Announcing Learning Life’s Outstanding Volunteers & Family Diplomats of 2022
Learning Life is pleased to announce its outstanding volunteers and family diplomats (FDs) of 2022. “Learning Life is blessed with a growing number of volunteers and family diplomats worldwide, and we are happy to recognize and reward those who contributed to our international democracy and diplomacy work in outstanding ways,” said Learning Life’s founder and director, Paul Lachelier.
The volunteer awards were for outstanding mentor, Board of Advisors member, and interns. The FD awards were for most improved family storytellers who participated in Learning Life’s inaugural FD trainingas part of Learning Life’s Family Diplomacy Initiative(FDI). You can see each of the award recipients below as well as all our 2022 FD family storytellers.
FDI is an ambitious, long-term effort to connect, train and empower a growing international corps of FDs to participate in decision-making at local to global levels. The FDs’ training — in citizen diplomacy, advocacy skills (starting with family storytelling), plus family trends, patterns and issues — is vital to their ability to effectively advocate for families across the world. Learning Life successfully launched the FD training this year (more details on the training and its impact to come in our end-of-year report), and will continue to develop it over the coming years as we also grow our international corps of FDs.
This year, all those FDs who completed the nearly four-month training, meeting weekly on Sundays from July 10 to October 30, were given certificates of completion, with or without honors depending on their attendance, participation, and completion of and improvement in pre- and post-training evaluation surveys and/or family stories. Nineteen individuals from fifteen countries completed Part 1 of the training (focused on developing knowledge about citizen diplomacy and global family trends, patterns and issues) and/or Part 2 (focused on developing skill in storytelling). The certificate awards were announced for the following people, who completed both Parts 1 and 2, unless otherwise noted:
Certificates of Completion: Chirunim Agi-Otto (Nigeria), Ittai Chaunzar (Zimbabwe), Atenkeng Cynthia (Cameroon, Part 2 only), Marvin Fan (China, Part 1 only), Justice Onyekachi (Nigeria), Mohammad Siavash (Afghanistan, Part 2 only), Chloe Terani (USA), Joe Toles (USA), and Gustavo Villalobos (Costa Rica).
Certificates of Completion, with Honors: Aaron Akomea (Ghana), Tenille Archie (Trinidad & Tobago), Mulbah Flomo (Liberia), Belle Gjeloshi (Albania), Esma Gumberidze (Georgia), Nusrat Jahan Nipa (Bangladesh, Part 2 only), Lekshmi K (India, Part 1 only), Tadiwa Mudede (Zimbabwe), Sami Noman (Pakistan), and Leroy Quoi (Liberia).
Click here to learn more about each of our family diplomats and their families. All those who completed Part 2 on family storytelling receive a $100 stipend. They are featured in the poster below along with their country and family story topic:
The five winners of the “most improved family storyteller” award receive an additional $100 award beyond the $100 stipend for all 2022 family storytellers in the above. These award winners are:
Ittai Chaunzar Zimbabwe
Gustavo Villalobos Costa Rica
Tenille Archie Trinidad & Tobago
Chirunim Agi-Otto Nigeria
Nusrat Jahan Nipa Bangladesh
Learning Life’s outstanding mentor in 2022 is Sherry Liu, pictured below with her mentee, Alaz’yah.
Last but not least, Learning Life’s three outstanding interns of 2022 are:
Learning Life’s outstanding mentor, interns and Board of Advisors member receive a one-year subscription to National Geographic Magazine in appreciation for their contributions.
Citizen Diplomacy International Meeting #16
About Citizen Diplomacy International
Due to globalization, the internet, rising education levels, and long-term democratization, citizen diplomacy is growing, and becoming a more important part of diplomacy and international affairs. Thus, in 2020, the Public Diplomacy Council of America (PDCA), a US-based NGO devoted to advancing the field of public diplomacy, formed the Citizen Diplomacy Research Group (CDRG) to advance the research and practice of citizen diplomacy. In 2023, the CDRG became Citizen Diplomacy International(CDI), a network and program of Learning Life, a Washington DC-based nonprofit devoted to developing innovative learning communities in order to widen and deepen participation in democracy and diplomacy.
CDI meets every three months online via Zoom for 1.5 hours to share research and news on citizen diplomacy developments worldwide with an eye to building a vibrant global CD sector for a more participatory, equitable and sustainable world.. Meetings typically begin with two presentations on CD research or practice, followed by discussion of the presentations, then news and announcements of past or upcoming international CD-related initiatives, publications, funding, conferences, etc.
Anyone — including scholars, students, citizen diplomacy practitioners, current and retired official diplomats, and others interested — can join CDI to learn, network, and/or present substantial research or practice in citizen diplomacy. For more information or to join the CDI email list, contact email@learninglife.info. You can also connect with CDI members via our Facebook group and Linkedin group, to which you can post citizen diplomacy-related articles, books, events, funding, etc.
The meeting drew 23 participants in seven countries: Romania, Israel, Pakistan, India, St. Lucia, Bolivia, and the USA.
Agenda:
1) Opening Remarks & Introductions (10 minutes)
Review of meeting agenda. During this time everyone is encouraged to post to the chat a one-paragraph bio about themselves, including your name, city, country, job title and organization. Introductions via chat saves us time, provides written details about you, and allows us to share your info after the meeting with those who could not attend. In addition, I will share the Zoom chat content to the CDRG email list following the meeting, so whatever you share will get a wider audience.
2) Two Presentations (30 minutes total):
Presenters:
Carson Tavenner, Founder & Executive Director, The Tai Initiative, presenting on: Subnational Citizen Diplomacy Leadership: Definition, History, Importance, Challenges, and Opportunities.
Meeting participants have the opportunity to publicize citizen diplomacy events, publications, projects, programs, and related needs. Participants can also post details and links to the Zoom chat box to share with the wider CDRG email list.
December 11: Democracy & Diplomacy for a More Caring World
Democracy & Diplomacy Community to Offer Citizen Diplomacy International
Learning Life is pleased to announce the addition of Citizen Diplomacy International (CDI) to our new Democracy & Diplomacy Community (DDC) starting in January 2023.
CDI will offer DDC members and the interested public an opportunity to learn, network and advance citizen diplomacy (CD) worldwide. CD can be defined as communication or collaboration among citizens (not government diplomats) across national borders for shared economic, political, cultural, educational, environmental, health, or other purposes.
Due to globalization, the internet, rising education levels, and long-term democratization across the world, CD is growing, and becoming a more important part of diplomacy and international affairs. CDI help connect CD students, scholars and practitioners worldwide to learn from each other, and where possible, foster collaborations to study and/or practice CD.
Learning Life’s founder, Paul Lachelier, launched CDI in June 2020 as the Citizen Diplomacy Research Group (CDRG) under the aegis of the Public Diplomacy Council, now the Public Diplomacy Council of America (PDCA). The Group’s email list has since grown to over 1,000 students, scholars and practitioners from 108 countries. Since June 2020, CDRG meetings have been held every two months for 1.5 hours online via Zoom, with each meeting comprised of two presentations of CD research or practice followed by discussion then announcements. Since October 2020, the CDRG has also published a CD Bulletin with every meeting, offering CD-related news, events, articles, books and resources. PDCA members will continue to enjoy access to CDRG / CDI meetings, the CD Bulletin, and our growing CD bibliography.
“Learning Life is excited to offer DDC members CDI to broaden our global connections and engagement in some of the cutting edges of diplomacy,” said Lachelier. “We are also excited to partner with the PDCA, an organization of which I am a proud member, to foster communication and collaboration between citizen diplomats and government diplomats for the public good.”
“The PDCA is pleased to establish this partnership with Learning Life, which sustains our members’ access to international citizen diplomacy meetings and a growing CD bibliography, while developing a new relationship with a nonprofit innovating CD,” PDCA Co-President Sherry Mueller added.
CDRG participants will see these changes starting in January 2023: (1) a change in the name from CDRG to CDI; (2) a switch from the PDCA to Learning Life in the logos affixed at the top of the CD Bulletin, CDRG’s Linkedin and Facebook pages, and all other communications; (3) a move from six to four meetings per year (2023 dates below); and (4) invitations to join the broader DDC for more opportunities to network, learn and advance democracy and citizen diplomacy. There will likely be more changes and benefits in 2023 as Learning Life continues CDRG’s work to grow and network the expanding global citizen diplomacy sector, but we will save these announcements for later.
In 2023, CDI meetings will be on these dates and topics:
March 8, 12:00-1:30pm: health diplomacy
June 6, 11:00am-12:30pm: city diplomacy
September 6, 12:00-1:30pm: democratizing and localizing world affairs
December 5, 11:00am-12:30pm: digital diplomacy, or big data, authoritarianism & CD
To get on the CDI meeting email invitation list, send your preferred email address (ideally a non-work address in case you change jobs) to email@learninglife.info. You can also join the CDRG Facebook group and/or Linkedin group (the names and organizational affiliations of which will change in January 2023, as noted above) to connect with other CD students, scholars and practitioners worldwide, and to share your CD-related articles, books, events, funding, and other items.
