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Inclusion, Progressive Art Studio Collective,
the Henry Ford Museum and Jewish agen-
cy Gesher Human Services, among others.
Participants built connections with their
homestay host families or the volunteer
families that offer to let delegates live with
them during their time in Metro Detroit.
Host families, like the delegates themselves,
come from many different backgrounds,
cultures and religions, and often include
local Jewish participants.
Also in March, Global Ties Detroit
welcomed a second delegation with 10
community leaders from 10 different coun-
tries in Europe. This group’s focus was on
advancing minority rights and took place
from March 9-12 in Metro Detroit.
Participating leaders hailed from
Belgium, Ukraine, Turkey, Spain, Sweden
and other countries and discussed ways to
protect human rights of minority commu-
nities.
“They had a very diverse program,
”
Reich says. “They went to Fordson High
School [in Dearborn], which I think was
fascinating for them to see a school that has
such a high percentage of Arab-American
students.
”
Other activities on the agenda included
meeting with local LGBTQ, interfaith and
minority rights leaders to understand work
being done in Metro Detroit and beyond.
FORGING CONNECTIONS
While inclusivity and minority rights are
the center points of these two delegations,
Global Ties Detroit’s work touches on all
matters important to cultural and economic
life. Other topics seen in these exchanges
include entrepreneurship, innovation,
civic engagement, immigration, economic
development, education, public health and
more.
The key program that Global Ties Detroit
facilitates is called the International Visitor
Leadership program, which has been active
for 80 years through the U.S. Department
of State. With this program, embassies and
consulates select people who are influential
or emerging leaders in their countries to
participate and learn about American life.
“It could be journalists or religious
leaders, community activists,
” Reich
explains. “They’ve done a really great job of
picking people who are very influential.
“Potentially, you could have the next
prime minister of a certain country,
” she
adds.
The State Department, Reich explains,
keeps this program going to help
international visitors understand who
Americans are and what values define
American culture.
“Even if we don’t agree all the time with
another country’s actions, we still want to
promote peace and understanding,
” she
says.
In addition to the International Visitor
Leadership program, Global Ties Detroit
facilitates numerous online and in-person
programming that includes virtual
training for youth in Belarus, fellowships
for emerging leaders and exchanges for
Pakistani educators, among dozens of
others.
“It can really be about anything,
” Reich
says. “There’s a lot of variety.
”
Some programs are short-term — just a
few days — while others are longer-term
and can span anywhere from a few weeks
to a month or longer. “We could have six
delegations at the same time,
” Reich says.
Most of the programs are funded by the
U.S. Department of State, but Global Ties
Detroit is also supported by corporate and
individual sponsors.
A selection of programs, like certain
networking events, are free to attend,
and Reich encourages the Metro Detroit
community to explore and participate in
programming.
“We’re very interested in getting more
Metro Detroiters engaged in international
relations and global diplomacy,
” she says.
“We’re a huge border city. The biggest
international trade crossing between the
U.S. and Canada is right here.
”
ABOVE: Belarus cultural night: Delegates from Belarus made dinner for their host families
and Global Ties Detroit friends/supporters. FACING PAGE: A photo from a European group
meeting with Rabbi Asher Lopatin on the topic of European Security Challenges. Lopatin
spoke about his work with other faith traditions, including Muslim, Black, Hindu and Latino
communities.
Marian Reich and Dr. Daniel Aschheim, Deputy
Consul General of the Consulate of Israel in the
Midwest, together with Global Ties Detroit’s
Board Chair Faris Alami, a Palestinian American
entrepreneur