Springing Into Service

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

Meridian Intern Tessa Trach went on a service-based spring break to Huntington, WV.

Huntington, West Virginia is not a city I imagined myself visiting. But I embraced the opportunity when I traveled with the University of Maryland’s Alternative Breaks program during my spring break. The trip focused on childhood nutrition and wellness and I saw firsthand the economic disparities in West Virginia. Nutrition isn’t simply in the food choices you make. Environment and economic status contribute greatly to the issue too. It’s time to recognize the causes and start taking action. I can honestly say that I gained more from a week in West Virginia than I imagined. Immersed in the community...

Continue  

IYLEP Blog Contest: Turning Exchange into Action

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

Sara visits the Native Little Feathers Dance Group.

Alumni of the 2013 Iraqi Young Leaders Exchange Program (IYLEP) reconnected this past February in Erbil. Alums from both the High School and Undergraduate programs gathered to reflect on their experiences and participate in workshops and panel discussions that built upon the skills students developed last summer in the United States. Meridian invited IYLEP alumni to submit a blog post describing their personal experience and growth with the program. We selected the winning entries to post on The LEAD. Sara A. was selected as the winner for the IYLEP High School group.

Continue  

18 Inspiring Messages From Young African Leaders

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

Pan-Africa Youth Leadership Program participants spell out their vision for Africa.

Listen up. Young African leaders have a few things to say about youth leadership.   These 24 incredible changemakers from Togo, Senegal, Chad and Mauritania traveled to the United States to learn and discuss social entrepreneurship, civic engagement, and community building.   The leaders were here last month as part of our second cohort of Pan-African Youth Leadership Program, a program sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.   Each student developed a community service project or small enterprise to implement upon their return home. Projects ranged from jewelry-making ventures to new libraries to school clean-up initiatives. We’re excited...

Continue  

The Impact of Exchange: Changing Race Relations in South Africa

Posted under: IVLP By /

Frederik de Klerk & Nelson Mandela - World Economic Forum Annual Meeting Davos 1992 (Copyright: World Economic Forum)

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...

Continue  

Young Iraqis Reconnect in Erbil

Posted under: Center for Global Leadership By /

Opening Remarks

Marhaba from Iraq!  Meridian staff is on the road again, this time in Erbil located in the Kurdistan region of Iraq.  It is claimed that Erbil is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the World.

Meridian is implementing a two 2-day leadership programs with alumni from the Iraq Youth Leadership Exchange Program (IYLEP).  The first, focused on reuniting participants from the high school program will take place February 5-8, and the second, reconnecting participants from the university program will take place February 12-15.

Continue