BECOME A LEADERSHIP FELLOW
Are you an American that has studied or lived in China and are back in the United States after an unforgettable experience abroad?
Project Pengyou is currently recruiting passionate alumni of China study and exchange programs to build and strengthen our robust grassroots network of community chapters across the nation. Leadership Fellows will receive an exclusive opportunity to participate in a four-day Leadership Training Summit at Harvard University on October 10-13, 2014. Join a groundbreaking nationwide network of next generation leaders promoting Mandarin study and constructive exchanges with China.
HIGHLIGHTED BENEFITS
- Receive an exclusive invitation to a four-day Project Pengyou Leadership Training Summit at Harvard University from October 10 – October 13, 2014*
- Gain unique hands-on training in cross-cultural leadership and community-organizing methods, and learn strategic skills to mobilize people and resources as part of a national grassroots campaign
- Connect with other motivated like-minded Americans with firsthand China experience from all across the country
- Meet government, business and civic leaders deeply experienced in US-China cooperation, with ongoing access to new opportunities for valuable connections, leadership skills and resume-building experiences
- Gain the opportunity to serve as the founder or leader of a Project Pengyou Chapter at your university or institution, and be a pioneer of China exchange, knowledge and action in your community
* All participants are responsible for their own airfare and travel. Lodging, food, speaker and summit costs will be covered by Golden Bridges Foundation / Project Pengyou.
TESTIMONIALS
In March 2014, we held our inaugural Leadership Training Summit with the first cohort of Leadership Fellows.
See our recap blog post and photos here!
See our recap blog post and photos here!
Thank you so much for this tremendous opportunity. It has been life changing. You have helped us all to grow and become better leaders and ambassadors. I go home to help more underprivileged and underrepresented groups learn about China. Thank you for allowing me to “sit at the table” and provide my voice and share my story and hear others. Thanks again!!
- Russell B., Leadership Fellow-Saint Augustine's University
I cannot begin to express how truly grateful I am to have been selected to attend this summit. I have learned so much from not only coaches and community organizing lessons, but also from the remarkable fellows here. I have been filled with such passion and excitement for US-China relations and cannot wait to begin my Project Pengyou chapter at UVA to share this with me peers. Thank you for sharing your courage and motivation with me, and I hope to model that as I push to improve Chinese cultural awareness in my own life and these those that I meet. I look forward to continuing to work with you!
- Alicia U., Leadership Fellow-University of Virginia
Thank you so much for all of your efforts to launch Project Pengyou and bring and other fellows out here to change our lives and give us the tools and training to change the world. This is an amazing experience and opportunity. I hope we can all work to make your dream, my dream, our dream come true!
- Annabel V, Leadership Fellow-Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
WHO SHOULD APPLY
- Americans who have studied or worked abroad in China and are available to participate in the entirety of the leadership summit at Harvard University from October 10-13, 2014. (Fellows should arrive on the evening of October 9th. We will begin at 8AM on October 10th).
- Highly committed individuals with enthusiasm for Project Pengyou’s mission to promote constructive China exchange
- Current students of a university, community college or high school (graduate students also eligible)
- Candidates should be able to demonstrate high potential for leadership, public speaking, and event coordination responsibilities
- Currently, forty fellows have already been trained across the nation. If your school does not already have a leadership fellow and has not started a Project Pengyou chapter, at least two candidates from your school must apply to be considered. Candidates must be prepared to partner with other leadership fellow(s) from their school to lead and mobilize their school’s Project Pengyou chapter.
- Apply online here
LEADERSHIP TRAINING SUMMIT
At the Leadership Training Summit at Harvard University, Leadership Fellows will spend four days of active learning covering the topics of leadership, organizing, action and U.S.-China bridge building.
Leadership, Organizing and Action
Derived from material developed by Harvard Professor Marshall Ganz, the curriculum teaches leadership as accepting responsibility to enable others to achieve shared purpose in the face of uncertainty. This program will explore how leadership is exercised through the mastery of five practices, including:
- Public Narratives
- Building Relationships
- Structuring Leadership Teams
- Strategizing
- Leading Action
US-China Bridge-building
Leadership Fellows will also explore the challenges and importance of US-China people-to-people exchange with their peers and prominent experts in the field.
Fellows will be immediately tasked to apply these practices in the real world by organizing a Project Pengyou Chapter at their school, beginning with an event on “Pengyou Day” November 20, 2014.
DEADLINES
- September 5, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Deadline for submission of application materials
- September 8, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Semifinalists announced and invited for Round 2 (including a video submission)
- September 11, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Round 2 deadline
- September 18, 2014 : Fall 2014 Project Pengyou Leadership Fellows announced!
- October 10-13 : Fall 2014 Project Pengyou Leadership Summit held at Harvard University
- September 5, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Deadline for submission of application materials
- September 8, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Semifinalists announced and invited for Round 2 (including a video submission)
- September 11, 2014 6:00 PM EST : Round 2 deadline
- September 18, 2014 : Fall 2014 Project Pengyou Leadership Fellows announced!
- October 10-13 : Fall 2014 Project Pengyou Leadership Summit held at Harvard University
BACKGROUND
The United States and China hold the world’s most important bilateral relationship, but the relationship is increasingly complex, challenging and multifaceted. With a population that makes up one-fifth of humanity, China is now an influential geopolitical power, the world’s second-largest economy and America's fastest-growing trade partner.
Currently there are twelve times more Chinese who study in America than there are Americans studying in China. In many regions across the United States, Mandarin study and study abroad opportunities to China are scarce, especially in some cities in the South and Midwest. Americans who take the leap to live in China often come home to find fragmented support and limited ways to continue meaningful engagement with China or China study.
Project Pengyou is the first global community that seeks to serve, connect and build a robust network of China alumni before and after they return to the U.S. We believe young Americans with frontline experiences in China are our most crucial and valuable assets in managing the future of US-China ties. In 2014, we seek to train and build a national network of community chapters for bilingual, bi-cultural leaders and bridge-builders through a number of high impact leadership workshops, thus forming the backbone of the Project Pengyou community. As part of our leadership initiatives, Project Pengyou plans to organize a day of massive action supporting US-China educational engagement on November 20, 2014 in conjunction with the State Department's International Education Week. By training and engaging next generation leaders, Project Pengyou seeks to strengthen the capacity of Americans to not only benefit from the extraordinary economic growth of China, but to also ensure a functional, mutually beneficial and peaceful future for the United States and China.
The United States and China hold the world’s most important bilateral relationship, but the relationship is increasingly complex, challenging and multifaceted. With a population that makes up one-fifth of humanity, China is now an influential geopolitical power, the world’s second-largest economy and America's fastest-growing trade partner.
Currently there are twelve times more Chinese who study in America than there are Americans studying in China. In many regions across the United States, Mandarin study and study abroad opportunities to China are scarce, especially in some cities in the South and Midwest. Americans who take the leap to live in China often come home to find fragmented support and limited ways to continue meaningful engagement with China or China study.
Project Pengyou is the first global community that seeks to serve, connect and build a robust network of China alumni before and after they return to the U.S. We believe young Americans with frontline experiences in China are our most crucial and valuable assets in managing the future of US-China ties. In 2014, we seek to train and build a national network of community chapters for bilingual, bi-cultural leaders and bridge-builders through a number of high impact leadership workshops, thus forming the backbone of the Project Pengyou community. As part of our leadership initiatives, Project Pengyou plans to organize a day of massive action supporting US-China educational engagement on November 20, 2014 in conjunction with the State Department's International Education Week. By training and engaging next generation leaders, Project Pengyou seeks to strengthen the capacity of Americans to not only benefit from the extraordinary economic growth of China, but to also ensure a functional, mutually beneficial and peaceful future for the United States and China.
PROJECT PENGYOU CORE BELIEFS
- We believe the United States and China hold the world's most important bilateral relationship, but the relationship is highly complex, challenging & multifaceted.
- We believe US-China relations carry tremendous economic value & global importance.
- We believe people with frontline experiences in China are our most crucial and valuable asset in managing US-China ties.
- We believe all American “China Alumni” can – and should – play a major role in pioneering a robust & mutually beneficial relationship between our two nations.
- We believe the United States and China hold the world's most important bilateral relationship, but the relationship is highly complex, challenging & multifaceted.
- We believe US-China relations carry tremendous economic value & global importance.
- We believe people with frontline experiences in China are our most crucial and valuable asset in managing US-China ties.
- We believe all American “China Alumni” can – and should – play a major role in pioneering a robust & mutually beneficial relationship between our two nations.
ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION
Project Pengyou is a program of the Golden Bridges Foundation that seeks to empower and mobilize a new generation of US-China bridge-builders to serve, inspire and transform lives. In 2011, Golden Bridges was invited by the State Department to help strengthen US-China relations by building an alumni network for the 100,000 Strong Initiative. With funding from the Ford Foundation, Golden Bridges began to independently develop "Project Pengyou" to build a critical mass of young Americans who lived and studied in China.
Online, Project Pengyou is a growing social network that curates China-focused news, jobs, events and resources and connects over 250 exchange groups and more than 3,000 members. Offline, Project Pengyou organizes high impact training and events for China alumni that aim to deepen China engagement and cultivate global leadership.
Project Pengyou is a program of the Golden Bridges Foundation that seeks to empower and mobilize a new generation of US-China bridge-builders to serve, inspire and transform lives. In 2011, Golden Bridges was invited by the State Department to help strengthen US-China relations by building an alumni network for the 100,000 Strong Initiative. With funding from the Ford Foundation, Golden Bridges began to independently develop "Project Pengyou" to build a critical mass of young Americans who lived and studied in China.
Online, Project Pengyou is a growing social network that curates China-focused news, jobs, events and resources and connects over 250 exchange groups and more than 3,000 members. Offline, Project Pengyou organizes high impact training and events for China alumni that aim to deepen China engagement and cultivate global leadership.
CONTACT
Questions? See our frequently asked questions page. For all other queries, please contact us at nihao@projectpengyou.org
MORE INFO ONLINE: www.projectpengyou.org/
Questions? See our frequently asked questions page. For all other queries, please contact us at nihao@projectpengyou.org
MORE INFO ONLINE: www.projectpengyou.org/
