The Collective Public Policy Voice of the Exchange Community

Alliance Commentary

Analysis of the latest news around Washington, D.C. and the exchange community from Alliance staff and members.

International Exchange Programs Receive Unprecedented Support

by | Jul 20, 2017

It has been a busy summer for those of us who promote the growth and impact of international exchange programs. In May, the White House released a detailed budget that called for an unprecedented 32 percent cut to the Department of State, and a 55 percent cut to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA), which funds and oversees a wide range of critical international exchange programs which enable people-to-people diplomacy. If enacted, these cuts would greatly damage the United States’ soft power diplomacy and put our nation at risk.

Alliance Statement: Administration’s Cuba Travel Policy Hinders Public Diplomacy

by | Jun 19, 2017

Statement by Ilir Zherka, Executive Director of the Alliance for Internatioanl Exchange:

President Trump’s new policies towards Cuba includes a detrimental restriction for Americans traveling to the island for educational purposes. The administration’s argument for cancelling this travel category is the erroneous assumption that people-to-people exchanges do not help the Cuban people and instead only benefits the Cuban government.

Administration’s 2018 Budget Jeopardizes our Nation’s Public Diplomacy Efforts

by | May 23, 2017

For Immediate Release
Contact: 202-293-6141

Fate of Educational and Cultural Exchange Programs Rests with Congress

Washington, DC (May 23, 2017) – The budget released today by President Donald Trump proposes an unprecedented cut of 32 percent to the International Affairs budget, and a 55 percent cut to the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) specifically. ECA funds and oversees a wide range of critical international exchange programs which enable people-to-people diplomacy.

International Exchange Programs are Vital to America’s Security

by | Apr 10, 2017

The Trump administration has proposed cuts in FY18 of 28 percent to the State Department, with much deeper cuts likely to the Bureau for Educational and Cultural Affairs, and a significant narrowing of the types of exchange programs our country supports. If enacted into law, these combined changes would greatly harm our nation’s public diplomacy efforts and, ultimately, our national security and economy.

Letter to the Editor: Politico “They Think We Are Slaves”

by | Mar 31, 2017

POLITICO’s coverage of the Au Pair Program (“They Think We Are Slaves,” March 27) was surprisingly one-sided. While any report of an au pair having a less than positive stay in America is troubling, one would get the impression from your story that this is the rule rather than the exception.