development, explore food culture, and of course, to sample great food. They dined at restaurants, visited markets, learned about America’s slow food movement, and even fit in time for a food truck tour.
Today is Election Day in South Africa, 20 years after the country’s first all-race vote and the 5th national election since the fall of apartheid. Many are part of a generation of “born frees” – citizens born after apartheid that are voting for the first time. On this day, we remember a South African visitor that came through our doors for a project sponsored by the U.S. Department of State International Visitor Leadership Program (formerly under the U.S. Information Agency) in 1976. He was a member of the South African Parliament under apartheid and had been serving for seven...
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On February 21, 2014, two Malaysian English as a Second Language (ESL) experts visited the ESL Newcomer Academy, a school in Louisville, Kentucky.
The last thing they expected was to run into someone they knew.
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