WorldBoston

CONTACT:

One Milk St., 3rd.floor
Boston, MA 02109
617-542-8995
www.worldboston.org

Brandie E. Conforti

DESCRIPTION:

WorldBoston comes at global engagement one relationship at a time. Founded in 1961 at the height of the Cold War, the idea was to ease tensions through direct experience. Matching aspiring leaders with their Boston-area counterparts in the professions, the academy, the arts, government, business, and the non-profit sector, WorldBoston promotes mutual understanding and cultural exchange, as well as valuable networking. We learn about others; they learn about us.

In the last 40 years more than 25,000 leaders from Africa, South America, Oceania, Asia, and Europe have stayed with host families, engaged in internships, attended professional meetings and seminars, learned about Boston's rich cultural history, met with local schoolchildren, and deepened their--and our--capacity to navigate the new global landscape. Indira Gandhi, Tony Blair, and Hamid Karzai all visited Boston through this program before they became heads of state. This past year WB merged with the distinguished World Affairs Council of Boston (incorporated 1948), which will strengthen both organizations and provide us with a broad, deep, high-level portal to the worldwide leadership community. WorldBoston's primary funding comes from the U.S. Department of State as well as corporate, institutional, and individual donors. You can get involved as a donor and/or volunteer, extending your own reach and helping to sponsor "citizen diplomacy" one handshake at a time.

(2002: INTERNATIONAL)