Gov. Ducey Proclaims October Arizona Citizen Diplomacy Month

Recognizes the instrumental role Global Ties Arizona plays in fostering the exchange of ideas, best practices, and expertise between Arizona and the world.

SCOTTSDALE, AZ – Sept. 30, 2022 – Governor Doug Ducey proclaimed October 2022 to be Arizona Citizen Diplomacy Month. In the proclamation, Governor Ducey highlighted the distinct value citizen diplomacy and international exchange bring to Arizona and those who visit the state from abroad. He also emphasized the key role Global Ties Arizona (GTAZ) plays in bringing such visitors to Arizona through the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). You can read the full proclamation here.

Already this year, GTAZ has welcomed 227 visitors from more than 92 countries across a wide range of thematic areas, including water management, democratic processes, election security, women and entrepreneurship, and more. For each IVLP group, GTAZ organizes a robust itinerary of engagements with local community partners and subject matter experts designed to foster an exchange of ideas and best practices.

The timing of Governor Ducey’s proclamation could not have been more fitting, as GTAZ welcomed a particularly special IVLP group to Arizona last week. As part of the State Department’s prestigious Edward R. Murrow Program for Journalists, 16 international journalists arrived in the state last Monday for a week of meetings with their Arizonan counterparts and leadership at Social Television Network, SPOT 127 Youth Media Center, The Center for Positive Media, and Chicanos Por La Causa. They discussed critical topics such as press freedom, the future of journalism, how new technologies are impacting the news and how news is consumed, and the crucial roles responsibility and accuracy play in reporting in a democracy. The visitors hailed from Armenia, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Croatia, Ethiopia, Iraq, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Malaysia, Mauritius, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Singapore, South Africa, and Sri Lanka.

As the group’s time in Arizona came to a close, GTAZ hosted a special luncheon last Friday (September 30th) at the Courtyard Marriott in Scottsdale, in partnership with the U.S. Department of State and World Learning, providing local leaders and community partners the opportunity to meet the visiting journalists, discuss their work, and hear about the insights and ideas from their meetings in Arizona that they will bring back to their home countries. 

At the luncheon, Barry Wong, Executive Director of the Governor’s Office of Equal Opportunity and Global Ties Arizona Advisory Board Member, presented the proclamation. The event also featured keynote remarks by City of Scottsdale Mayor David Ortega on his experiences with the role of diplomacy abroad in Bolivia, as well as his recent engagements with GTAZ-hosted IVLP groups from Israel and an international Mayors’ delegation as part of the Department of State’s Summit for Democracy this summer.

The Friday event also included remarks from Scott Van Alstine, Branch Chief for South and Central Asia in the U.S. State Department’s Office of International Visitors; Kristin Allen, Executive Director of Global Ties Arizona; and Richard Fincher, Chair of the Global Ties Arizona Board of Directors. The event was also attended by members of the Diplomatic Corps of Arizona, including the Honorable Alfredo Molina (Honorary Consul of Spain to Arizona and Chair), Honorable Winnie Kho Kaplan (Honorary Consul of Malaysia to Arizona), and Honorable Dr. George Ayoub (Honorary Consul of Lebanon to Arizona); as well Global Ties Arizona board and advisory board members, Councilwoman Lauren Tolmachoff of the City of Glendale, among other community leaders and members.

About Global Ties Arizona

Global Ties Arizona creates opportunities for Arizonans to engage with business, nonprofit, government and academic leaders from around the world to share ideas and learn from one another through its programs. We offer professional and educational exchange programs, speaker engagements, special events, and other efforts that promote Citizen Diplomacy.

About the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program

The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. Through short-term visits to the United States, current and emerging foreign leaders in a variety of fields experience this country firsthand and cultivate lasting relationships with their American counterparts. Professional meetings reflect the participants’ professional interests and support the foreign policy goals of the United States.

Since 1940, the IVLP, with the help of a dedicated network of community-based non-profit organizations, has introduced over 225,000 participants to communities throughout the United States.

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View the full text of the Proclamation made by Governor Doug Ducey below:

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WHEREAS, the world, its economy and citizens are interconnected and interdependent; and

WHEREAS, the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) was established by the Unites States Department of State in conjunction with the United States Information Agency and United States Agency for International Development to introduce and educate emerging, current and future foreign leaders in various fields – government, business, nonprofits – to America and Americans to foster exchange of ideas, best practices and cultures; and

WHEREAS, annually numerous delegations under the IVLP visit Arizona under the auspices of Global Ties Arizona in partnership with the United States Department of State; and

WHEREAS, Global Ties Arizona, affiliated with Global Ties U.S., provide IVLP participants with broad and meaningful exposure to American democracy and market-based economy through innumerable programs with state and local governments, tribal governments, businesses, media, nonprofit organizations and educational institutions; and

WHEREAS, everyday Arizonans interact with IVLP participants though Global Ties Arizona’s unique “Citizen Diplomacy” program as home hospitality dinner hosts where the international visitors informally learn from and connect with ordinary Americans, one handshake at a time.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Douglas A. Ducey, Governor of the State of Arizona, do hereby proclaim October 2022 as 

ARIZONA CITIZEN DIPLOMACY MONTH

and encourage Arizonans to join in welcoming international visitors throughout the year.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused to be affixed the Great Seal of the State of Arizona

GOVERNOR

DONE at the Capitol in Phoenix on this fifteenth day of September in the year Two Thousand and Twenty-Two and of the Independence of the United States of America the Two Hundred and Forty-Seventh.

ATTEST:

SECRETARY OF STATE