The Center for Southeast Asian Studies and the International Training Office at Northern
Illinois University are happy to announce a new project titled CULTURAL CITIZENS
AND NORTH-SOUTH DIALOGUE: BUILDING THE NATIONAL IDENTITYAND
CIVIC PARTICIPATION IN THE PHILIPPINES.
This project is part of our on-going
partnership with the International Visitors Program-Philippines Alumni Foundation and
began in August 2007. This project has brought 30 multi-sectoral leaders in Philippine
government, NGOs, and the private sector (from media, law, academe, religion, business
or other sectors) to Northern Illinois University for a four week institute on the
responsibilities of citizens in a democratic, plural society. It is focused on majority-
minority relations and will recruit applicants from the north (especially the Cordillera
Administrative Region), the central part of the country, and the southern region
(especially the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao). Priority will be given to
applicants who are leaders of youth organizations or others who are in a position to
influence the next generation.
The major goals of the project are to a) promote mutual
understanding and partnerships between key professional groups in the U.S. and
counterparts in the Philippines through exchanges and dialogue; b) encourage and
strengthen understanding of democratic values and active citizenship; c) develop an
appreciation for American governmental and legal structures and an understanding of the
diversity of American society; and d) strengthen the capacity and skills of the participants
in methods of citizen participation and the benefits of participatory approaches. We
intend to sponsor a national seminar in the Philippines on active, responsible citizenship
after the completion of the NIU institute so as to launch a nation-wide Network for
Active Citizen Participation.
The CULTURAL CITIZENS AND NORTH-SOUTH DIALOGUE project is funded by
the Office of Citizen Exchanges of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S.
Department of State. It is directed by Dr. Susan Russell, Professor of
Anthropology/Center for Southeast Asian Studies and Dr. Lina Davide-Ong, Director,
International Training Office at Northern Illinois University. The in-country coordinator
is Attorney Marilen Ramiro, Executive Director of the International Visitor Program-
Philippines Alumni Foundation in Manila. Other participating organizations include the
Departments of Political Science and Public Administration at NIU, as well as the U.S.
Embassy in Manila.