Friendship Ambassadors

International Volunteer Work Helps Improve Foreign Relations

Sure, the United States has ambassadors in almost every country in the world. But do they really have a positive effect on the way people view us? Theoretically, an ambassador's job is to "negotiate and disseminate information in order to keep peace and establish relationships with other countries." One thing that is not clear is whether or not our ambassadors have succeeded in establishing GOOD, mutually beneficial relationships with other countries. That would probably explain the generally negative perception that foreigners have of our country. That's where we come in.


Through Ascend's international internship program, US Citizens are able to fully connect with the people living in these countries, establish real friendships and empower their friends to rise out of poverty and better their lives. Take for example Bolivia, with a notoriously anti-American government in power. Ask anyone who has worked with or benefited from our Bolivia program what they think of the US, and you will be pleasantly surprised by their response. They don't harbor negative sentiment towards individual US Citizens. They may be critical of our political policies and tendency to dominate international dialogue, but they know that there are good people living in the US that want to see them prosper on their own terms.


One of the best things about Ascend is that we don't impose on the communities where we work. We utilize an asset-based approach where we help identify what a community is good at and where they want to be in 5 years. We identify leaders within the communities and help them develop their ability to be the role-models and mentors that a community needs to better itself. Unfortunately, we can't reach all of the people who could benefit from the message that we offer. We are too small to establish personal relationships with whole countries or even whole cities, but that doesn't mean we aren't making a difference and it doesn't stop us from trying. Our mission is to empower those in need to save their children and rise out of poverty. However, improving international relationships on a small scale through our sustainable development programs is a welcome side-effect of our work.