“... [E]ach of you can be proud of your own contributions to this dynamic program. Your warm hospitality and spirit of volunteerism have made lasting, positive impressions on countless participants, reflecting the finest qualities of the American character. Welcoming these international visitors to your community with open arms, you have helped foster important intercultural exchanges between people of different lands, and our nation is richer for the experience.”
- President Bill Clinton, September 8, 1997
Home Hospitality & Intercultural Exchanges
IIE West Coast Center develops tailored and unique cultural exchanges for visiting leaders, professionals and scholars as an essential component of a valuable, well-balanced program. These exchanges are often the highlight of a visitor’s program and allow them to experience the wonderful hospitality and culture of local Bay Area residents, in a relaxed informal setting.
Over one hundred IIE West Coast Center members and local hosts actively contribute to the program throughout the year, providing meaningful and successful intercultural experiences with far reaching impact on people across the world.
Discover “a common humanity across boundaries of cultural differences” through local hospitality hosting and the spirit of volunteerism.
- Host dinner in your home with friends and family
- Host a small reception for a group of International Leaders and invited guests
- Join or lead sightseeing tours, cultural activities or San Francisco neighborhood walks
View the upcoming International Visitor Arrival List (754 KB, PDF)
“Home hospitality in San Francisco was amazing. The hosts were so warm and the food was excellently prepared. It was a pleasure because we discussed such important information in an informal, honest manner.”
– Russian International Visitor, Youth Activism & Youth Civic Engagement
“The visit was 'made' by the warmth of the visitors, and the animation of the conversation about such universal topics, as the role of men in child raising.”
- Local member reflecting on hosting three African women participants from the May 2009, Women in Business Delegation.
Become a Local Host or update your existing profile! 2012 Local Host Engagement Form (630 KB, PDF)
IIE San Francisco hosts a variety of events throughout the year. Our events highlight scholars, emerging professionals, and established leaders as they explore current issues in international affairs.
To receive notifications of our upcoming events, please sign up for our Mailing List.
Speaker Series
April 17, 2012
Ms. Jessica Buchleitner, Founder and Author, The 50 Women Project
IIE hosted a brown bag lunch with Jessica Buchleitner, Author of “50 Women” which features the life stories of 50 women from 30 countries. She led a lively discussion on the importance of advocacy journalism and how personal stories can shed light on the human experience.
April 3, 2012
Ms. Clémence Pinaud, Fulbright Fellow
Ms. Pinaud is a Fulbright fellow and visiting scholar at the Center for African Studies of UC Berkeley from the Sorbonne University in Paris, France. She has spent two years in South Sudan, where she worked for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees as a lead investigator for a multi-agency survey on protection and gender-based violence issues. Ms. Pinaud discussed her doctoral dissertation in History on the impact of war on women in South Sudan with members of the IIE San Francisco community over a brown bag lunch.
December 8th 2011
Mr. Otgonbaatar Tsedendemberel, IVLP Delegate
IIE held a brown bag lunch featuring Mr. Otgonbaatar, a delegate of the International Visitor Leadership Program. He discussed his work as an Advocacy Programme Manager for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Centre based in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
November 21, 2011
Ms. Ann Cotton, Founder and Executive Director, CAMFED
IIE San Francisco hosted an intimate brown bag lunch at our office with Ann Cotton, Founder and Executive Director of the Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED). The discussion focused on the impact and challenges of girls’ education and its relevance for building just, equitable societies.
September 14, 2011
Ms. Tina Tchen, Chief of Staff, First Lady Michelle Obama
The IIE roundtable featured a keynote presentation by Ms. Tchen, who provided insight into the strategy of the White House Council on Women and Girls and the priorities of the Office of the First Lady of the United States, relating to women and efforts to promote their leadership development. Roundtable participants represented women leaders from business, nonprofit and local government who are actively contributing to women’s empowerment in the Bay Area and globally.
Visit the
Events Archive to view our past events.
IIE San Francisco's Bay & Beyond Program
IIE San Francisco's Bay & Beyond Program provides a wealth of opportunities for Fulbright grantees in the Bay Area to take an occasional break from studies for a group activity. Continuing the Fulbright vision of mutual exchange, IIE hosts ongoing events that connect grantees with the local community and the Fulbright network. Each event serves to welcome the students into the diverse community that comprises the Fulbright family, while offering them the chance to experience one of the United States' most culturally rich metropolises.
Past Bay & Beyond events have included:
- San Francisco Opera dress rehearsals
- A breakfast gathering followed by a tour of Mission Dolores, San Francisco’s oldest historical building
- A picnic lunch at Jack London State Park in Glen Ellen, combined with a winery tour
- A welcome reception at IIE preceded by a short orientation session for new grantees
- A trip to Angel Island by ferry
Current Fulbright grantees studying in the San Francisco Bay Area, please write to wcoast@iie.org for more information on Bay & Beyond events.
Bay Area Hospitality
IIE San Francisco provides opportunities for Fulbright Students to interact with the local community.
To learn more please visit the Local Hospitality and Global Voices programs.
“It is invaluable to get a chance to meet so many talented people and it establishes a very strong network of like-minded people.”
-Fulbright Scholar, Ireland
Fulbright Enrichment Seminars
Each year the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Institute of International Education (IIE) organize a series of three-day enrichment seminars in selected U.S. cities to enable Fulbright grantees to examine topics of international consequence and lay the foundation for global problem solving.
Since 1989, IIE San Francisco has hosted one of many prestigious enrichment seminars that bring together several recently returned U.S. Fulbright alumni and 140 first-year foreign Fulbright graduate students from all over the world.
The enrichment seminars are an integral part of the Fulbright experience, exposing participants to a diversity of viewpoints concerning issues of global significance. They provide the foreign Fulbright students studying at universities throughout the U. S. with an outstanding opportunity to convene and share with one another their unique experiences, challenges, and successes. Moreover, the enrichment seminars support the Fulbright Program objective of promoting mutual understanding between people in the U.S. and the people of Fulbright partner countries.
Past Topics Have Included:
“It was a fantastic opportunity for me, especially because the schools that we visited showed an interesting variety of strategies that I feel I can use in my classroom too. I can’t tell you how excited I feel because I really want to share all that I learned here with my colleagues in my country.”
– American Language program, Dominican Republic
Global Voices
The Global Voices Program brings distinguished international leaders into local Bay Area classrooms, offering a unique and invaluable learning experience for students and teachers. International Visitor Leadership Program participants and Fulbright scholars from around the world meet with students from our network of over 100 Bay Area schools, ranging from grades K – 12, with a particular commitment to outreach in diverse and underprivileged institutions.
Global Voices provides rich opportunities for citizen diplomacy. These exchanges enhance students’ understanding of current international affairs while creating awareness of world cultures, geography, and languages. In turn, international visitors have the opportunity to observe the U.S. educational system and engage in dialogue with students in an interactive and personal setting.
“Students anywhere have few opportunities to meet people from other lands and cultures. It’s a great way to raise awareness of global concerns and issues. It puts the flesh and blood into the textbook.”
- Teacher, Media Academy High School, Oakland, CA
Learn more about the Global Voices Program - Quarterly Newsletter (1003 KB, PDF)
Become a partner school with the Global Voices Program (345 KB, PDF)