Happy Holidays from the Presidential Precinct
As the year comes to a close, we celebrate the remarkable achievements of our Presidential Precinct alumni. This year, a civic leader in Nigeria aided in freeing 82 Chibok school girls from Boko Haram through her Bring Back Our Girls movement. A lawyer in Sri Lanka led the conversation on devolution of power during ongoing constitutional reform. And an entrepreneur in Haiti has launched his new startup incubator to build networks and opportunities for economic development in his local community.
 
The Presidential Precinct is at the heart of public diplomacy, and the programs we host are among the United States' most effective soft-power tools. At no time since our launch has empowering a new generation of leaders been more vital to a promising future for our increasingly globalized world.
 
Thank you for your ongoing support, and happy holidays from all of us at the Presidential Precinct.


THE MANDELA WASHINGTON FELLOWSHIP (YALI)
BBC World Service appoints Precinct Fellow as leader for
West African Languages

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The future of Zimbabwe: Precinct Fellow weighs in on new leadership after end of Mugabe's reign

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THE YOUNG LEADERS OF THE AMERICAS INITIATIVE (YLAI)
Felipe Neves, Precinct YLAI Fellow, receives high award from Brazilian Supreme Federal Court

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Serving the elderly in Nicaragua: Samanta Lacayo learns from JABA in Charlottesville

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THE GLOBAL LEADERSHIP FORUM
Hillary Clinton addresses Emerging Leaders participating in the Global Leadership Forum

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Donald Steinberg, CEO of World Learning Inc., delivers keynote at the #Education4All Luncheon

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THE INTERNATIONAL VISITOR LEADERSHIP PROGRAM (IVLP)
WHAT WE'RE READING
James B. Murray, Jr. the Precinct's founder, shares an article that he hopes may be interesting or thought provoking for the Precinct's constituencies. In particular we hope to attract the attention of young leaders from around the world who may look to the Precinct for an unbiased, non-judgmental window into current thinking on democracy, the rule of law and best political practices. We will post each article on the Precinct Network in the spirit of stimulating dialogue and critical thinking.


The Glory of Democracy
By: David Brooks

As we've been reflecting on the Precinct's Strategic Plan, nothing could be more important than to consider the meaning of a word we all use frequently: "Democracy". We often remind our visitors that our mission is not to preach, nor to espouse any particular political ideology or system. But properly defined, democracy is something different - a core human value. This piece by David Brooks is a superb summary of Thomas Mann's seminal thoughts on the topic. None better describes our view of democracy than this: "the only system built on respect for the infinite dignity of individual men and women, on each person's moral striving for freedom, justice and truth."
Presidential Precinct | 427 Park Street, Charlottesville, VA, 22902
1.434.200.8822
From the birthplace of modern democracy, we engage and inspire emerging leaders to address the most pressing challenges in their countries.