About the Author: Ann Stock serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs.

We broke new musical ground with two innovative programs, CenterStage and OneBeat. CenterStage brings performing artists from Haiti, Indonesia and Pakistan to perform in 60 small and mid-sized cities, giving Main Street America a chance to experience international culture without stepping on a plane. Meanwhile, OneBeat brings 32 musicians from 21 countries — including the United States — to eight East Coast cities to collaborate and make new music together.

That tradition continues with this year’s American Music Abroad, which will send twelve American musical groups to travel abroad to over 40… more »

About the Author: Zeenat Rahman serves as Secretary Clinton’s Special Adviser on Global Youth Issues.

As I speak with young people from around the globe, I find striking similarities. They are full of innovation, creativity, and talent. People under 30 are the first generation of youth that can consider themselves a global entity. They see themselves as global citizens and want to connect and help one another. With young people now making up over half the world’s population, we have a real opportunity to help them realize their aspirations and help to turn the youth bulge into a youth dividend. Economic opportunity, especially employment, is the most pressing issue facing young people around the world. Getting a job is an important step towards independence, and can be a source of great pride. But too many young people who are seeking jobs are unsuccessful. Reports by the World Bank and the International Labor Organization (ILO) paint a grim picture of youth unemployment. The ILO… more »

About the Author: Ann Stock serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs.

The inaugural Youth TechCamp Bangladesh launched on September 16, and Dhaka has been buzzing ever since! Youth TechCamp Bangladesh was the latest in a series of interactive trainings around the world for alumni of State’s youth exchange programs. In Bangladesh, 30 alumni (ages 17-19) from our Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program participated, learning how to use technology and social media to impact their communities for the better.

Organized in collaboration with U.S. Embassy Dhaka and iEARN,… more »

Notice to the Press
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
October 1, 2012

On Tuesday, October 2, the United States Department of State will host the launch of the “Youth Livelihoods Alliance.” Led by the International Youth Foundation, this multi-stakeholder initiative aims to help address the global youth unemployment crisis. The Department of State is the first government agency to join the Alliance, which brings together leaders in government, business, and civil society to develop practical and innovative solutions to this global challenge.

The Youth Livelihoods Alliance has three core commitments: promoting the goal to hire young people, developing their skills, and creating jobs through entrepreneurship. As a member, the Department will use its convening power to raise awareness of the issue of youth unemployment and to encourage more effective partnerships among the public and private sectors to turn the youth bulge into the youth dividend. Other members include Hilton Worldwide, Microsoft, MasterCard Worldwide, Caterpillar, Manpower, Laureate International Universities, and the Multilateral Investment Fund of the InterAmerican Development Bank.

This event will begin promptly at 9:00 a.m. in the Dean Acheson Auditorium. Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights, Maria Otero, will deliver the keynote address at 9:15. Panelists and speakers will include President and CEO of the International Youth Foundation, William Reese, the Secretary’s Special Adviser on Global Youth Issues, Zeenat Rahman, and representatives from founding member organizations.

For updates on the Youth Livelihoods Alliance, follow Twitter hash tags #jobs4youth and #GlobalYouth. For more information on the Office of Global Youth Issues, please visit http://www.state.gov/globalyouth or https://www.facebook.com/GlobalYouthIssues

The event will be open to the press. Pre set for camera crews: 8:15 a.m. from the 23rd Street entrance. Final access time for writers and still photographers: 8:45 a.m. from the 23rd Street entrance. Media representatives may attend this event upon presentation of one of the following: (1) A U.S. Government-issued identification card (Department of State, White House, Congress, Department of Defense or Foreign Press Center), (2) a media-issued photo identification card, or (3) a letter from their employer on letterhead verifying their employment as a journalist, accompanied by an official photo identification card (driver’s license, passport).

For further information, please contact Menaka Nayyar at NayyarMM2@state.gov or (202) 647-4107, or the Press Office at (202) 647-2492.

Girls Rule the (Sports) World: Mentoring the Next Generation of Global Women Leaders in Sports

About the Author: Ann Stock serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs.

On Thursday, I met with 17 inspiring women from Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Macedonia, Nigeria, the Philippines, Russia, Rwanda, Tajikistan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Individually, they’re up-and-comers in the world of sports — as athletes, coaches, reporters, and managers. Together, they’re the inaugural class of the U.S. Department of State and espnW Global Sports Mentoring Program. The group arrived at the State Department this morning for an orientation to kick off their month-long mentorships with leading American women in sports-related fields. 

For the next four weeks, these emerging leaders will work alongside their American mentors from ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut,… more »

Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
August 24, 2012

The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs welcomes 21 youth and three educators from Libya, Egypt, and Tunisia to the United States on August 24, to participate in a three-week Youth Leadership Program focused on the theme of Media Literacy. The participants will learn about leadership development, civic education and community service through engagement with students in local high schools, encounters with civic, youth, and governmental organizations, and participation in community service activities and leadership workshops. The program is implemented by nonprofit organization World Learning.

The exchange program begins with a leadership and team building camp at World Learning’s School for International Training Graduate Institute campus in Brattleboro, Vermont. After the camp, the students will break into groups and travel to either Louisville, Kentucky or San Diego, California. In each of the cities the students will meet with local organizations to learn about civic engagement and media education initiatives. They will also live with local host families, perform community service, and attend cultural events.

The group will reunite in Washington, D.C. on September 12, to learn how the State Department interacts with media at home and abroad, and to draft plans for service projects they will implement in their home communities.

For more information, please visit http://exchanges.state.gov/youth/programs/ylp.html and or contact: Anna Griffin at ECA-Press@state.gov.

About the Author: Anna Mussman serves as a Public Diplomacy Officer with Task Force Mountain Warrior in Jalalabad, Afghanistan.

It is no secret that when women and girls have the opportunity to pursue an education, they directly improve their communities and help entire societies grow. And sometimes, the goodwill and dedication of individual Americans, connected virtually through sites like Facebook, help girls in a rural district of Afghanistan realize their dreams of education and a better future.

As DipNote reported a few months ago, U.S. Embassy Kabul supports the “Teen Teach” program, where Afghan teenagers are trained and then have the chance to teach in classrooms of younger students.

In Chaparhar, a city in Nangarhar district, about 23 kilometers south of Jalalabad close to the eastern border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Shulani School participated in the “Teen Teach”… more »

About the Author: Ashli Ferguson serves as a Public Affairs Specialist in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs.

For the first time ever, young Americans are being offered an exciting opportunity to bring the voice of U.S. youth to the United Nations. This year, the U.S. Department of State is teaming up with the United Nations Association of the USA to send one young citizen to the UN General Assembly in New York as a pilot program entitled the U.S. Youth Observer Program.

That means, if you are age 18 to 25, and have an interest and passion for international affairs, civic engagement, and youth issues, you could qualify for this once in a lifetime chance to see the United Nations in action — in person. The U.S. Youth Observer will travel to New York, interact with the U.S. delegation and other youth representatives from around the world — and then report on their experiences… more »

About the Author: Benjamin Baird serves at the U.S. Embassy in London.

NBA superstar, and 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist, Dwyane Wade set aside some time last week, to coach UK kids. Wade is mentoring the London-area kids to teach them how to succeed in life through sport. Lessons he teaches his own sons. Since 2011, the Miami Heat guard has taken part in U.S. President Barack Obama’s Fatherhood Initiative. Wade says the London 2012 Games are a chance for parents to use athletics to show their kids how diverse the world can be.

“The great thing about Olympic Sports and Olympic time is that you get the opportunity to watch sports that you might not have known nothing about or you might not have watched before…I know my kids love sports so it just makes it a little bit easier to say you don’t like this one try this one. You don’t like this one try this…more »

Press Statement