Meridian Social Innovation Fellows – Where are they now?

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

The program launched in Washington, DC with a reception hosted by the Embassy of The Netherlands

In May, Meridian launched the  Social Innovation Fellowship.  This year-long engagement of social entrepreneurs from across Europe will yield community improvement projects in 5 countries (Belgium, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, and Spain), however the implications will be significant throughout the region as each project addresses overlapping issues. Over the summer we shared some of the individual stories from the fellows’ experience – particularly their impressions and observations from their time in the U.S. (May, 2015).  Now that they are back in their own communities, they are working to put into action best practices they learned while here.  While each...

Continue  

International Day for Tolerance

Posted under: MCCD By /

Peace activists gather for a mutual cause in New York City. Photo by Grove Harris, courtesy of The Pluralism Project.

The tragedy of last week’s assaults in Paris and Beirut weigh heavily in the hearts of the world community. In light of this, today’s UN-designated International Day for Tolerance holds a particular relevance. As Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon states, “On the International Day of Tolerance, let us recognize the mounting threat posed by those who strive to divide, and let us pledge to forge a path defined by dialogue, social cohesion, and mutual understanding.” Through the tenets of acceptance, tolerance, and freedom, may the world be equal in treatment and opportunity. Continue  

America’s Long-Term Investment

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

U.S. Congress-Korean National Assembly Exchange Program Participants at the Einstein Memorial, Washington, D.C.

While it can be easy to focus on missteps in the history of US foreign policy efforts, working at Meridian International Center has provided me with a window into the long legacy of successful public diplomacy opportunities we create throughout the years on behalf of the Department of State (DOS) and U.S. embassies abroad. For instance, only a handful of individuals have heard about “Jazz Diplomacy” during the Cold War era. Famous Jazz Ambassadors—Quincy Jones, Louis Armstrong, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Benny Goodman, and numerous others—joined forces with the DOS to avert crisis indirectly. Even though the...

Continue  

Guatemalan Indigenous Leaders Reconnecting with the Sacred Text of the Mayans

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

Guatemalan Indigenous Leader group standing outside Newberry Library.

The Popol Vuh or “Book of the People” is a collection of mytho-historical narratives originating from the Post Classic K’iche Kingdom of Guatemala. These stories tell the tales of the Hero Twins Hunahpu and Xbalanque, the story of Creation, and other Mayan mythologies. The most celebrated mythology in the text is the story of the Hero twins Hunahpu and Xbalanque. The Hero Twins’ father was a great ballplayer who was tricked into death by the Lords of Death. When the Lords of Death learned that the Hero Twins were even better at ball than their father, the Lords again tried to trick the twins; however,...

Continue