All year long, Citizen Diplomats show American hospitality to international guests and make their visit in Philadelphia as enriching as possible through a night of home-cooked meals, local tours and conversation. Your generosity and curiosity makes every night a success.
Fulbright & Mandela Fellows Dinner Hospitality
In April, our incredible members and hosts gathered friends together to welcome 135 Fulbright Scholars to Philadelphia. From evening strolls along the Parkway to see the Rocky statue, to going out of the way to find spices from students’ home countries, our hosts showed the Fulbright students a personal side of Philadelphia.
In June, 24 Mandela Fellows, emerging African leaders, took a break from their month-long leadership studies at Drexel to spend an evening with 25 Citizen Diplomats! This program supports young Africans as they spur prosperity and enhance peace and security across Africa.
Overnight Home Stays
Opening your home to international visitors or students during their stay in Philadelphia generates relationships that span decades. This year host families hosted high school exchange students from Sister Cities Toruń, Frankfurt and Florence; journalists from Russia and deputy ministers from Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.
First Thursday Receptions
From September through May, Citizen Diplomats gather each month to connect with professionals working in the international sphere, foreign-born Philadelphia residents, official international program guests and university students. In a partnership with the Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians, they support job-readiness of new immigrants by providing a multi-lingual networking space and connections in the fields of their degree and accreditation.
“We had a great evening with our students with conversations ranging from light talks about learning new languages to serious discussions about deeper cultural differences around the world. We will definitely be hosting again!”
– Brad and Kaite Scheuer
“We had a great evening with our students with conversations ranging from light talks about learning new languages to serious discussions about deeper cultural differences around the world. We will definitely be hosting again!”
