About the Benjamin Franklin initiative

The purpose

The goal of the BFTF Initiative is to foster connections among American and European youth and help raise awareness of their shared values and cultural ties.

“This program aims to empower the younger generation of Americans and Europeans to face global challenges in the 21st Century together,” said Allan Louden, director of the BFTFI, who is an associate professor of communication and director of debate at Wake Forest University. “We hope to achieve this by improving the understanding the participants have of the political and cultural environments in each others’ countries.”

State Department officials say they hope the summer institute will pave the way for the establishment of other programs endeavoring to build bridges between American and European youth that will promote awareness of shared values as they face together the challenges of modern global circumstances.