Save CBYX!

This past week I went to an interesting seminar for PPP/CBYX in Frankfurt.  I will address the details of this seminar in the future when I have more time. But, immediately, I would like to bring to your attention a dire need of the program.

The funding for CBYX has been cut by 50% (2 million dollars) for the next program year on the US side.  CBYX was a joint project created in equal parts by the USA and Germany over 30 years ago.  It is the primary exchange and people-to-people diplomacy program between the USA and Germany aimed to foster cultural exchange, train citizens in international work settings, and provide continuing education. On the German side, the participants are actually screened and picked by their local government representatives.

The decision to cut the program on the US side elicited a strong response from the Bundestag.  They are opposed to the abandon of this program and have decided to pay for the US side of the program- but only for one year.  Just within the last year, the importance of transatlantic relations, and particularly a strong relationship with Germany, is evidenced by the USA's experiences and challenges with 

Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), CIA spying revelations,

the Russia/Ukraine Crisis, and EU interests and involvement in the Middle East and Africa.

I know that I am probably preaching to the choir, so please visit http://savecbyx.org/ (or click here) to sign a petition for Secretary of State Kerry and members of the US Congress..

If you'd like to read more without changing pages:

From saveCBYX.org (01/25/2015):

The Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) is an important instrument of foreign policy and public diplomacy that for more than 30 years has been jointly funded by the legislative bodies of both the United States and Germany.

The following 10 points emphasize the many facets of the program which make it unique. Each point alone would provide sufficient argument against the 50% budget cuts to CBYX (approximately $2M) currently proposed by the US Department of State; the cuts would fundamentally affect a program that is one of the most outstanding exchange opportunities in existence.

The CBYX is one of the most renowned and unique international youth exchange programs because it is:

1. Creating a Cornerstone of Transatlantic Relations
   Created in 1983 in commemoration of the 300th anniversary of the first settlers from Germany in America, CBYX has been a symbol of the special relationship and close connections between the two countries for over 30 years. That relationship is rooted in historical and ongoing ties that bind the two nations politically, economically, and culturally.
   The substantial budget cut imposed by the State Department works against the foundation on which the program was built, namely the strengthening of bilateral relations and an understanding of our shared values. Not only that: a budget cut to this program in particular sends a strong message regarding the political and cultural significance of the German-American relationship at a time when solidarity, not a further shift away from each other, is necessary.

2. Involving US Congress and German Bundestag RepresentativesCBYX emphasizes the idea of transatlantic solidarity, in that it directly involveshundreds of Representatives of the U.S. Congress and the German Bundestag each year in the selection and support of program participants throughout their exchange experiences. As such, Representatives are able toestablish a direct link with their constituents and the host families, schools, and companies in their districts, who all benefit from this exchange. A funding cut would not only negatively affect the number of students who would be able to participate in the program every year, but would also significantly reduce the number of Representatives directly involved in the program. Hundreds of Representatives in both countries would lose their personal contact to the German-American partnership.

3. Promoting reciprocal exchange and fundingIn order to achieve the program’s goal of increased understanding between the peoples of the U.S. and Germany, CBYX was designed to be a 1:1 exchange. For each participant sent abroad, a participant from the partner country comes in, to promote the same level of understanding on both sides of the Atlantic. This principle of reciprocity is made possible by the funding structure of the program: each legislature finances an exchange of the same number of participants as the partner country. This bilateral sharing of funding means that a funding cut on the American side of the program automatically forces a cut on the German side. Funding cuts could therefore quickly spiral out of control. The German Bundestag has already indicated that it will reduce funding if the U.S. government does not restore previous funding levels. This threat of a funding cut on the German side, previously unheard of in this program, would paradoxically mean a reduction in the number of American participants who could take part in the exchange.

4. Engaging Youth in Public Diplomacy
   CBYX participants are selected and sent abroad explicitly with the purpose of acting as young ambassadors of their home country and culture. This purpose in mind, they are prepared and trained to fill this role as young ambassadors with life every day of the exchange. Through their interactions with people from all facets of society in their host country, CBYX participants share the culture and values of their home society, promote a positive image of their country to the people they meet and through the media coverage they receive. A cut in funding would severely hurt the explicit public diplomacy mission that CBYX serves.

5. Emphasizing Diversity
   Closely tied to the role of citizen diplomacy is the importance emphasized by both legislatures that CBYX participants reflect the cultural diversity of their home countries. Participants come from diverse socio-economic, ethnic, educational, and regional backgrounds. Participants typically under-represented in opportunities abroad, including those with disabilities or who would otherwise not be able to partake in such a program due to their social or professional backgrounds, are especially encouraged to participate in CBYX. Thus, the program achieves a breadth and depth of participant diversity that cannot be found in any comparable programs.
   This diversity is especially apparent in the case of the CBYX for Young Professionals program portion; by its small numbers, this very outstanding component of the CBYX is unfortunately especially susceptible to the State Department’s funding cut.
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6. Providing cultural, social and professional immersion
   CBYX places a strong emphasis on a holistic immersion experience to deepen the understanding for the host counties culture. This is achieved over the course of a full year, through different phases and complementary program elements: living with a host family, attending school or university, intensivelanguage training, and professional experience in an internship.  Another unique aspect of this program is that each participant volunteers their timeoutside of the above-mentioned activities to benefit their communities: charitable organizations, schools, religious institutions, environmental organizations, retirement homes, refugee housing, and other institutions all belong to the social organizations that benefit from CBYX volunteers, who seek out these opportunities on their own initiative to benefit their host communities.

7. Sharing cost between public and private parties
   The diversity of the CBYX program content necessitates the involvement of a wide array of individuals – mostly on a voluntary basis. This includes host families as well as countless supporters from schools, colleges, and institutions.Adding up the contributions of host families as well as the non-money services of all supporters and institutions listed, this would amount to about €2 million/ year, which is currently applied in Germany as a private cost-sharing expense to benefit the program. On the US side, participants, host families, host colleges and host companies contribute a total of $2 million/year in expenses they pay personally, through tuition reduction or compensation during internships. So CBYX is a true public-private partnership, given all the various parties that invest in the program. 
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8. Building and Multiplying German-American Networks 
   One of the main objectives of CBYX is to establish an extensive network of young people and young professionals, who create lasting transatlantic ties in the wake of their year-long stay in the host country. This goal supports the multifaceted and politically supported CBYX program structure, as well as the deliberately broad target group of young people between 15 and 24.
   Currently 350 young people from each side of the Atlantic – both students and young professionals – participate in CBYX each year, accounting for a total of700 annual participants.
   Since the beginning of the program, over 23,000 young people from Germany and the United States have participated in the exchange. Maintaining the current levels of participants is essential to the scope and quality of the exchange and directly contributes to preserving a broad and sustainable transatlantic network.
   Assuming that each participant tells 100 people in both their home country and/or host country about the CBYX program, the potential impact is 2.3 million Americans and 2.3 million Germans personally speaking with participants and hearing about their culture, language, politics, etc. – and not just once, but several times.

9. Ensuring Sustainability in Transatlantic RelationsThe goals of CBYX are designed to have lasting and sustainable effects. This is particularly achieved through self-initiated and self-funded alumni activities. Alumni continuously organize events to benefit German-American relations and are able to “pay the experience forward” in the form of hosting international exchange students and volunteering their time for CBYX. All of these aspects of the program contribute to its sustainability and to the lifelong commitment of its participants to the program goal of strengthening transatlantic relations.

10. Supporting High-Potential YouthCBYX promotes high potential at all levels – not just a small social elite. Today, a variety of CBYX alumni can be found as national and international leaders in politics, economics, culture, education, and society, thus guiding the future of both countries. These CBYX alumni are able to do this with the peculiar experience and perspective of a year-long exchange; an exchange that is not just like any other, but a transatlantic exchange that has existed, and still does, thanks to the special, shared vigilance of the political legislators of both countries.

These are the 10 points demonstrating the unique excellence of CBYX - in terms of its objectives, content, participants and long-term success as a sustainable tool for the promotion and preservation of German-American relations.
These 10 points demonstrate why representatives of both countries agreed over 30years ago to not only personally promote but also financially support the CBYX program.

A substantial unilateral reduction in the budget threatens to bring an end to this consensus. A reduction in funds -- and thus number of participants – of 50% would haveserious short and long-term consequences.

The planned budget cuts affect CBYX in its entirety – both its concept and objectives.Essential priorities and goals that are associated with the program would be called into question. The unilateral reduction will have exponential consequences and could affectthe future of the program as a whole.

It’s a matter of two million dollars…
… A $2 million investment in 700 young people annually!
… A $2 million investment in the future of an essential transatlantic relationship!