August 12th International Youth Day. It was first designated by the UN General Assembly in 1999 with the goal of serving as an annual celebration of young women and men as essential partners in change, and an opportunity to raise awareness of challenges and problems facing the world’s youth. Continue
The following blog entry was posted on the University of Maine Political Science Department’s website by Jesse Clark (University of Maine ‘16). You can find the original post here. Hey Black Bears! I apologize for the delay in my update, I found out the hard way that I can’t plug my laptop charger into the electric outlets in Seoul (who knew?). But first, I’m the guy on the left; the other two gentlemen are Gab Cheol Ji, and Senator Angus King. But, more on that in a bit. So how did I end up in a hotel room in Seoul, South...
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Over the past few years, I have learned that it is impossible to achieve your goals, realize your dreams or understand where you are going in your journey without help. In my pursuit of poverty alleviation, I started volunteering at the age of 18 and ever since I have been volunteering with organizations around the world in various capacities. I am now playing a role in the further development of my home country Pakistan, none of which would be possible without the people, governments, and organizations that invested in my professional development and skills acquisition. One of the most...
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The 75th Anniversary of the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is a major milestone in the program’s history. It offers us a chance to reflect on the impact of the program by examining the numbers. More than 335 current or former heads of government are IVLP alumni. Meridian International Center is proud to have coordinated the programs of 168 of these alumni. I compiled basic data on these world leaders to see what sort of statistics could be gleaned. I focused on their age when they participated in the IVLP, how many years afterward they became a head of government and what was the length of their term. I also marked their gender and if they were currently in office.
Russia was arguably the least popular world power in 2014. According to new data from the Gallup World Poll, Russian leadership has a median international approval rating of 22 percent and a 36 percent disapproval rating, the highest of any country. This is cannot be a surprise following the annexation of Crimea, covert intervention in Eastern Ukraine, and assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov. As a direct result of international disapproval, Russia’s membership in the G8 was suspended in March 2014, further isolating the country during a time of economic hardship. Negative perceptions of Russian leadership are immediately affecting...
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