USAID/Belarus Community Connections Program Holds 2008 Alumni Reunion

At the Community Connections reunion, small group discussions focused on finding joint approaches to addressing community problems

On Dec 3, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) in Belarus brought together more than 40 alumni of the 2008 Community Connections exchange program to encourage networking, share best practices and introduce the alumni to an array of resources available to support project implementation. The event gathered professionals working in the following areas: prevention of substance abuse; maternal and child health; integration of the disabled into society; promotion of volunteerism; cultural preservation; and nature conservation.

Community Connections is an exchange program that brings Belarusians to the U.S. to learn about the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. The program aims to link program participants with their host communities, and encourages follow-on activities to implement changes in their communities upon their return.

Michael Scanlan, the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Minsk, welcomed participants, whom he said represent “the marketplace of ideas, a collective bringing together of different perspectives that allow us all together to find best practices about going forward.”

The alumni shared their experiences, including the introduction of new ideas in the workplace, adapting and applying the knowledge obtained, promoting best practices and facilitating the building of public-private partnerships in an effort to serve their communities. The participants also brainstormed opportunities to expand their professional activities and create cooperation across sectors by building on the successes of the organizations they represent.

Alexander Peresypkin, an NGO leader and a professor at Belarusian State University, stressed the importance of  exchanging ideas about how new skills and knowledge acquired during visits to the U.S. could be applied to encourage the positive  transformation of Belarusian society by individual alumni and as a collective group.

During the event, USAID/Belarus announced the launch of the Community Connections Facebook page ( http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Minsk/USAID-Belarus/150482034997678) as a way for  USAID program alumni  to stay  connected, network,  help with alumni projects and share experience on the visit to the U.S. with the potential participants.