Before launching into my adventure so generously supported by my family, friends, teachers, and all others who might have given me an encouraging word or shared in my excitement, I thought it only fair to say a few words about the organization I traveled with.
The People to People Student Ambassador program was founded in 1954 by former WWII Allied commander Dwight D. Eisenhower as he tried to find a way to prevent an atrocity like WWII from repeating. An astute man, Eisenhower realized the best time to teach peace and understanding is adolescence, when young men and women are gathering the experiences that will shape the rest of their lives. He founded PTP on that principle, hoping that the close cultural contact between American teens and people of the countries they visit would cause them to think carefully before they engage in any violence or conflict.
The thing I most appreciated when I first received the nomination for the program was the trip wasn’t simply superficial tourism, hoping from Big Ben to the Eiffel Tower and doing some shopping (all of which we did and I enjoyed immensely), but also included the historical context of being an American in Europe. We had the opportunity to immerse ourselves in foreign culture as well as some major American experiences in Europe (WWI and WWII especially). The program itself has a greater purpose than any one ambassador or trip – it has a mission to instill all ambassadors, who will be tomorrow’s leaders, entrepreneurs, and innovators, with an international perspective and intercultural respect.
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