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ARTICLE

Strengthening the Global Community through Exchange Programs
By David Simpson

Each year thousands of international visitors travel to and from the United States on exchange programs funded by public and private sources. For the past fifty years, Graduate School USA’s International Institute has administered a diverse array of exchange programs for the U.S. government, foreign governments, non-governmental organizations and the private sector. With the start of 2012, the International Institute staff had a chance to reflect on the importance of exchange programs, the challenges of implementing them and creative suggestions for improving them.

Importance of Exchange Programs

Programs that bring international visitors to the United States on professional or cultural exchanges have numerous benefits to a number of stakeholders. First, the international visitors themselves increase their understanding of the U.S. and in the process dispel myths or stereotypes. Visitors create professional and personal contacts that may last a lifetime and begin to see themselves as part of the larger global community. They are also exposed to new ideas or methods of doing things that can be implemented or modified upon their return home. For instance, the National Council for International Visitors recently highlighted the impact Ms. Nargis Ziyavatdinova had in her local community in Termez, Uzbekistan in their December 2011 newsletter. In 2002, Ms. Ziyavadinova participated in the US State Department-funded International Visitor Leadership Program, and as a result of her visit to the U.S., she developed ideas to assist her Uzbek organization’s goal of providing educational opportunities for children with disabilities in Termez.1 Many foreign governments lack the resources or political will to support civil society organizations. Exchange programs offer civil society organizations an avenue to continue their cultivation. While visitors are active participants in the program during their time in the U.S., when they return home they share their experience with family, friends and colleagues. This dispersal of information magnifies the impact of the program in the visitor’s home country.

Exchange programs impact not only international visitors, but also U.S. stakeholders who come into contact with the international visitors. U.S. individuals and institutions that host or interact with international visitors are enriched by establishing new contacts, being introduced to a new culture, learning new ideas and becoming part of the global community. Many U.S. citizens lack the resources to travel overseas, and exchange programs bring international visitors to U.S. citizens – opening the door to new cultures, ideas and concepts. U.S. citizens may apply these new skills and concepts to improve their workplace or community and in the process gain a better understanding and appreciation of global affairs. The Congressionally-funded Open World program brings emerging leaders from throughout Eurasia to the U.S. to expose them to participatory democracy and free enterprise. A unique aspect of the program is that the international visitors stay with host families. The program provides U.S. families an opportunity to interact directly with a foreign visitor, learn about a Eurasian culture and have a better understanding and appreciation of global affairs from a unique perspective.2 In addition to the Open World Program, the US State Department funds a number of long-standing and new exchange programs. The portfolio of exchange programs can be viewed by visiting the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Challenges and Suggestions to Improve Exchange Programs

While exchange programs provide many benefits for U.S. citizens and international visitors, they also pose several challenges. This section examines some of those challenges and offers creative solutions for improving exchange programs.

Public-Private Partnerships
Bringing international visitors to the U.S. is expensive and as a result, the number of visitors participating in exchange programs is limited. To expand exchange programs, collaborative public-private partnerships that complement the objectives of each public-private stakeholder should be sought. An example of leveraging public-private resources is the US Agency for International Development’s Global Development Alliance Model that addresses jointly defined business and development objectives.3     

Data Collection
While everyone agrees that face-to-face exchange programs are beneficial and at times, life-changing, it is difficult to assess their impact. The most important part of the exchange program is after its completion when the stakeholders share and apply the new skills and knowledge they acquired. There is limited data on the long-term impact of exchange programs since funding is often a constraint. More effort and focus should be concentrated on gathering quantitative and qualitative data from the exchange stakeholders several months, in some cases years, after the completion of the program. The data could be used to illustrate the impact of the program on the individual, institution, or community and its connection to the global community. In addition, data could be used as a resource to justify exchange funding.

Online Activities
At times, international visitors or delegations visiting the U.S. have unrealistic expectations about the program or may be unfamiliar with some laws or cultural norms that are not applicable in their home countries. In addition, U.S. hosts may have preconceived notions about the international visitors or may be unaware of their cultural norms. For instance, international visitors may be unaware that they cannot smoke cigarettes in a government building or U.S. hosts may be unaware that visitors who adhere to Islam may not eat pork. While not all laws or cultural norms can be covered prior to the start of an exchange program, online network sites can be utilized to help prepare exchange program stakeholders. In addition, online contact between the stakeholders prior to the program ensures the program is relevant for all parties and provides a foundation upon which to build.  

Online communications allow stakeholders to keep in touch with each other long after the completion of an exchange program. Many exchange stakeholders continue contact with each other via email, social networking sites, Skype, or other technologies. Program exchange stakeholders should be aware and, if needed, educated about available online resources in order to encourage continued communication and collaboration after the completion of an exchange program. In addition, online resources can support program goals and the professional development of exchange stakeholders. Finally, keeping exchange program stakeholders engaged online supports the development of the global community and can be used as a tool to gather data long after the completion of a program.      

Screening
The background of some visitors or U.S. stakeholders may not be suitable for the goals and expectations of a program. The goals of a program must be clearly defined prior to the recruitment and selection of the international visitors and U.S. stakeholders. In some cases, donors may consider a pre-program application which requires the international visitor or U.S. stakeholder to state how their involvement in the program would contribute to the goals of the exchange program.

Program Suitability
While the U.S. is the preferred destination for many international visitors, it is not always the most appropriate destination. For instance, if visitors are introduced to technical equipment that is not available or cannot be procured in their country, the program may not be suitable to meet the visitor’s professional development needs. During the design phase of the program when the goals are being considered, special attention should be given to the applicability of the program to the visitors and their environment.  

Broaden U.S. Exchange Opportunities
Many U.S. citizens lack the resources to travel overseas.  While bringing foreign visitors to the U.S. contributes to U.S. citizens being more aware and engaged with the global community, it does not enable them to experience a foreign culture first-hand themselves. Donors should consider additional programs that provide U.S. citizens a chance to travel overseas to meet their professional counterparts or reciprocal visits that encourage collaboration between U.S. citizens and international visitors. One approach is to provide an opportunity for U.S. and international stakeholders to collaboratively apply for grants that would partially fund activities to further the goals of their original exchange program. The remainder of the funds could be secured through the stakeholders themselves, the private sector, foundations, governments, or other sources.    

Support
While there are donors who support exchange programs, their number can be increased if the value of exchange programs is demonstrated and clearly articulated. This point ties into earlier points about data collection and public-private partnerships and the ability to demonstrate the positive impact of the exchange program and to create new partnerships to support them.  

Communication
There are a variety of communication vehicles that educate people about exchange programs – for example, Exchanges Connect, a US State Department international social networking site.4   However, more needs to be done to link people to exchange programs, specifically – their purpose, impact, and why they are important to supporting the global community.

Experimentation
The face-to-face physical contact that takes place during an exchange is its foundation. However, with the advent of electronic communication devices and other technologies, there are opportunities to revolutionize exchange programs to make them more applicable and useful to all stakeholders. While donors and project implementers do an excellent job developing programs, more vehicles for direct U.S. citizen and international visitor engagement on the design and development of exchange programs should be taken into consideration. A bottom-up approach in the design and development of exchange programs ensures they are applicable to the people they are supposed to support and influence.

The establishment, cultivation and continued engagement of the global community is essential to meeting current and future global challenges. Food security, climate change and financial markets are not limited to or confined within one country; rather, they are all global issues. To understand, participate in, and make meaningful contributions to addressing these challenges, global citizens must have a solid understanding of the world around them. Understanding and appreciating different cultures and viewpoints is crucial to being an active member of the global community. Exchange programs that bring international visitors to the U.S. to meet face-to-face with U.S. citizens strengthen the concept of a global community and are a key pillar of global engagement. The continuation, expansion and diversification of exchange programs are crucial to supporting a global community that can interact and share ideas and information on a daily basis in an effort to make the world a better place to live.

David Simpson is Director of the Graduate School USA’s International Institute, responsible for business development and management of grants, contracts and cooperative agreements from a diverse array of funders. He has over 16 years experience administering a diverse array of international development projects in the United States and abroad and has also worked for World Learning and Citizens Development Solutions administering capacity building and small business enterprise development projects worldwide. David has in-country experience as the Country Director for Project Harmony in Armenia, where he managed exchange, school development and legal socialization projects. He was a member of the first group of Peace Corps Volunteers to serve in Uzbekistan, where he taught English as a second language and coached a local basketball team. David was also a Volunteer under the United Nations Development Program, where he assisted in establishing the first international school in Uzbekistan. He can be reached at: david.simpson@graduateschool.edu.

1 - Source - http://www.nciv.org/NCIV-Newsletters-Archive/
2 - Source - http://www.openworld.gov/
3 - Source - http://idea.usaid.gov/gp/about-gda-model/
4 - Source - http://connect.state.gov/