Information on the Russians
http://www.blogforamerica.com/archives/006538.html
A small glimpse into the extracurriculars going on a Democracy for America headquarters.
The subject line of Pat Hanson's email was cryptic; it simply said, "Information on the Russians." But instead of top secret Cold War documents, Pat's email included a description of the five Russian exchange guests that she was hosting for the week. Pat brought the group into DFA headquarters for a visit one afternoon last week.
Russian scholars and government officials
visit DFA headquarters in Burlington, VT
Photos by Zach Manganello
The visitors' careers were generally focused on involving youth in Russia's government. Within that, each of them had a widely different focus. Victoria, (red dress), is concentrating on communications. She develops press that promotes healthy lifestyles in her community.
Dimitri, (back row, center), is working to transform his local government into a transparent entity that relies on the Internet for communication with it's citizens. And where is Dimitri attempting to create such progressive change? In rural Siberia! How's that for an ambitious goal?
And one of the young visitors, Irina, (center, holding the American flag) is the deputy mayor of her city! This is a group that has taken to heart the message that change begins with them.