The Committee for International Visitors is a Partner of |
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Who: The Committee for International Visitors (CIV) is a committee of the Colorado Springs World Affairs Council. It is one of more than 90 community-based organizations in the country that provides assistance to international visitors brought to the United States under the U.S. Department of State’s prestigious International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). Learn more about IVLP.
What: The Committee works with the Washington, DC based organization Global Ties U.S. www.globaltiesus.org (formerly called the National Council for International or NCIV) that administers the IVLP program for the Department of State and its associated National Programming Agencies (NPAs) to arrange professional programs in our community that are tailored to the objectives of the visitors. Programs include, but are not limited to local government, education, business, the environment, defense, sports, medicine, research, and non-profit and other professional organizations. Committee members often accompany the visitors to their meetings, and also socialize with them, inviting them into our homes for dinner and accompanying them on sightseeing tours of our city and the surrounding area.
When: The international visitors can visit us at any time of the year. Normally they stay for four or five days and are accommodated in local hotels.
Why: We believe that we, as citizen diplomats, can enhance both the local and national image of the United States in the minds of our international visitors and thereby foster international understanding and cooperation in the near and long term.
The International Visitor Leadership Program
This prestigious program brings today’s and tomorrow’s foreign leaders to the United States for firsthand exposure to their professional counterparts and U.S. society. Among the distinguished alumni of the program are over 350 former and current chiefs of state and heads of government, including Tony Blair, Margaret Thatcher, Anwar Sadat, Giscard D’Estaing, Indira Gandhi, and Felipe Calderón.
Each year nearly 5,000 exchange participants come to the U.S. on the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP). More than 200,000 International Visitors have engaged with Americans through the IVLP, since the program began in 1940. The IVLP helps strengthen U.S. engagement with countries around the world and cultivate lasting relationships by connecting current and emerging foreign leaders with their American counterparts through short-term visits to the United States. The majority of IVLP exchanges include visits to four U.S. communities over three weeks, although projects vary based on themes, Embassy requests and other factors. Participants meet with professional counterparts, visit U.S. public and private sector organizations related to the project theme and participate in cultural and social activities. There is no application for IVLP. Participants are nominated and selected annually by the staff at U.S. Embassies around the world. For more information, see http://eca.state.gov/ivlp/about-ivlp#sthash.T1yb4YE0.dpuf.
Periodically, international visitors are also hosted in Colorado Springs under the Open World Program which is sponsored by the Library of Congress. Unlike participants in the IVLP programs who are accommodated in hotels, these visitors stay in volunteers’ homes during their visit and participate in professional meetings during the day.
If you would like to be part of the Colorado Springs Committee for International Visitors, please contact by mail at:
Colorado Springs World Affairs Council
P.O. Box 608, Colorado Springs, CO 80901
Upcoming International Visits
The Committee of International Visitors is busy planning for the following upcoming programs! Watch for more news!
-Six international guests from Mongolia will visit Colorado Springs to learn from our local Cyber Security experts May 15-18.
-Also in mid-may, a group of eight from Russia will learn about Inclusive Education in the United States.
-June 8-13, nine visitors from Japan will attend local meetings for a program titled “Lessons Learn from Base-Hosting Communities”.
-Local resources will meet with eight African dignitaries to discuss Disability Rights and Equal Access for All June 20-25.
-Fifteen international guests from the People’s Republic of China will visit Performing Arts Centers in and around Colorado Springs from July 3-9, having the opportunity to experience America’s Independence Day!
Towards a More Safe and Secure World – Peace and Security
Ten visitors from Argentina, Australia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Ecuador, Israel, Laos, Slovakia, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom enjoyed a visit to Colorado Springs April 20-24. These visitors met with local resources for a program titled “Towards a More Safe and Secure World – International Peace and Security”. We thank the United State Air Force Academy, NORAD/NorthCom, SecureSet, Senator Cory Gardner’s Colorado Springs office, and Lutheran Family Services for offering insight on how our community supports international peace and security.
Foreign Policy
A group of six International Visitor Leadership Program participants from Australia, Cambodia, People’s Republic of China, Taiwan, Timor-Leste, and Tuvalu made it safely to Colorado Springs after March’s Bomb Cyclone. This group was here to study “Foreign Policy”. Though their meetings were canceled due to the weather, the visitors were able to share a meal with Colorado Springs World Affairs Council members. In member households, these internationalists connected with Americans, shared culture, learned about American lives and discussed ideas about foreign policy. The group of six also were able to sightsee, visiting Garden of the Gods Park, Historic Manitou Springs, and other local hotspots.
| As part of the Peace and Security program, guests met with United States Air Force Academy Military Strategic Studies professors who briefed the visitors on cadet curriculum and its implementation, while responding to questions on the geographic focus of USAFA’s teaching. The discussion was lively and continued at lunch with cadets who were able to give their views on their education at the Academy. |  |
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A tour of the USAFA Chapel was a nice treat. Participants appreciated learning the history of this iconic cathedral and visited the different levels viewing the Protestant cathedral, Catholic chapel, Jewish Synagogue, Buddhist prayer room, Orthodox chapel, and the Muslim prayer room. |
| Participants of the International Visitor Program come to learn from experts in their fields, attending numerous professional meetings, lectures, and tours. During their stay in our city they also have the opportunity to sightsee, enjoying the gems of our community, and visit with local Americans over a meal. The downtime around the dinner table is invaluable. Friendships are built, a better understanding of differing cultures and backgrounds is formed, a literal taste of typical American food is enjoyed; the experience is praised by both the internationalists and their American hosts! | 
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Note: If you would like to participate in hosting a dinner for future visitors, please contact the International Visitor Program Manager at jamie@csworldaffairs.org or 719.579.8443.
