WASHINGTON, Dec. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Fulbright
Program Celebrates 75 Years of Impact
The Fulbright Program celebrated its 75th Anniversary on
November 30 with a live event
broadcast from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,
marking the accomplishments of the past 75 years and looking ahead
to the exciting future of the U.S. government's flagship
international academic exchange program.
Speaking to thousands of viewers around the world, U.S.
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken
described the program's founding in 1946, immediately following
World War II. "There was an urgent need to create lasting
conditions for peace, to build mutual understanding among nations,
to foster goodwill among their people. The Fulbright Program helped
answer that need," Blinken said. "It brings people together through
educational and professional exchanges, giving them a chance to
learn about other countries and cultures, collaborate on issues of
global importance, and create connections that last a
lifetime."
Celebrating Fulbright's 75 years of impact, Blinken said, "As a
diplomat, I love this program because it helps create the space for
people to learn from each other and connect across cultural
divides, which makes global cooperation possible. . . . The members
of the Fulbright community are changemakers. They care deeply about
the problems facing our world today, from stopping COVID-19 to
countering threats to democracy. And through Fulbright, they help
strengthen our world, from classrooms, villages, universities, and
cities across the globe."
The celebration highlighted more than 40 of these changemakers,
focusing on five areas where Fulbright has made considerable
contributions: science, technology, and public health; education;
the environment; public service; and the arts. Guests at the event
and the livestream audience heard personal stories and watched
performances from some of the Fulbright Program's most
extraordinary alumni, including recent participants as well as
those who have had long and distinguished careers.
When the pandemic struck last year, Charlotte Summers, a critical care physician at
Cambridge University Hospital in the
United Kingdom, took immediate
action to treat critically ill patients and became the chief
investigator of the UK-wide clinical trial to increase long-term
outcomes of patients with COVID-19. With this crucial work, she
contributed directly to the UK's National Health Service's
response. Benjamin tenOever, a prominent U.S. virologist, was an
integral part of an international consortium to develop and
accelerate vaccines and antivirals. And Jessica Phan, an M.D.-Ph.D. candidate at
Harvard Medical School and a National
Institutes of Health Oxford-Cambridge Scholar, left early from her
Fulbright in Portugal, where she
was studying the neurobiology of addiction, to contribute to the
fight at home by assisting with COVID-19 testing and analysis in
her home community in Los Angeles.
Each of these three Fulbright alumni credit their international
experiences and Fulbright collaborations as essential to helping
them find solutions to complex problems in science and public
health.
They are among a growing number of Fulbright alumni around the
world who have contributed to scientific innovation and national
health responses, serving as testament to the relevance and impact
of the program in today's world, and they were among those who told
their powerful stories as part of the Fulbright 75th Anniversary
Celebration on Tuesday.
Featured alumni included college president and educational
leader Dr. Ruth Simmons; architect
and urban designer Daniel Libeskind;
Iceland's Minister for the
Environment and Natural Resources Guðmunduringi Guðbrandsson;
former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove; former International President
of Médecins Sans Frontières James
Orbinski; research ecologist Gillian
Bowser; biochemist and literacy advocate Rana Dajani; Japan's Minister of Justice Yoko Kamikawa; former Foreign Minister of
Spain and NATO Secretary General
Javier Solana; and many others.
Journalist and entrepreneur Jonathan
Rabb, a Fulbright alumnus and founder of Watch the Yard, was
the evening's host.
They spoke about how Fulbrighters in education shape future
generations through teaching, research, and educational leadership;
and how Fulbrighters in the environment contribute to environmental
policy, advancing research and conservation. Beyond their
collaboration with other scientists, they stressed the importance
of sharing environmental science with non-scientists and local
communities, empowering citizen scientists and inspiring others to
safeguard the environment and create a more sustainable future.
Fulbrighters in public service work towards positive change to
create a more prosperous and peaceful future.
Douglas Emhoff, Second Gentleman
of the United States, brought
heartfelt congratulations from the President, the First Lady, and
the Vice President, noting that the Fulbright Program is a
"centerpiece of U.S. public diplomacy." Remarking on the milestone
moment for the nation's largest and most influential educational
exchange program, Emhoff said that its premise is quite simple:
"through education, individuals can be empowered to do
extraordinary things, and through international exchanges, we can
build a foundation for peace."
Newly confirmed Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and
Cultural Affairs Lee Satterfield spoke about the continued
importance and impact of the program today, and Renée Fleming,
world-renowned operatic soprano and artistic advisor, spoke about
her career-launching Fulbright to Germany in 1984.
Paul Winfree, the chair of the
Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, spoke on behalf of
presidentially-appointed Board members who have served the program
since its inception, and paid tribute to the way Fulbright's
"diverse and dynamic network shares knowledge across communities
and borders," commending the program's dedicated staff around the
world for finding creative ways to navigate the pandemic crisis,
expanding the program by creating new partnerships with the
National Park Service and the National Archives to develop
scholarship related to cultural, historical and environmental
conservation.
A special tribute to Fulbrighters in Journalism saluted
Fulbright alumni who have been recognized with the highest honors
across digital and traditional media, including this year's Nobel
Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa,
Pulitzer Prize winner Megha
Rajagopalan, and MacArthur Fellowship recipient Daniel
Alarcón, as well as prominent journalists Karen Attiah, David
Bradley, Barbara Crossette, Meg
Greenfield, Doug Mitchell,
and Jim Sciutto.
More than 400,000 talented and accomplished students, scholars,
teachers, artists, and professionals of all backgrounds have
participated in the Fulbright Program since its inception in 1946,
including 40 heads of state or government, 61 Nobel Prize
Laureates, 75 MacArthur Foundation Fellows, 89 Pulitzer Prize
Recipients, and 16 U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom
Recipients.
Two Members of Congress who were Fulbrighters themselves --
Congressman Tom Cole, 5th District
of Oklahoma, a 1977 Fulbright U.S.
Student to the United Kingdom, and
Congressman John Sarbanes, 3rd
District of Maryland, a 1984
Fulbright U.S. Student to Greece –
were among the Representatives and Senators who spoke about the
value of Fulbright Program opportunities to their constituents and
the world. Other well-wishers were Senator Patrick Leahy, Vermont; Congresswoman Barbara Lee, 13th District of California; Senator Amy Klobuchar, Minnesota; Senator John Boozman, Arkansas; and Former Congresswoman
Nita Lowey, 17th District of
New York.
Visit Fulbright75.org to stream the recorded celebration; learn
more about the featured alumni; find opportunities to apply to
Fulbright Programs for graduate students, scholars, teachers, and
professionals; and connect with the Fulbright community.
Media Contact
Daria Roche, U.S. Department of
State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, 1 202-632-3238,
fulbright@state.gov
SOURCE Fulbright Program