The International Visitors Leadership Program is a State Department program that has been going on for 60 years to bring mid-level emerging leaders to the United States to learn about topics that the State department prioritizes.
This particular group, called “Changemakers: The Impact of Social Entrepreneurship in the U.S.”, consists of 22 social entrepreneurs from all over (Albania, Australia, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belize, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Chile, El Salvador, Hungary, India, Jordan, Malaysia, Mexico, Nigeria, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia and Turkey) who will be in Vermont August 13-17th. Interviewed in this show by Shelagh Cooley are: Mr. Atul Bharat, Group Director at ACROPOLIS Institutions; Mr. Rani Dababneh, Product Manager at Souq.com; Ms. Taizir Ajala, CEO of Gordon Barrett; and Aliza Napartivaumnuay, Co-Founder of MYSOCIALMOTION.
The project’s goals are to examine the rise of social entrepreneurship in the U.S. and how innovation can drive social and environmental change. This project will focus on the concept of social entrepreneurship as well as government initiatives that support civic engagement and innovation. Through examination of successful models of social entrepreneurship, the participants will explore the impact of new and social media on traditional methods of fundraising, grassroots mobilization and strategic collaboration.
Local sponsorship by the Vermont Council on World Affairs. www.vcwa.org.
