Foreign Policy Goals in IVLP Projects
SESSION FOR OIV PROGRAM PROFESSIONALS
FACILITATORS: WENDY BARTON,
RYAN MATHENY AND VALERIE WHEAT
JULY 2014
Purpose
This session:
 Provides guidance to OIV programming
professionals on designing IVLP projects that reflect
and address U.S. foreign policy goals and priorities;
 Demonstrates how to articulate those goals to our
partners and audiences
This session will help you:
 Plan project themes for the next fiscal year based on
U.S. foreign policy priorities;
 Draft project abstracts/blurbs and concept papers
which address relevant foreign policy priorities;
 Communicate to the NPA what the foreign policy
justifications for the project are.
Who benefits from this session?
 The audience for this session is anyone in OIV who
works IVLP projects in programming, coordinating,
and/or communicating capacities.
 These training materials are for internal OIV
reference and skill development
Why do NPAs need to understand policy goals?
 Communicating the State Department’s goals to the
NPA establishes the collaborative design of the
project.
 The NPA’s ability to articulate U.S. policy goals to
gatekeepers is important in building Federal
agencies’ understanding of why it’s worth their time
to meet with IVLP participants and enables them to
justify this use of resources to their leadership.
WHY?
 Department Mission Statement
Shape and sustain a peaceful, prosperous, just, and
democratic world and foster conditions for stability
and progress for the benefit of the American people
and people everywhere.
WHY?
Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and
Public Affairs (R) Mission Statement :
 The mission of American public diplomacy is to
support the achievement of U.S. foreign policy goals
and objectives, advance national interests, and
enhance national security by informing and
influencing foreign publics and by expanding and
strengthening the relationship between the people
and Government of the United States and citizens of
the rest of the world.
But what about Mutual Understanding?
Fostering Mutual Understanding builds the
foundation for the achievement of U.S. priorities
around the world by:
 Establishing an understanding of our values.
 Developing the conditions for foreign populations to
view the United States, our actions, and our
motivations with open minds.
 Ultimately creating a willingness to hear and
consider the U.S. position, hopefully to defend it, and
ideally to advocate for it.
Where do I look for current U.S. policy?
 White House
www.whitehouse.gov
 State Department (public site)
www.state.gov
 State Department internal site
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http://intranet.state.gov/
https://infocentral.state.gov/home
Where do I look for region-specific policy?
Geographic Policy Documents
 State/USAID Joint Regional Strategies
 Integrated Country Strategies (formerly known as Mission Strategic
Plans etc. ---specific to each post):
http://diplopedia.state.gov/index.php?title=Final_ICS_and_MRR
_Documents_for_Current_Budget_Year_(FY_2016)#EAST_ASIA
_.26_PACIFIC_.28EAP.29
 Project teams also obtain foreign policy priorities from post-specific
documents submitted when requesting a project. The is particularly
true for VolVis projects, which always have short lead times, but
also happens for RP programs also and any new initiative. Post
should have opportunities to provide because there may be
new/changing circumstances in the country/region.
Internal PE guidance on goals
In addition to doing your own research and asking
Missions to clarify their goals, bookmark the ECA/PE
reference: FP Goals.
Also consider timely or “hot” topics in ECA and how
these intersect or overlap with broader policy goals for
your project. (E.G. youth, women disabilities, etc.)
Incorporating Foreign Policy Goals into IVLP Project
Planning
 Branches determine project themes for the next
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fiscal year based on regional and ECA goals
POs draft project abstracts/blurbs
POs draft concept papers
PO communicates to the NPA PO the overarching
foreign policy goals to be addressed by the project
(why are we doing this project?)
EVDBE categories need to be updated (this is being
looked into---but shouldn’t impact PO planning.)
Why is educating the NPA on foreign policy priorities so
important?
 Sharing these priorities with the NPA:
 Adds value that only the DOS project team can provide in
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an up-to-date capacity;
Enables the NPA to share and understand the vision for
the project;
Elicits a more focused presentation and an engaging
interaction with the visitors;
Assists the NPA in drafting more cogent social media
plans
Assures that the meetings set up by the NPA are in line
with the FP goals.
Applying this strategy:
Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development
Multi-Regional Project
Promoting economic and social
entrepreneurship globally is a vital
element of the U.S. Government’s foreign
economic and development policy – a
policy that fosters economic growth,
creates jobs, promotes civil society and
provides new economic opportunities. To
advance that policy, this project will highlight
the social, economic and political factors that
encourage the development of private
enterprise and small or medium-sized
businesses in the United States. The project
will cover examples of new and growing
businesses and will focus on the explosion of
business opportunities created by the Internet,
social media and the expansion of the global
marketplace. Participants will explore the
important role of small business in driving
local economic development and examine U.S.
efforts to promote small business development
and innovation, both domestically and
internationally
Climate Change and Renewable Energy
Multi Regional Project
The U.S. Government’s three-part
Climate Action Plan calls for reducing
carbon pollution; preparing the United
States for the impacts of climate change;
and leading international efforts to
address global climate change. The Plan
advances practical, on-the-ground
solutions worldwide and helps countries
reduce greenhouse gas emissions and
improve resiliency to climate change
impacts. In support of this policy imperative,
this project will examine myriad issues
surrounding climate change, including the
development of renewable energy resources
and technologies. Participants will explore
how U.S. federal energy policy is shaped,
familiarizing them with the players involved,
including private industry, non-profit
organizations, and state and local
governments.
As a result of keeping foreign policy priorities present:
 OIV projects articulate U.S. foreign policy goals more
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clearly;
Our partners are better informed and able to
implement better projects and outreach;
Our work stays current and is in line with events and
policy nuances that are changing to reflect changing
circumstances in countries and regions;
Our work is more engaging;
The participants receive fresh, vibrant projects that
address critical issues of the day.