Take a Journey of Discovery
What is it like to be a citizen diplomat? Or an active peacemaker? And to meet your global neighbors? As a GCJ delegate, you’ll be part of an exciting adventure in sharing, learning and building. We call participants delegates because they have a role larger than themselves.
GCJ is built on a sustainable “ripple-effect” model, designed to extend the benefits beyond each individual’s experience. As a delegate, you are asked to commit to sharing your journey with your home community and encouraged to find ways to continue your connection with the host country community.
What are some of key criteria for becoming a GCJ delegate?
- We encourage you to seek sponsorship by an organization. This could be a community group, professional association, business, religious organization, school, book club, sports team or any other group whose members would like to learn from and support your journey, and help you create opportunities to share your experiences with a wider network.
- We’re looking for delegates who will be actively involved in planning and development. We have a range of committees and need lots of volunteer support to develop each journey’s program fully. We expect delegates to be active participants in the preparation.
- GCJ is all about diversity. We want a cross-section of America to connect with a cross-section of our host country, so we’re looking for diversity in age, gender, ethnicity and religious affiliation. We also seek a wide range of skills, interests and professions, to enrich the experience, widen the range of potential networks and contribute to cultivating follow-on projects. For example, each delegation might include someone from high tech, business, agriculture, public health, education or the arts.
What about expenses?
- We do not believe money is an obstacle.
- We encourage all delegates to fundraise for their program fees such that they are traveling on behalf of a larger community of interested supporters. Thus the experience is shared by many.
- We provide materials and suggestions to help you with fundraising.
While preparing for our inaugural Nigeria 2005 trip, here’s what the U.S. delegates shared about their goals and purposes for the journey during one of our days of team-building and preparation.
- feel connection with other cultures
- bust out of old ways
- reconnect with the world
- be in service on behalf of the whole
- raise collective wisdom and action
- have a deeper experience of peace
- go deeper into the story
- humanize the news
- contribute to long term benefits
- plant seeds of transformation
- push out of our comfort zones
- challenge power structures (or do an end run around them)
- experience self transformation
- bring the experience back home in a meaningful way
- contribute to reconciliation through conflict resolution and transformation
- bring hope to a weary place
- defeat ageism – create new images of being 60 +
- realize potential – humanism for all
- be pioneers
- prove effectiveness of grass roots efforts and activities
- be inclusive and supportive
- create murals
- try out the model of GCJ – make the vision real
- tap into deep yearning
- be part of the evolutionary process
- create meaning
- connect with essence – call others to essence
