The Foreign Service Journal, April 2016

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | APRIL 2016 51 AFSA NEWS Global Ties U.S.—formerly known as the National Coun- cil on International Visitors, and a Department of State partner helping administer the International Visitor Leadership Program—held its annual national conference in Washington, D.C., on Jan 27-30. The event drew more than 1,000 leaders from across the United States who are on the forefront of con- necting international visitors with their local communities. In appreciation of the December issue of The For- eign Service Journal , which focused on the 75th anniver- sary of the IVLP, Global Ties invited AFSA to represent the Foreign Service during the four-day event. Global Ties President Jennifer Clinton and Foreign Service Officer Robert Zimmerman (on detail to Global Ties) both wrote for the December issue and were instrumental in establishing the Global Ties connection with AFSA. AFSA Speakers Link Exchanges to the Foreign Service AFSA President Ambas- sador Barbara Stephenson kicked off the association’s participation by speaking during an afternoon plenary, “A Strategic Dialogue on Advancing Peace & Secu- rity through International Exchange Programs,” at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center. The panel focused on the importance of international 2016 Global Ties Conference: Promoting the Foreign Service exchanges for advancing diplomacy and defense efforts. Sharing her experi- ence as the consul general in Northern Ireland, Amb. Stephenson recalled when AFSA President Ambassador Barbara Stephenson speaks about balancing international exchanges’ long-term goal of building mutual understanding with the short-term goal of supporting foreign policy priorities. From left: President and CEO of IREX Kristin Lord, Executive Director of The McCain Institute for International Leadership Kurt Volker, Stephenson and Brigadier General (ret.) and CEO of the American Security Project Steve Cheney. Approximately 550 people, including members of Congress and their staffers, international exchange leaders and private-sector supporters, were in the Capitol Visitor Center audience during the Jan. 27 panel discussion. AFSA/MARIAC.LIVINGSTON AFSA/MARIAC.LIVINGSTON Please turn the page Working with the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs, AFSA arranged for Ambassador (ret.) Linda Jewell—an AFSA member and longtime supporter of the association’s Road Scholar program—to give the keynote address on the value of exchanges at an ECA-sponsored reception for conference participants in the State Department’s Benjamin Franklin diplomatic reception room with more than 300 attendees. Amb. Jewell drew on her 30-year career as a public diplomacy officer with the U.S. Information Agency and the Department of State and her activities in retirement. She has served as the vice president of International Stu- dent Exchange Programs and Consulate General Belfast used exchange programs to help the police force shift to a community policing model— a move that was critical for advancing the peace process.