The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), Let Leaders Lead: IVLP Exchange Alumni Advance Interfaith Relations multi-regional project, includes faith, community, private sector, and academic leaders hailing from 17 countries.  Participants will examine the impact of religion and religious organizations on communities throughout the United States as well as the evolving roles of women and youth within faith communities.  Roundtable discussions, participant presentations, workshops, and activities will highlight how religious groups in the U.S. freely practice their faith; the impact of participants’ previous IVLP experiences on their current work; strategies for mentoring the next generation of leaders; best practices in fundraising; and how to engage community members in volunteer activities.   Participants will arrive in Washington, D.C. on Saturday, September 14 and depart on September 19.  Subsequently, they will split into three teams traveling to El Paso, Texas; Huntsville, Alabama; and Rapid City, South Dakota.  Finally, they will reconvene in Chicago, Illinois and return home on Saturday, September 28th.

The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is the Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. 

The eight TIP Report Heroes with Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, Advisor to the President Ivanka Trump, and Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons John Cotton Richmond
The eight TIP Report Heroes with Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, Advisor to the President Ivanka Trump, and Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons John Cotton Richmond

Each year, the U.S. Department of State honors individuals around the world who have devoted their lives to the fight against human trafficking and made exceptional contributions in their home countries to combat the crime and assist trafficking victims. These individuals include NGO workers, lawmakers, government officials, survivors of human trafficking, and concerned citizens who have demonstrated tireless efforts – despite resistance, opposition, and threats to their lives – to protect victims, punish offenders, and educate stakeholders about human trafficking trends in their countries and abroad. The Secretary of State recognizes these heroes at the Department’s launch of the annual Trafficking in Persons Report (TIP Report), the Department’s comprehensive assessment of the efforts by the U.S. and foreign governments to meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking in persons.

Trafficking in persons, human trafficking, and modern slavery are interchangeable umbrella terms that describe the exploitation of someone for the purposes of compelled labor or a commercial sex act through the use of force, fraud, or coercion. Where a person younger than 18 is used in the commercial sex industry, it is a crime regardless of whether there is any force, fraud, or coercion.

As part of the 2019 TIP Report’s release on June 20, 2019, Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, Advisor to the President Ivanka Trump, and Ambassador John Cotton Richmond honored eight TIP Report Heroes. One of the recipients, Agnes De Coll, is a leading voice in Hungary who serves as senior expert and head of the trafficking in persons unit at Hungarian Baptist Aid (HBA), an organization that serves 30,000 people on a daily basis through programs including humanitarian aid, rapid response rescue, and rehabilitation. Inspired by her mother, a human rights lawyer, Agnes began raising awareness and changing attitudes on human trafficking in 2010. Under Agnes’ leadership, HBA has opened shelters and crisis intervention centers that provide critical assistance and programs to support human trafficking victims and their ability to transition successfully to a new life in Hungary. Despite many years of expertise, Agnes believes she has room to grow and is interested in learning about the legal processes of prosecuting traffickers in the United States and how organizations provide support for their staff who work with survivors of human trafficking on a day-to-day basis.

During the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) that followed the TIP Report release ceremony, all eight Heroes had the opportunity to visit fellow experts on trafficking in persons in Washington, D.C.; Denver, Colorado; and Minneapolis, Minnesota. Agnes was especially inspired by Polaris, the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Task Force on Human Trafficking, and Carlson Companies; each of which plays a unique role in combating human trafficking. Polaris is a leading non-profit organization that operates the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Agnes admired its ability to prevent staff burnout due to the emotionally exhausting nature of their work. In partnership with Polaris, the ABA has created a network of pro bono attorneys to provide survivors of human trafficking with legal services. At their final city stop, Agnes was impressed with Carlson Companies, the first major hospitality corporation in North America to take a public stand against sexual exploitation and human trafficking. Carlson is a founding member of the Business Coalition Against Trafficking (BCAT) and established a training program in 2010 for all hotel employees to identify and report human trafficking.

Using the information she acquired during the IVLP, Agnes plans to implement projects and ideas from each of these organizations and companies back home in Hungary. Her efforts will have a long-term impact and inspire fellow heroes who fight to end trafficking in persons.

The IVLP is the Department of State’s premier professional exchange program and this IVLP was jointly organized with partners Meridian International Center, WorldDenver, and Global Minnesota.

“It has been an extraordinary experience to see youths around the world building pathways to literacy, creativity, and cultural understanding through comic books. Their comic books are a testament to the power of creativity.”
—Dr. Michael Bitz


In 2019, ECA's Collaboratory partnered with the nonprofit organization, the Comic Book Project (CBP), to support two innovative comic diplomacy programs. CBP uses comic books and graphic novels as pedagogical training tools and is renowned for its initiatives engaging youth in the process of writing, illustrating, and self-publishing comic books. CPB's methodology also provides an effective pathway for communities to address critical social issues.

For our pilot program in Mexico, the Collaboratory worked with the U.S Consulate General in Tijuana to design a training program for local teachers of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Set up as a professional development opportunity, CBP experts trained teachers from three different Tijuana public schools on integrating comic books into their curriculums. A private Facebook group allowed for asynchronous collaboration between the participating classrooms, while virtual sessions with professionals were used to provide feedback on the student's works in progress. Additionally, CBP staff conducted onsite evaluations of the program.

The results were impressive. In one example, students created a comic book telling the story of arguments between Quezalthualto and Tlaloc, the Mayan gods of sun and rain during a massive drought. In their story, the hero suggests to the gods they use modern technology to conserve water and cultivate drought-tolerant food crops. In the end, the gods came to an agreement that the world is changing, and collaboration is necessary to address societal challenges. This comic, along with the other finished products, were scanned, formatted, and compiled into a customized digital publication for each participating school.


“One of the reasons why these pilot programs were successful was the hard work and dedication of the educators who were involved. The programs in Mexico and Kazakhstan demonstrated that there are teachers all over the world working to bring new opportunities and new ideas to their students. That is very inspiring.”
—Dr. Michael Bitz


Our second pilot program took place in Kazakhstan in partnership with U.S. Consulate General Almaty. For this iteration, the program model was scaled to a regional level, with twelve schools from four cities and an on-the-ground coordinator. Weekly virtual sessions between CBP staff, the local coordinator, and teachers allowed for discussion of the previous week's successes and challenges and for collaboration on ways to keep participants motivated.

In the end, the students produced very high-quality work that explored their journeys of self-identity or touched on issues faced by Kazak youths today, such as bullying and cultural intolerance. As in the Mexico pilot, the final products were scanned and digitized for online distribution. In addition, the second program also incorporated printing a full-color compilation commissioned through a local publishing company. The student's works were also showcased during the annual Makerfest for Kids event at the American Space Almaty.

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Monday, August 5, 2019 marks Exchange Day, a nationwide celebration of the power of international exchanges! International exchange participants are joining their American hosts to "eat, play, and give" — sharing cultural diversity and American customs, to give back to their communities, and to have some fun.

“Exchange Day is a great way to raise awareness of international exchange programs and spread the word about the power and breadth of cultural exchange,” says Marie Royce, Assistant Secretary of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at the U.S. Department of State. As mandated by the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, ECA works to build friendly, peaceful relations between the people of the United States and the people of other countries through academic, cultural, sports, and professional exchanges, as well as public -private partnerships.

“We are excited that U.S. exchange participants and alumni can join the international exchange community to celebrate and strengthen communities around the world,” says Assistant Secretary Royce.

Under the motto “Eat, Play, Give,” cities across the United States will hold events providing international exchange program participants, alumni, and their hosts an opportunity to enjoy American cuisine, share cultural diversity and customs, and give back to their local communities.

Participation in this event, either in person or virtually, will help spread the word about the impact and breadth of international exchange programs in the United States. To learn more, go to the Exchange Day 2019 site.

The launch of a new Professional Fellows On-Demand Program titled, “Religious Freedom and Interfaith Dialogue Exchange,” focuses on connecting spiritual and community leaders and building interfaith cooperation in multiple settings. This two-way exchange program will welcome 26 faith and community leaders, religious advocates, academics, and government officials from South and Southeast Asia to the United States to begin their exchange.

The kickoff will take place in Washington D.C. and coincide with the Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom (MARF) at the U.S. Department of State. Following the Ministerial, fellows will engage with policy makers and community advocates at the “Religious Tolerance 2.0 Forum” at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs to explore religion in a digital context and its impact in promoting tolerance. The group will then be divided into three cohorts which will travel to three cities based on their respective theme.

In Minnesota, program participants will discuss “Immigration and Religious Tolerance” and how cities confront integration issues within populations. Professional Fellows traveling to Pittsburgh will explore “Interfaith Dialogue and Community Resilience” and how community leaders respond in the aftermath of extremist attacks. The final group will go to Salt Lake City to focus on “Minority Religions and the Role of Religion in Public Discourse” and how leaders are working towards inclusivity. The program will conclude with a closing program in New York City.

These issues will be examined from multiple perspectives through discussions among the fellows and experts in government, religion, social media, and academia. Through meetings, job shadowing, and training sessions, these Professional Fellows will develop a network of counterparts dedicated to religious freedom and inclusivity, as well as a skillset to promote understanding and cooperation back home.

The reciprocal exchange will take place in fall 2019 and U.S. counterparts will join the fellows for a final summit in Asia, which will focus on religious tolerance in the digital age.

Follow the Fellows on their program at #ExchangeOurWorld and #AdvancingReligiousFreedom

On July 12th, the 2019 Diplomacy Begins Here Regional Summits will kick-off in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State in partnership with Global Ties U.S., each summit will bring together leaders from business, government, and nonprofit sectors to engage with local communities on U.S. foreign policy. They will gather participants from across the country in three cities and will highlight the role of exchange programs, such as the International Visitor Leadership Program, in addressing foreign policy priorities.

U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Professional and Cultural Exchanges Susan Crystal will open the first summit in Salt Lake City, hosted by the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy. The theme will be “The Power to Make a Social Impact,” and panels will highlight the importance of collecting data-driven results, telling compelling human stories, and understanding the value of international exchange programs in Utah. The day will be filled with sessions, keynotes and other activities to promote awareness of exchange programs and their critical role in advancing U.S. foreign policy goals.

Following the kickoff summit in Utah, the following Diplomacy Begins Here Summits will be held in San Diego, California, hosted by the San Diego Diplomacy Council, and Louisville, Kentucky, hosted by the World Affairs Council of Kentucky and Southern Indiana.

Follow and join the conversation on social media with the hashtags #ExchangeOurWorld and #IAmDiplomacy.

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Workshop participants learn about photographic techniques for documenting important cultural heritage Workshop participants learn about photographic techniques for documenting important cultural heritage

In April 2019, the Smithsonian Institution (SI) led a three-day workshop at the Iraqi Institute for the Conservation of Antiquities and Heritage (IICAH) in Erbil for Iraqi religious and ethnic groups affected by ISIS whose cultural heritage remains at risk. The workshop, funded by the Cultural Antiquities Task Force, included 54 representatives from the Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Yezidi, Zoroastrian, Kakai, Baha’i, Sabaean, and Mandaean communities. Speakers included SI and IICAH staff, members from non-governmental organizations, private foundations, officials from USAID, U.S. Consulate Erbil, State Department’s Office of International Religious Freedom, Kurdistan Regional Government, and the Erbil Provincial Governorate.

The workshop included lectures on identifying cultural heritage, disaster risk management, and funding opportunities for cultural heritage protection and preservation projects. In sessions taught by IICAH Master Trainers and SI staff, participants learned hands-on skills such as photographic documentation and safe object handling. This is the second such workshop supported by State Department and led by SI to address concerns by minority religious and ethnic communities about their cultural heritage and to equip them with the skills and information to protect their sites and artifacts from looting, destruction, and theft.

This latest workshop contributes to the State Department’s longstanding commitment to protecting and preserving the cultural heritage of Iraq. Since 2003, the department has funded approximately $33 million to support programs that have direct impact such as critical infrastructure upgrades at the National Museum in Baghdad, establishment of the IICAH, emergency stabilization of ancient structures at Nimrud, and comprehensive site management planning and preservation at Babylon.

About the Cultural Antiquities Task Force

Created by the State Department in 2004 at the direction of Congress, the CATF comprises federal agencies that share a common mission to combat antiquities trafficking in the United States and abroad. Since its creation, the CATF has supported more than 80 domestic and international cultural property training programs. CATF is managed by the State Department’s Cultural Heritage Center.

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