Dialogues on Democracy between American and Indian Youth

President Barack Obama, during his January 2015 visit to India, noted, “If America shows itself as an example of its diversity and yet the capacity to live together and work together in common effort, in common purpose; if India, as massive as it is, with so much diversity, so many differences is able to continually affirm its democracy, that is an example for every other country on Earth.” In this project, U.S. and/or Indian educational non-profit organizations will use low-cost digital and online technologies to conduct a series of structured debates and discussions between American and South Indian high school students, over a four month period, on topics of concern to the U.S. Government’s Mission in India. Ideas for topics include gender based violence; free trade; foreign policy; freedom of expression and/or religion; governance and judicial independence; and the responsibilities of global powers. U.S. Consulate General Chennai will coordinate with the awardee to choose local and/or regional partner Indian institutions, and will either host these Indian students and teachers at the American Library, or use online communication platforms to virtually connect Indian schools with high school students in American classrooms. These digital dialogues will help Indian youth in rural areas better understand American values and shared U.S. and Indian democratic ideals. Awardee will ensure Indian teachers and administrators understand and are familiar with the technology to encourage them to continue to offer their students access and opportunities to dialogue with U.S. students after project completion. Using innovative communication methods to facilitate discussions about often controversial or sensitive topics will also contribute to the success of this funding opportunity.As an adjunct to the dialogue series, awardee would be responsible for creating an interactive digital product (an online video, for example) highlighting key dialogue topics and significant outcomes. This product would be shared with U.S. and Indian students and schools – and could be utilized for Consulate events and as a benchmark for future and/or sustaining similar projects. A panel comprised of U.S. Consulate General Chennai staff members will review each complete proposal received before the application deadline. Please note that selected proposals will have to complete additional forms and registration documents within thirty days of notification in order to receive funding.