RCE Greater Atlanta Meets with International Delegation
On Friday, June 13, RCE Greater Atlanta met with eight government officials from Southeast Asian countries visiting Atlanta under the auspices of the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program to look at “ASEAN: Global Stability, Democratic Governance, and Legal Cooperation." The State Department requested a meeting with RCE Greater Atlanta to discuss our work and partnerships advancing the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals at the local, state, and regional levels. The visitors represented Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.
The program is sponsored by the Georgia Council for International Visitors (GCIV), a non-profit organization responsible for managing the U.S. Department of State’s International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) in Georgia. Since 1940, the IVLP has built mutual understanding between the U.S. and other nations through professional visits to the U.S. for current and emerging foreign leaders. These visits support the foreign policy goals of the U.S. government and mirror the visitors’ professional interests. U.S. embassies select over 4,500 participants from around the globe to take part in these visits to the U.S. Through these encounters, the participants gain a greater understanding of the cultural and political influences in U.S. society by experiencing firsthand America’s culture and people. The visitors represent politics, government, the media, non-governmental organizations, education, public health, the arts, business and trade, international security, and various other fields. Currently, over 250 past and present heads of government and state and many other world leaders in the public and private sectors have participated in the IVLP.
The meeting was hosted by Georgia State University and included the following RCE Greater Atlanta members:
Please read below some reflections on the meeting from our RCE attendees!
Karim Nelson - First, Thanks very much to RICE and Score for inviting us. It was enlightening to hear from the representatives from the South East Asian Countries. As a company that is aspiring to be a player in broader markets it was good to speak to them about their interests and aspirations. I reflected as I sat there, that almost nowhere else would I be able to speak to such a broad representation of interests as we were at that moment. We look forward to strengthening the connections made with the various representatives, either on our side or theirs. Thanks very much again.
Vanessa Ibarra, TheSharedWorld - A key focus of the discussion centered on how educational institutions and the state of Georgia can more strategically engage with ASEAN nations. While attention is often directed toward more traditionally "developed" countries, Georgia and the metro Atlanta region share many of the same challenges faced by ASEAN nations,challenges they have been actively addressing through innovative approaches. This presents a meaningful opportunity to exchange best practices and foster collaboration.
Areas identified for potential partnership included commerce, entrepreneurship, smart cities, and affordable housing. There was also a robust dialogue on how universities are navigating the use of artificial intelligence by students, as well as its broader implications for business and entrepreneurship. Additional topics explored included cultural exchange and academic collaboration, particularly through ongoing engagements between Georgia State University, Georgia Tech, and universities across the ASEAN region.