Young Diplomats Summer Institute 2024
From June 10-12, Global Ties Arizona hosted the second annual Young Diplomats Summer Institute at the Flinn Foundation. This dynamic 2.5-day program brought together 28 students from 18 schools across Greater Phoenix. The event focused on diplomacy, careers in the U.S. Department of State and international affairs, intercultural understanding, conflict resolution, media literacy, and advocacy.
Day 1 Highlights:
Diplomacy 101: Suzanne Lawrence, Former U.S. Foreign Service Officer and GTAZ Board Member, introduced the U.S. Department of State and the role of a diplomat.
Department of State Career Insights: Anthony Musa, Foreign Affairs Officer from the Office of Central Asian Affairs, shared insights into careers in the U.S. Department of State via a virtual session.
Diplomatic Panel: Members of the Diplomatic Corps of Arizona, including Consul General Jorge Mendoza Yescas (Consulate General of Mexico in Phoenix), Ken Smith (Honorary Consul of Chile), Roberta Gentili-Purcell (Honorary Consul of Italy), Kelly Moeur (Honorary Consul of Japan), and Mikael Orn (Honorary Consul of Sweden), discussed their roles representing their respective nations in Arizona and commented on current affairs coming out of their countries.
Intercultural Session: Melinda Marquardt and Mira Petersen from Northern Arizona University's Interdisciplinary Global Programs led a session on intercultural competencies.
Day 2 Highlights:
Conflict Resolution: Strategies for negotiation and mediation were explored by Suzanne Lawrence, Richard Fincher (ASU), and Colonel Bruce Pagel (ASU's School of Civic and Economic Thought & Leadership), followed by students engaging in a real-world diplomacy simulation concerning an international migration crisis.
Cultural Exchange: Students connected with international exchange and study abroad students during lunch to learn more about their respective countries or their experience studying abroad as an American student.
Sources of Information: Dr. Doug Guthrie from Thunderbird School of Global Management at ASU discussed China's influence, and Dr. Joshua Garland from ASU's Center on Narrative, Disinformation and Strategic Influence led a media literacy workshop on identifying disinformation.
Day 3 Highlights:
Global Civic Responsibility: Luke Wenz from the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition spoke about Arizona's global engagement and career paths in international affairs.
Advocacy Training for Future Diplomats: Rachel Yanof from the Flinn Foundation’s Arizona Center for Civic Leadership led a workshop where students drafted advocacy letters to local and state representatives to voice their thoughts on pressing local and global issues.
The institute concluded with a celebratory luncheon attended by parents, speakers, and community leaders to share in the students' achievements. Participants were awarded certificates of completion, marking their transformation into informed and connected young diplomats.
We are thankful to everyone who helped make this year a success and are hopeful because of these bright, future leaders of Arizona!
