2008
Ambassador Beyrle Visits Vladivostok American Corner and Meets with Alumni
On November 17, Ambassador Beyrle and his wife visited the Vladivostok American Corner where they met with 80 alumni of U.S. government sponsored exchange programs (FLEX, Ugrad, Muskie, Open World, Fulbright, Kennan Institute, Business for Russia, etc.). The main topic of the event was the value of international exchanges. Jocelyn Greene, the Ambassador’s spouse, started the event by sharing her own experiences as a student exchange program participant in the USSR in the 1970s. Ambassador Beyrle joined the conversation by telling his own story of his exchange program, about the life at the dormitory of the Leningrad State University and learning Russian culture through his Russian friends. Then Ambassador answered the questions from the audience regarding the future of exchange programs, the role of mass media in creating a positive or negative image of a nation, and Russian-American relations. PAO Brudget Gersten opened the event, kicking off a series of events held during International Education Week, November 17-21.