Fulbright Finland...for the Future

It is difficult to comprehend the scope of change over the past 60 years.  Not merely has every facet of our lives been impacted by technology in ways that only science fiction writers dared to predict, but the acceleration in the rate of change has forced us to accept adaptive and disruptive thinking as the new norm. Apply the scope and speed of change to a world population that has almost tripled since the founding of the Fulbright program and it is immediately clear that the amplitude of change is unrivaled in human history.

Sixty years ago, United States Senator J. William Fulbright unflinchingly stared into the future and saw both its challenges and its opportunities.  He said, “We must dare to think 'unthinkable' thoughts.  We must learn to explore all the options and possibilities that confront us in a complex and rapidly changing world.”  His namesake program was established to create global citizens – those who dare to address universal problems with innovative solutions.

The Finnish-American Fulbright program has become an exemplar of those goals. It has been recognized for its remarkable successes, the strength of its partnerships and its broad alumni support.  Having already grown, on a number of measures, among the largest worldwide, the Finnish-American Program holds the immodest aim of expanding its reach even further to better respond to global challenges and shape the minds that will find the solutions.

You can be a part of this future. I urge you to recognize your potential to change the world around you, and I urge you to become a partner of the Finnish-American Fulbright Program. I dare you to think “unthinkable” thoughts and confront this changing world.  The need has never been more compelling and the opportunity has never been greater.

Let 2014 be the year for you to shape the future.
 

H.E. Bruce J. Oreck
Ambassador of the United States to the Republic of Finland

 

Fulbright Center News 2/2013