Fulbright English Teaching Assistants Arrive in Malaysia:  Seventy-five Fulbright English Teaching 
Assistants (ETA) arrived in Kuala Lumpur to begin an orientation before going to primary and secondary schools in four states across Malaysia.  Ambassador Paul W. Jones and Deputy Chief of Mission Lee McClenny both participated in the ETA orientation in Kuala Lumpur along with six Embassy officers and the EducationUSA Coordinator.  The 75 ETAs - up from 50 ETAs last year - will be in Malaysia for 10 months.  The Embassy is also providing technical support to Malaysian teachers and administrators through visits by ECA English Language Specialists.

Creative Writing Workshop for Philippine Prison Inmates: Public Affairs Section Manila conducted a four-day creative writing workshop, "The Mind Is Free," for 15 inmates enrolled in the college in the Philippines' National Penitentiary.  The participants were majors of the college's entrepreneurship degree program, as well as the editor of the college publication and his staff members.  The Office of the Philippine Solicitor General described the Public Affairs Section's workshop as "ground-breaking" and "a great help in the reformation of inmates." 

Embassy in Laos Supports Wildlife Protection:  To draw attention to the threats facing wildlife in Laos, U.S. Ambassador Karen Stewart visited a bear rescue center in Luang Prabang.  The rescue center was established in 2003 and now houses 23 Asiatic Black Bears, almost all of which were illegally captured from the wild for the traditional medicine trade.  Of the 247 species of mammals reported in Laos, 68 are categorized as globally threatened or near threatened with extinction.  In addition to bears, the Embassy has supported efforts to protect tigers, gibbons, elephants, and the Mekong giant catfish.

Exchanges Build Ties Between Americans and Burmese:  Fourteen Burmese basketball players and coaches continued a ten-day program in the United States.  In Washington, D.C., the group attended a Washington Wizards game and met Under Secretary Tara Sonenshine during pre-game activities.  In Charlotte, N.C., the players visited American classrooms and played shoulder-to-shoulder with American peers.  Richard Cho, General Manager of the Charlotte Bobcats and State Department Basketball Envoy to Burma in 2012, also hosted the group.

Four American writers visited Burma January 11-17 through a partnership between ECA and the University of Iowa.  Former U.S. Poet Laureate Robert Hass; short story writer ZZ Packer; and poets Brenda Hillman and Christopher Merrill led workshops and presented readings of their work at Dagon and Yangon Universities and several public schools. 

Humphrey Alumnus Named Deputy Director of Mauritanian Cabinet:   Alumnus Hassen Ould Ahmed was recently appointed Deputy Director of Mauritania's Cabinet.  Ahmed was a 2008-2009 Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow at Penn State University.

Armenian Alumnus Named Member of Parliament of the Year: Armenian political magazine De Facto named Edmon Marukyan, an alumnus of the Hubert H. Humphrey Program and the International Visitor Leadership Program, "Member of Parliament of the Year." Marukyan was elected to parliament in spring 2012.  

Playwright Wajahat Ali Speaks to Arts Community in London on "The Power of Storytelling:" On January 13, 2013 at Rich Mix, East London, Playwright Wajahat Ali participated in an evening monologue and addressed young members of the Muslim arts community on the power of storytelling and narratives.  This event attracted a diverse audience, including many Muslim women, artists, writers, students and community leaders.  An accomplished Muslim-American writer and an engaging speaker, Mr. Ali connected with the British audience on many levels.  The discussion focused on how individual Muslims can "take back ownership" of the narrative and influence how the world perceives Muslims by breaking down globally held stereotypes through cultural achievement.  Mr. Ali is comfortable with both his American and his Muslim identities, and there was much discussion about the contrast between American and British Muslims on that topic.  Ali's discussion of how popular culture can change public perception resonated with the artsy crowd in attendance, themselves young Muslims involved in the performing and visual arts.  Mr. Ali encouraged the audience to avoid limiting their artistic expression by trying to win the approval of their own communities, or by wondering if their art was "Islamic enough."  Ali argued that there was space for all forms of artistic expression, and that with quality content, there were many paths to success as an artist.  Finally, he urged participants to use art as a catalyst for social change and to consider "art as a think tank" for experimenting with how Muslims perceive themselves.

MeetUS Program with Consul General Moeller in Nuremberg, Germany: On January 16, Consul General Moeller spoke to a group of about 100 students and faculty of "Berufsschule 4," an off-the-beaten-track school in Nuremberg, addressing U.S.-German relations, the U.S. presence in Bavaria, economic and commercial ties, and tackling tough questions about car emissions, Guantanamo, gun control, and social media topics.  The MeetUS program is a core part of Mission Germany's youth outreach.  This vocational school was unusual in that about 30% of its student population has a high school degree from a Gymnasium but has chosen not to pursue a university track but rather pursue careers in industry, sales, marketing, and communications.  Connecting with this important, underrepresented  youth group- on topics such as Bavarian-American Economic Relations, the importance of a U.S.-EU comprehensive trade agreement, harmonizing automobile and industrial standards, and other key topics - informs, engages, and inspires the future generation of Germans.  Youth gain a deeper appreciation of close transatlantic ties, which is a top Mission priority.  The discussion was live Tweeted to highlight the event to a broader audience. 

Public Affairs Oslo Reaches Hundreds of Norwegian Students at the "Yes to U.S." Booth at Lillestr�m Education Fair:  Each year, Public Affairs Section (PAS) Oslo participates in several education fairs across Norway.  For the second year in a row, PAS attended the largest education fair in Akershus County, the Lillestr�m fair, located a thirty minute drive from Oslo.  Working with post's educational exchange partners including the Fulbright Foundation, the Norway-America Association and the American College of Norway, PAS organized a Yes to U.S./EducationUSA pavilion to promote U.S. higher education to Norwegian students.  Each day an average of 500 students stopped by the U.S. studies booth to learn more about educational exchange possibilities in the United States and to pick up one of the Yes to U.S. brochures which explains the U.S. university admissions process for both undergraduate and graduate studies as well as sports scholarship opportunities.  PAS participation at the Lillestr�m education fair was part of the Embassy's educational exchange initiative.  In the past six years there has been an increase in the number of Norwegian students going to the U.S. to study and the Embassy believes that participation at educational fairs has a positive effect on these numbers. 

Yes to U.S. at Lillestr�m Education Fair

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer Honored:  On January 14, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara Sonenshine and IIP Coordinator Dawn L. McCall presented a Department of State Certificate of Appreciation to U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen G. Breyer.  The award recognized Justice Breyer's years of support for Department rule of law public diplomacy programs such as his recent trip as a Target of Opportunity Speaker in Burkina Faso, Mozambique, and South Africa.

MTV Europe Co-Founder Stirs Questions from Innovation Generation Fans:  On January 9, IIP's Innovation Generation Facebook page hosted Monica Dodi, co-founder of MTV Europe and The Women's Venture Capital Fund, on its "Ask the Entrepreneur" series, which features accomplished American entrepreneurs.  The discussion sparked questions from around the globe including from India, Indonesia, Mauritania, Mexico, and Pakistan.

IIP's Spanish Facebook Page Challenges "Intrapreneurs" to Become Changemakers:  More than 2,300 people responded to IIP's Spanish-language Facebook page Iniciativa Emprende's invitation on January 9 to join in the Ashoka Changemaker's League of Intrapreneurs, the world's largest social entrepreneurial organization.  @AmericaGovEsp further amplified the challenge with Tweets that reached more than 29,000 followers.

PAS Jerusalem Introduces History Professor to Palestinian Audiences:  Public Affairs Section Jerusalem hosted Oberlin College Professor of History, Dr. Gary Kornblith, on a two-day tour of the West Bank and Jerusalem.  Dr. Kornblith spoke on America's evolving democracy and President Obama's historic election at An-Najah University, Birzeit University, and Al Quds Open University.  Dr. Kornblith also discussed the possibility of establishing an American Studies Program at the universities.  He met with university staff and academics at a reception hosted by Public Affairs Officer Michael Richards to nurture cultural dialogue and advance the pursuit of American Studies.  Dr. Kornblith is an expert on the topic of separation of religion and state in America, and also participated in a roundtable discussion with Islamic religious leaders. 

Kyrgyzstan:  Annual Bilateral Consultations Conclude with Pledge for Continued Partnership:  On January 17, Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert O. Blake led the U.S. delegation for the second United States-Kyrgyz Republic Annual Bilateral Consultations.  His media interview at the conclusion of the meetings helped explain the dialogue to a wide audience.  He noted that the "consultations have been a very useful mechanism to review our cooperation on a wide range of important issues, including democracy, rule of law and law enforcement, economic and commercial development, education, science and technology, and border and regional security, to see where we can do better, and to suggest new areas for future joint endeavors."  During his visit to the Kyrgyz Republic, Assistant Secretary Blake also met with representatives from Kyrgyz civil society organizations. 

Nepal:  Disaster Risk Reduction PSA Goes Public:  Embassy Kathmandu officially launched a public service announcement (PSA) on disaster risk reduction on January 15 (National Earthquake Safety Day in Nepal.) National Earthquake Safety Day was launched by the Nepal government in 1999 to commemorate the devastating 8.3 earthquake of 1934.  The PSA will run on local television stations.  The Embassy also developed a series of disaster reduction tips that will be posted on the Embassy's Facebook page each week through the beginning of March 2013.

Tajikistan:  Using Music to Make Statements:  On January 9, English Teaching Assistant Javid Riahi held a session at the Qurghonteppa American Corner on using American music to learn English and the use of music to make political statements.  The students learned about American musicians who have used music to make political statements and discussed freedom of speech.  Javid handed out song lyrics to the students, which they listened to and read and learned new words.