Vision Statement
Envisioning a world where every student, regardless of background, has the opportunity and platform to engage in diplomacy across borders.
BCEA Student demographics since 2022
Foundations
Independence: We are a non-partisan peacebuilding and citizen diplomacy organization dedicated to facilitating youth exchanges and dialogue between individuals from high-tension countries. Our goal is to lay the foundation for sustainable peace and mutually beneficial collaboration. To maintain our independence, our funding comes from grassroots donations, private foundations, and service revenue.
Mutuality: Our sole mission is to advance the cause of citizen diplomacy and peacebuilding. We provide a platform for people to connect, exchange ideas, and foster mutual understanding. While we do not endorse or support any particular political ideology or viewpoint, we uphold and respect international norms. Our commitment is to create a neutral space where diverse perspectives can be shared and appreciated.
Values
Integrity
We adhere to our moral and ethical principles and do not harm the community and others. We firmly stand against any form of discrimination.
High Global Intelligent
With Empathy and understanding, ; we served and gave each other full respect, disregarding all ideological backgrounds。
Communication with impact:
We communicate professionally and openly to each other and our students, fostering an environment of trust and collaboration.
Empowerment
We empower others to gain access to information, skills, and tools that they need to achieve their dream and make a social impact
Perfectionism
We pursue the highest quality in every aspect of our program development and service implementation
Collaboration
By helping and supporting each other, we improve and work towards our collective and overarching goal.
The Start of BCEA-Our Journey
Born in the University of Southern California, with a mission to “advance student diplomacy, through accessible and affordable cultural exchange summits and programs,” Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy (BCEA) is USC’s citizen diplomacy organization. We aim to empower students to develop their global intelligence ( key concepts: open your eye, your ear, your heart, and your hand). We are committed to empowering a new generation of student diplomats by building a global community filled with empathy and inclusivity. BCEA has two programs: the Student Diplomacy Lab and the Online Cultural Exchange Summit.
In the virtual Cultural Exchange Summit, our goal is to use the power of the gamification of virtual exchange and digital peacebuilding to make the cultural exchange and people-people connection accessible to everyday students, without the financial and time commitment of traditional study abroad. We broke down the summit into 2 systems: Academic and Bonding. The Academic segment allows students to delve into global challenges, like educational inequality and gender disparities; In the Bonding system, the goal is to increase the connectedness and togetherness of students. Students are randomly assigned to four colleges, cooperating with peers from 21 countries to win the “House Cup” through team projects, case simulations, and debates. We successfully reduced stereotypes and promoted collaboration among students, resulting in a remarkable 92% program satisfaction rate.
Since 2021, we are honored to host renowned speakers such as Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, Former US ambassador to Cambodia, Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle, former Dean of the USC School of Communication Earnest Wilson, and Harvard University philosophy professor Michael Sandel, and Abby Falik, Founder of Global Citizen Year. These outstanding scholars and social leaders bring unique insights and life stories to our students. The Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy has cooperated with dozens of research centers and educational institutions in China, Singapore, the Philippines, and the US. In total, we have engaged with 1500+ students from 21 different countries in cross-cultural exchange.
Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy 