U.S. CENTER FOR CITIZEN DIPLOMACY
BACKGROUNDER

“If only people will get together, then so eventually will nations.” President Dwight D. Eisenhower

Mission

The United States Center for Citizen Diplomacy promotes opportunity for all Americans to be citizen diplomats and affirms the indispensable value of citizen involvement in international relations. (February of 2007)

Spotlight on Citizen Diplomacy

In 2004, 33 national leaders from international exchange organizations convened in Racine, Wisconsin, to pursue strategies to strengthen America’s commitment to citizen diplomacy.  From that meeting emerged a national campaign of state and local summits on citizen diplomacy, culminating in a national summit in Washington, D.C., July of 2006. The Coalition for Citizen Diplomacy, representing more than 120 U.S. organizations, was formed to implement a movement to underscore the importance of positive and sustainable engagement of Americans in international exchange and educational initiatives.

As the need to focus nationwide on the importance and value of citizen diplomacy emerged, the U.S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy was formed to encourage citizen diplomacy. Launched in July of 2006, the U. S. Center, headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, works with individuals and organizations throughout the country and the world to promote the concept and importance of citizen diplomacy and greatly expand the numbers of Americans who are involved in this important work. Every American can connect in some way with those from another culture and raise the level of empathy between individuals and communities from different countries.

Why is ‘citizen diplomacy’ important now?

In an era of increasing globalization, more and more people develop their most lasting impressions through face-to-face, personal encounters, with people visiting the United States or when Americans travel abroad. In this context, the ‘citizen diplomat’ is a powerful force in defining the United States to the rest of the world.

>      Polls and studies document that anti-American sentiment around the globe is dangerously high and has grown to unprecedented levels.

>      America needs to dramatically increase its capacity to reach out to the rest of the world to foster common interests and values.

>      Americans are falling behind in the race for engagement with the world, international competitiveness, and global education excellence.

In spite of these serious concerns, the United States spends 1/10 of 1% of its budget on foreign affairs and only 1% of that on the single most important facet of U.S. foreign policy — citizen diplomacy. This pattern of neglect must be turned around to support global engagement at all levels of society in the United States.

U. S. Center Agenda

In the next decade, to increase fourfold the number of Americans actively involved as citizen diplomats to more than
two million — the U. S. Center for Citizen Diplomacy will:

>      Manage a national database and interactive Web site of U.S. citizen diplomacy activities and programs throughout
the country and world;

>      Increase private and public sector support for citizen diplomacy by expanding alliances with businesses, foundations, local and state governments, civic organizations of all types and the U.S. government;

>      Honor diplomatic accomplishments with an annual program National Awards for Citizen Diplomacy, convening
national summits on Citizen Diplomacy, and conducting research on the impactof citizen diplomacy;

>      Provide education and training to increase effective leadership capacity to conduct citizen diplomacy programs for all ages and levels of experience;

>      Strengthen and expand available, time–tested programs and develop targeted, pilot programs and initiatives to address emerging needs;

>      Encourage pre-K-to-12 schools across the United States to increase international content in their curricula to equip students with skills that they need to become future leaders in a global world; and

>      Consult with Congress and the U.S. Department of State and support those countries throughout the world seeking to establish or expand their own capacity to conduct citizen diplomacy.

United States Center for Citizen Diplomacy is a 501(c)3 organization. It relies on financial support from individuals, foundations, and other support from both the public and private sectors. For more information about the Center, log on to www.uscenterforcitizendiplomacy.org.