Call for Applications: Young Turkey Young America Professional Exchange

The Young Atlanticist Program is currently seeking applications from exceptional Turkish and American young professionals, aged 22-30. The program targets individuals who have started careers in the fields of public policy, business and journalism, who possess a strong passion for international engagement and have demonstrated leadership abilities. Academic or professional experience in Turkey (for American applicants) or the United States (for Turkish applicants) is helpful, but not required. The program will be paid in full, and participants will not need to incur any costs.

Young Turkey/Young America: A New Relationship for a New Age

The Atlantic Council of the United States (ACUS), in partnership with the Istanbul Policy Center (IPC) at Sabanci University, is administering a dynamic exchange program designed to connect and build constructive relationships between future leaders from the United States and Turkey. This initiative, the Young Turkey/Young America: A New Relationship for a New Age, will work towards the vital task of renewing and reinvigorating the important bilateral relationship between the two nations.

The exchange will take place in mid-2010, and will last for nearly one month. Most of the two-week U.S. segment will be held in Washington, DC, and will also include a visit to a major regional center with strong international connections, such as Atlanta, Georgia. The Turkey session will open with two days in Ankara, and following a homestay weekend, move to Istanbul for three days.

We are currently seeking applications from exceptional Turkish and American young professionals, aged 22-30. We are targeting individuals who have started careers in the fields of public policy, business and journalism, who possess a strong passion for international engagement and have demonstrated leadership abilities. Academic or professional experience in Turkey (for American applicants) or the United States (for Turkish applicants) is helpful, but not required. The program will be paid in full, and participants will not need to incur any costs.

Program participants will build enduring connections through hands-on activities, vigorous discussions, web-based interaction (facilitated by www.youngatlanticist.org), and joint follow-on projects. Meetings with government officials and independent experts will prompt serious explorations of foreign policy issues. Through seminars and small working groups, along with a crisis management simulation, the participants will build leadership, negotiation, and mediation skills while delving deeply into complex policy matters and processes. Social events with other young leaders’ organizations and alumni of past exchanges will encourage the building of wider networks, while home stays will provide participants with an intimate glimpse of life on the other side of the Atlantic. This combination of activities will help to forge lasting personal and professional relationships between participants.

To be considered for this program, interested parties should contact David Kirk, Associate Director of the Young Atlanticist Program, at dkirk@acus.org, for more information.