THE United States of America is committed to working together with the Philippines on their shared goals of a prosperous and sustainable future, declared U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines MaryKay Loss Carlson during the US-PH Exchanges Alumni Reconnect for Visayas held in Cebu last weekend.
While the exchange alumni are often described as the U.S.-PH relations that focus on friendship, partnerships and iron-clad alliance, Ambassador Carlson underscored that “there is a reason ‘friends’ comes first in our hashtag #FriendsPartnersAllies.”
People-to-people ties are the foundation and the springboard of everything that we do, the ambassador said to the Visayas-based alumni.
“You are the foundation of our partnerships and our alliance,” she said adding that with this, the embassy commits to working together with the Philippines in achieving the shared goals of prosperity and sustainability.
This year, the U.S.-PH Exchanges celebrates 75 years of relations though government program exchanges, immersions, and scholarships, with Cebu in the Visayas as the first stopover of the nationwide caravan.
According to the U.S. Embassy in the Philippines numbers, approximately 300 Filipinos participate in U.S. government exchanges annually. There are currently more than 9,000 Filipinos and Americans who are alumni of U.S. government-sponsored exchanges between the Philippines and the United States.
More than 50 alumni across all three regions in the Visayas gathered at Radisson Blu Hotel on May 20 for an afternoon workshop and a reception with the head of mission, said Ferdinand Tamulto, project lead of the Exchanges Empower: 75th Anniversary of US-PH People to People Exchanges in the Philippines.
The next stop will be in Metro Manila this July followed by meets in Baguio and Ilocos for Luzon alumni. For Mindanao, the alumni-led organizing team will mount get-together activities in Cagayan de Oro and Davao.
Highlighting alumni projects
The ambassador thanked all alumni who continue to be active in the network.
Carlson highlighted two ongoing alumni projects in Bohol, and Panay and Guimaras.
A group of Bohol-based youth will conduct a hybrid bootcamp that promotes sustainable island living through solid waste management and renewable energy technologies.
Meanwhile, the alumni group in Western Visayas are brewing a project that will mainstream women with disabilities in economic development in Panay.
“The creativity and hardwork that power this amazing force for the future comes from you, our U.S. government alumni,” said Carlson.