U.S. Department of State’s Public Affairs Section: Grant for Young Pacific Leaders 10-Year Alumni Commemoration

The U.S. Mission New Zealand Public Affairs Section (PAS) of the U.S. Department of State announces an open competition for organizations for a cooperative agreement to develop and implement a Young Pacific Leaders (YPL) Alumni Commemoration to mark the 10-year anniversary of the YPL program, pending the availability of funding. The engagement will primarily convene YPL program alumni who have participated in previous YPL conferences, small grants, exchange programs, and workshops. A secondary audience for the engagement is the YPL network of emerging leaders ages 20-35 from across the Pacific region (see below for a list of participating countries). The alumni engagement should be planned to occur sometime between January-December 2023.

Program Objectives:

Young Pacific Leaders is the U.S. government’s signature initiative to engage with emerging leaders in the Pacific region. The program aims to create a network of young Pacific leaders who work across national borders and the four pillars of YPL – education, environment and resource management, civic engagement, and economic and social development – to solve common problems. Through a variety of programs and engagements, YPL seeks to build the leadership capabilities of youth in the region, strengthen ties between the United States and Pacific, and nurture a community of leaders who work across borders to solve shared issues.

YPL is open to young leaders ages 20-35 who are both citizens and residents of the following countries: Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Islands of French Polynesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Wallis and Futuna, and U.S. partners from the American-affiliated Pacific including American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Hawaii.

YPL programs have included conferences, regional workshops, exchange programs, small grants, and community service projects. There are just over 300 YPL alumni from these programs.

The YPL alumni engagement will connect alumni across the region to commemorate and celebrate 10 years of the YPL initiative. It may also engage the YPL network of emerging leaders from throughout the Pacific region.

The YPL alumni engagement will focus on:

·        Connecting and engaging YPL alumni from across the Pacific region to commemorate and celebrate 10 years of YPL and engagement with the United States

·        Raising awareness of the YPL program to the YPL network of emerging leaders from throughout the Pacific region

·        Survey YPL alumni and network to evaluate the pillars of YPL to drive future YPL programs and strategic focus