A Call to Peace - Civic Enterprises

WAYS FORWARDIn anticipation of the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps, the ServiceWorld coalition was formeda few years ago from the Initiative on International Volunteering and Service at the BrookingsInstitution and its companion Building Bridges Coalition to better understand how the originalvision of the Peace Corps could be fulfilled. Today, the ServiceWorld coalition has more than 300 nongovernmentorganizations (NGOs), colleges and universities, corporations, and community and faith-basedinstitutions, and thousands of RPCVs and other individuals working together to advance the original vision ofPresident Kennedy, Sargent Shriver, many Democrat and Republican Presidents, and leaders of our society sincethe founding of the Peace Corps.This coalition has proposed a plan of action that isconsistent with Shriver’s original vision for the PeaceCorps and President Kennedy’s goal of 100,000Americans serving abroad every year: The Peace Corps: The Peace Corps shoulddouble its ranks to 15,000 volunteers by2015 and forge partnerships with othervolunteer-sending and internationaldevelopment organizations to maximizeimpact and leverage funding. In additionto funding these new slots, the Peace Corpsshould also strengthen current programs, lowerthe cost per volunteer, more carefully defineprojects, and document its effectiveness inmeeting the three goals. It should work to formservice partnerships with more countries ofgrowing global importance, such as Brazil, Indiaand Nigeria where there are currently no PeaceCorps Volunteers. The Peace Corps must continueto be aggressive in increasing the safety andsecurity of its Volunteers, including a timelyand compassionate response. Bills pending inCongress would codify reforms the agency hasput in place such as better staff training andprotection for whistleblowers, and would requiremore detailed crime statistics and the PeaceCorps and U.S. Department of State to formalizehow U.S. Embassy officials respond to crimesagainst Peace Corps Volunteers. Volunteers for Prosperity: Created byExecutive Order in 2003 and authorizedinto law in 2009, Volunteers for Prosperityshould expand from 43,000 to 75,000 skilledAmericans each year recruited and deployedfor flexible-term assignments through anetwork of U.S. nonprofits that work inthe developing world on urgent problems,such as HIV/AIDS, malaria, education, cleanwater, and helping entrepreneurs startlocal businesses that create new jobs. Thisincrease should occur through the expansion ofthe Volunteers for Prosperity (VfP) Serve Program,which offers modest stipends to volunteers,more than matched by individual and privatesector contributions. Global Service Fellowships: Initiated by theprivate sector to create at least 100 Global ServiceFellows each year, Global Service Fellowshipsshould be authorized into law to mobilize10,000 volunteer fellows each year for upto one-year assignments to help build thecapacity of non-profit organizations and faith-basedinstitutions working in the developing world toinnovate and solve significant global challenges.These new opportunities for international servicedirectly through experienced and tested nongovernmentorganizations will enable Americansto serve who would have much to offer but are notable or ready to enlist for the two years that thePeace Corps requires. The Global Service Fellowsshould be selected in a competitive process.Members of Congress should be able tonominate fellows from their districts andstates, similar to the nominating process forthe Military Academies. An International Social Innovation Fund: AnInternational Social Innovation Fund shouldbe created to fuel further innovation inhow Americans can have a greater impactthrough international volunteer service andincrease the capacity of local organizationsto effectively utilize their time and talents.To enhance the impact of Americans servingoverseas each year through government and nongovernmentorganizations, we propose to buildon the examples of the Volunteer Generation andSocial Innovation Funds authorized in the EdwardM. Kennedy Serve America Act.A CALL TO PEACE SEPTEMBER 20117|