This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.
Administrator J. Brian Atwood
"American Field Service 50th Anniversary"
Washington, D.C., February 17, 1998
U.S. Agency for International Development
I would like to thank Alex [Plinio] for the kind
introduction. I think Alex will well serve the
American Field Service (AFS) as its new
President, and I wish him the best of luck in all
his endeavors. I also want to congratulate AFS
and all of you, on this, the 50th anniversary of
AFS. AFS has touched more people, changed
more lives and helped write more history than
probably any of us could even begin to imagine.
It is your efforts, every day, that are reaching out
across the globe and helping people better
understand their unique connections and unique
place in the world.
Certainly, I number myself as one of the field
service's biggest fans. But I must also warn you, I
am not an entirely unbiased commentator. I am an
AFS returnee- 1959, Luxemborg. When I went
to Luxemborg I was sixteen years old, and most of
my life to that point had centered around
Wareham, Massachusetts and its environs. I still
love Wareham dearly to this day, but I think I can
safely say -- without any slight to my hometown --
that there is more to the world than Wareham.
Those four months in Luxemborg were among the
most important in my life.
The experience in Luxemborg felt like years of
learning compressed into a fraction of the time.
At every corner I was forced to think about things
I had never before considered. I quickly learned to
realize that just because "that's the way they do it
in America," did not necessarily make the best
way. By the same token, I came to appreciate
those parts of the American experience that were
truly of value and deserved defending. I learned
that a great deal of how we view life naturally
flows from where we sit on the globe and what we
see before us every day.
It was in Luxemborg where I had the
opportunity to talk with my host family about the
U.S. and Soviet rivalry. I remember being taken
aback by their views that both sides were more
interested in world domination than any given
idealogy. I disagreed, but over time I was able to
appreciate how they came to this view, and their
opinions helped me better form my own thoughts
on these matters.
When I returned from Luxemborg, I knew that
I wanted to go into the international arena, and I
did. I owe AFS a great deal in that regard, and I
couldn't be happier that we are celebrating such a
prestigious birthday today. I can only hope I will
be so gracious when my own 50th birthday rolls
around!
I also think it is crucial that we continue to
explore new ways to get America's youth engaged
with the rest of the world. A poll was released
this January that shows how vital our efforts in
that regard continue to be. This poll of college
freshman is an annual affair, and has been
conducted for the last 30 years. The poll read a
bit like Pandora's box, with some issues of real
concern followed up with a healthy dose of hope.
This class of freshman -- of whom more than
250,000 took part in the survey -- established
some dubious distinctions: they expressed the
highest levels of academic and civic apathy of any
group polled in the survey's three decade history.
While international affairs were not addressed
in the summary of the report I reviewed, it is
difficult to imagine that if these freshmen are
apathetic about what is happening around them,
that they are very engaged in the world away from
our shores.
Interestingly, however, 73 percent of the
freshmen had done volunteer work or were serving
in community projects. This number represents a
record high for the poll. Granted, some of these
students had found community work under
compulsion: many high schools now require
students to lend a hand in local volunteer efforts.
As Mary McGrory noted on this same poll,
"Some people think it is wrong to kick-start
teenagers out of their self-absorption. But the need
is so great, there should be no quibbling over how
they become involved in other people's problems."
Clearly, we all need to redouble our efforts to
build ties between America's youth and those in
other countries. And that is why I am so proud to
let you know about a program that USAID
announced earlier today -- a program built upon
the lessons of the good work of AFS and many
others -- that will help connect American youth
and the developing world.
Borrowing from Norway, Denmark and
Sweden, which rank one, two and three when it
comes to its global involvement and giving,
USAID and a number of public and private
partners are working to replicate a development
education program designed to help young people
recognize the importance of their role in the
international community.
Norway makes one of the world's highest per
capita contributions to foreign assistance programs.
Norwegian awareness about foreign assistance
begins with a school-based program entitled
"Operation Day's Work" -- an annual fundraising
effort organized by Norwegian high school
students to earn money for their less fortunate
counterparts in developing nations. This program
began 34 years ago as a very modest effort.
Today, more than 900 high schools and 220,000
students participate annually in Operation Day's
Work.
Norway's students not only raise millions of
dollars, which are then matched by the government
of Norway, but they also become fully immersed
in all aspects of the country they have chosen to
study. Lessons about that specific country are
incorporated into the school curriculum. The
program raises student awareness about global
economic issues, the importance of preventing
crises, the impact of poverty and disease on a
society and what actually makes democracy work.
It is my hope that "Operation Day's Work
USA," like the excellent work of AFS, will help
sow the seeds of our future in the mind's of the
world's children. Today, I had the pleasure of
announcing, along with Rick Little of the
International Youth Foundation, that USAID and a
host of other interested organizations, including
AFS, are working with the Norwegian government
to adapt Operation Day's Work here in the United
States.
While the initial effort is being spearheaded by
USAID and its partners, it ultimately will be
implemented by the schools and students
themselves, working with local officials, NGOs
and the private sector. A number of practical
concerns about how the program will actually
operate have yet to be decided but it is intended
that many details will be determined at the local
level with input from the national umbrella
organization. Local participation is essential in
shaping the program to fit local needs and
capabilities. For example, we will most likely
seek private funds, not government funds, to
match students contributions. The ways in which
students raise funds may vary as well. And we
will even explore whether high schools make sense
as the best base for operating this program.
The program will be piloted in several pilot
schools in the first year and expanded to other
communities in the future. The goal is to have
Operation Day's Work USA become a nationwide,
annual event by the year 2003, with each program
being designed and implemented at the local level.
Several schools in Minnesota, Vermont, North
Dakota, Washington and the District of Colombia
have expressed interest in being part of the first
year pilot effort. Preliminary discussions are
underway in each of these communities and
several other communities have expressed similar
interest in the program.
Year one will be dedicated to establishing a
non-partisan umbrella organization comprised of
public and private sector agencies, teachers,
students, parents and the business community,
committed to planning and developing a model that
can be replicated nationwide. The goal is to
enable programs to be developed by local
communities and run by students. The national
umbrella organization will articulate several
common threads to which local programs should
adhere, including using the same day to observe
Day's Work, compliance with community service
requirements and in helping guide the selection of
each year's specific developing country on which
to focus.
USAID has been joined by a terrifically
diverse group of partners interested in this effort
including the government of Norway, the
International Youth Foundation, the Close-up
Foundation,Talk Radio News Service, the Partners
of the Americas, AFS, the Peace Corps, World
Vision, Interaction, ADRA, Creative Associates,
Quest International, the Inter-American
Development Bank, America's Promise, the
Humphrey Institute and others.
We are all very excited about this program,
and I want to deeply thank AFS and the many
others who are interested in getting this project off
the ground. On a personal note, I also want to say
that I am thrilled to have a chance, through
Operation day's Work, to help repay in a small
way the tremendous gift that AFS brought to my
life.
In concluding my remarks, let me just say that
around the world, we will be facing the largest
generation of youth this planet has ever seen, or
likely will ever see, in just a few years. By the
year 2000, give or take a few folks, there will be
about 6 billion people in the world.
Nearly half of these 6 billion people will be
under the age of 20. Because fertility rates are
slowing, this huge population of youth, largely
centered in the developing world, will be the
largest this planet has ever seen and hopefully a
historical anomaly. How we respond to the
challenges of this generation will be crucial to
developed and developing nations alike. Will
these 3 billion youths be living in a world of
increasing prosperity and hope or in a desperate
existence marred by crushing poverty and societies
teetering on the brink of collapse? Will America
become more actively engaged and help prevent
crises before they happen, or will we succumb to
the temptation to pull the ladder of economic
prosperity up behind us?
To meet the immense challenges we face in the
developing world demands an improved and more
vibrant partnership between government,
developing countries and their peoples, the
corporate community, U.S. and international non-governmental organizations, universities and
concerned citizens. We need to work better and
we need to work smarter. We also need to do a
better job getting the American public involved
and dispelling some of the old myths about foreign
assistance. Poll after poll shows that most
Americans still think we spend more on foreign
assistance than on defense, medicaid or even social
security.
AFS, for its fifty years, has shown not only
the American public, but the whole world, that we
can change the planet one mind at a time. Each
person whose horizons you've helped expand has
brought the world dividends far richer than we
will ever know. You have fostered understanding,
compassion and abiding friendships that stretch
across the globe. You have made those things we
do not understand less frightening and far more
inviting. I salute AFS on its anniversary and stand
in humble recognition of all that you have
achieved. I look forward to coming back for the
100th anniversary, and hope you will be kind
enough to invite me again. Thanks.
This is an archived USAID document retained on this web site as a matter of public record.
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Last Updated on: July 18, 2001
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