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Visiting Delegations Coordinated By GlobalPittsburgh for April - June 2016
Data Privacy and Protection in the U.S.
U.S. Department of State IVLP
April 9-13
Visitors: 5
Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia
U.S. Government and Policy
U.S. Department of State IVLP
April 21-23
Visitors: 10
Mozambique
American Youth Inspiring Leadership and Civic Participation II
U.S. Department of State IVLP
April 24-27
Visitors: 8
Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Namibia, Nepal, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Ukraine
Government Transparency/ Access to Public Information
Open World Leadership Center
April 29 - May 7
Visitors: 6
Ukraine
Galvanizing Youth for Environmental Protection
U.S. Department of State IVLP
May 18-21
Visitors: 7
Algeria, Morocco
Young Transatlantic Innovation Leaders Initiative
U.S. Department of State, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs
June 4-15
Visitors: 6
Kosovo, Lithuania, Malta, Montenegro, Poland, Switzerland
U.S. Energy Policy: Energy Security and Climate Change Resilience
U.S. Department of State IVLP
June 9 - 14
Visitors: Approximately 6
European Countries to be determined
Mandela Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders
Get a chance to win two Delta tickets to Europe at GlobalPittsburgh International Barbecue!
GlobalPittsburgh will host its second annual International Barbecue on June 25 at Bayardstown Social Club. We are keeping the admission minimal (only $5 for members and $7 for non-members until May 31) to encourage more people to come celebrate the diverse cultures in the Pittsburgh region. At the event, we will be selling chances to win 2 round-trip airline tickets to any destination served by Delta in Europe!
Attendees will be able to choose from a wide selection of grilled foods from different cultures and imported beer. Entertainment will be provided by DJ Pandemic, there will also be a photo booth and activities for adults and children.
We will keep you updated on the details of this event.
On May 3, 2016, a gift to GlobalPittsburgh will have an impact!
Allegheny County Democratic Committeewoman Anne McCafferty discusses Pennsylvania primary election with American Youth Inspiring Leadership and Civic Participation II project participants, April 25, 2016
The Pittsburgh Foundation will host the seventh Day of Giving on May 3, 2016.
Please go to this website
www.pittsburghgives.org/home between 8 am and midnight to make a donation to our organization. If you search by categories on the right column, you will find the Pittsburgh Council for International Visitors/ GlobalPittsburgh as one of the four organizations listed under the category International, Foreign Affairs, and National Security. Consider this an opportunity to honor the legacy of our organization and the many volunteers who have contributed their time and expertise or who have opened their homes and their hearts to visitors form around the world.
Please consider making a tax deductible donation and supporting GlobalPittsburgh on the Day of Giving.
Nominate an Immigrant Entrepreneur for an Award!
GlobalPittsburgh will host an Immigrant Entrepreneur Celebration and Award Ceremony at the Rivers Club on October 13, 2016.
GlobalPittsburgh is currently accepting nominations for entrepreneurs and professionals who were born outside of the U.S. whose entrepreneurial efforts have benefitted our region. Nominees should reside in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington, or Westmoreland Counties. Some of the anticipated categories for awards will include: Technology, Professional Services, and the Arts.
The Immigrant Entrepreneur Celebration will take place on the evening of Thursday, October 13, 2016 at the Rivers Club. Mayor William Peduto has been invited to speak at the event.
"I'd like to thank GlobalPittsburgh for creating this opportunity to celebrate and recognize immigrants as valuable contributors to the economic and cultural landscape of our city. Our history is rooted in the contributions of immigrants and our future is based on the innovation of what the next generation of immigrants will bring," said Mayor William Peduto. This new annual event will showcase the wide range of enterprises and services in the Pittsburgh region provided by immigrant entrepreneurs.
By George Lies, Grants Administrator, Office of International Programs
A dozen of multi-country participants involved in a roundtable on U.S. Energy Policy and Security enjoyed the sunny day in front of the Mountainlair, Morgantown, WV, after an engaging discourse on the campus of West Virginia University. Photo by Tracy Novak.
In 2010, GlobalPittsburgh extended its programming area beyond western Pennsylvania into the Morgantown, West Virginia area. Its continual collaboration with West Virginia University's Office of International Programs has been key to the success of our programming in Morgantown on such topics as energy, shale gas development, higher education, and American culture.
"In less than four months last year, WVU opened gateways to top level officials in 32 countries," said George M. Lies, of WVU's International Grants and Development Section. "For about six years, GlobalPittsburgh and WVU have worked closely to address critical issues such as climate change and clean energy, as well as U.S. energy security."
"How I have made connections through the IVLP and GlobalPittsburgh"
By Gulin Bulbuloglu, GlobalPittsburgh intern from Turkey
Gulin and Monika, March 2016
I met Monika Wilcox, a Program Officer for the national program agency FHI 360 in 2009 when I was a participant from Turkey in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) in Washington, D.C. She accompanied us as our Program Officer throughout a 2 week long exchange for young leaders. The main theme of our project was the importance of giving back to the community in which we lived.
One year after the completion of our program, Monika had the opportunity to visit me in Istanbul, Turkey, where I was attending university. We had a chance to catch up, and talk about how the IVLP impacted our lives.
By Gail Shrott, Director, International Leaders Program
On March 31, GlobalPittsburgh lost a true friend and former Executive Director, Barbara Platt Gumbiner. Although many of our current hosts and members did not have the opportunity to meet her, through her work for the organization between 1978 and 1989 and her unfailing belief in the power of what can be accomplished through citizen diplomacy, she was a long-time supporter of our organization and our national network.
I arrived at the Pittsburgh Council for International Visitors as Program Coordinator shortly after Barbara had left the organization to work in Washington, DC, for the Institute of International Education. The first time I met her, she shared with me the pride that she felt for having been able to work at our organization with such an amazing network of volunteers who forged lasting connections to people from around the world every day. Barbara instilled in me the importance of our organization's legacy; all of the individuals whose time and energy had made a profound difference in connecting Pittsburgh to other parts of the world. Barbara went on to work for what was the National Council for International Visitors (now Global Ties U.S.) until her retirement in 2002, always retaining a pride in Pittsburgh and unfailing belief in the power of international exchanges. For more than a decade, she would volunteer at the national meeting for what is now Global Ties U.S.so that she could warmly greet her many friends in the network. I believe that Barbara's spirit will live on in every volunteer taking the time to meet a young international leader or group for a professional meeting and in every host family sharing a lively dinner conversation over a hospitality dinner.
We look forward to seeing you on May 5 for the next GlobalPittsburgh First Thursdays happy hour for globally-minded people at Roland's in the Strip District from 5:30-8:00 p.m. Everyone is welcome! Bring your friends! See registration information below.
Joining our May event will be a group of five journalists from Ukraine accompanied by a facilitator who are participating in a program managed by the independent Open World Leadership Center.
We will be giving away a pair of tickets ($30 value) to Global Links' event Beers for Babes: Not Your Typical Baby Shower. This fun event on May 22 supports that organization's maternal and infant health projects. GlobalPittsburgh is partnering with Global Links for the second year to help spread the word and raise funds for women in resource-poor communities throughout Latin America.
Admission to First Thursdays is free for paid GlobalPittsburgh members, anyone born in May or in Mexico. Admission is $5 for non-members with pre-registration and $10 at the door.
GlobalPittsburgh Group Dinners and Intercultural Potluck Dinners for Members
GlobalPittsburgh
is a member organization, and we do have some activities that are reserved for members (although anybody can join; see below for the link to membership info). However, we do encourage members to bring guests.
Group Dinners usually take place on weekends. We like to dine as a group in different ethnic restaurants throughout Pittsburgh. This is a family-friendly activity, so please bring your kids (or parents) with you. Our next group dinner will take place on June 12.
Intercultural Potluck Dinners for GlobalPittsburgh paid members and host families are scheduled four times each year. We share ethnic foods (everybody brings a dish), learn about other world cultures, play games and make new friends. Our next potluck dinner scheduled for Saturday, May 21, from 4:30 - 7:00 pm, in Lawrenceville. This event is exclusively for members and hosts who are welcome to bring a friend.
To RSVP and to check your membership status please contact Nadya Kessler at [email protected].
Pittsburgh Universities Shine at EducationUSA Leadership Institute
GlobalPittsburgh was chosen from among a very competitive field of international organizations and universities to hold one of three EducationUSA Leadership Institutes in early March this year. For ten days, officials from seven countries joined Pittsburgh international educators in considering ways to increase global awareness and international study opportunities for their students and faculties.
The fourteen officials represented universities and government ministries in Burma, Egypt, Estonia, Nepal, Panama, The Philippines and Turkey. Monte Bohna, GlobalPittsburgh's coordinator for its higher education initiative Study Pittsburgh, joined with Jeffrey Whitehead, Director of Study Abroad at the University of Pittsburgh, to design a program which drew on the talent and resources of a wide cross-section of Pittsburgh-area institutions of higher learning, including Chatham University, Duquesne University, La Roche College and Robert Morris University. World Affairs Council of Pittsburgh, study-abroad organizations CAPA: The Global Education Network and Athena Study Abroad (recently relocated to Pittsburgh), Avonworth School District, Winchester Thurston School, and The Ellis School also participated in the institute program.
