The Foreign Policy Context

Cultural and arts programs of the Cultural Programs Division of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) enhance U.S. diplomatic activities overseas, strengthen U.S. institutions by fostering their involvement in foreign programs and partnerships, and demonstrate the vitality and excellence of the artistic traditions of the United States. They support specific and/or general U.S. foreign policy goals in various ways, such as:

• Highlighting those values of American society which host country officials and opinion-leaders must understand if they are to engage in a meaningful dialogue with American leaders -- democracy, diversity, freedom of expression, volunteerism, and America's free-market, entrepreneurial culture.

• Demonstrating that U.S. interests extend beyond political, military, and trade goals to embrace cultural values by cooperating with and strengthening nationally respected host-country cultural institutions through professional exchanges or other means.

• Balancing the impression that American culture is geared to the "lowest common-denominator" by presenting our country's rich diversity and high level of artistic achievement -- the best of America's performing and visual arts -- in areas of the world less frequently visited by American artists.

• Addressing thematic issues such as women's and minority rights, intellectual property rights, conflict resolution and cultural heritage protection.

• Supporting sustainable economic development through the training of museum and other arts professionals in a developing country to enable them to maintain attractive and marketable cultural tourism attractions.

• Promoting the development of democratic, community-based arts councils to enhance a respect for free and unhindered artistic expression.

Involvement with the exchanges of the Cultural Programs Division strengthens and enhances the prestige of U.S. institutions with counterparts at home and abroad. When American institutions cooperate with foreign counterparts through partnership programs supported by the Department of State, they gain access to international expertise unavailable elsewhere.

Legislative Authority

The Fulbright-Hayes Act of 1961 provides the legislative foundation for the cultural programs of the Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The act authorizes ECA to provide, by grant, contract, or otherwise, support to the following types of cultural programs:

• Visits and interchanges of experts and other influential or distinguished persons;

• tours abroad by creative and performing artists from the United States;

• Representation by American artists and performers in international artistic, dramatic, musical, sports, and other cultural festivals, competitions and meetings and like exhibitions, and;

• Participation by groups and individuals from abroad in similar tours and festivals in the United States.

• All programs under the authority of ECA shall "maintain their nonpolitical character and shall be balanced and representative of the diversity of American political, social and cultural life."

• Academic and cultural programs under the authority of ECA "shall maintain their scholarly integrity and shall meet the highest standards of academic excellence and artistic achievement."

Below are descriptions of programs co-sponsored or supported by the Cultural Programs Division, including their FY 2000 budgets, and website addresses for additional, detailed information:

The Fund for U.S. Artists at International Festivals and Exhibitions is a public-private partnership sponsored by the Department of State, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Pew Charitable Trusts, and the Rockefeller Foundation. The Department of State, through its involvement in the Festivals Fund, helps ensure U.S. representation at important international performing arts festivals and at several prestigious biennales, including the Venice Biennale. In FY 2000 the Fund supported more than 100 U.S. performing artists at festivals and three biennales ($510,000).¹

The Kennedy Center--Department of State Jazz Ambassadors are young American jazz musicians who travel in trios on performance and workshop tours arranged under the official auspices of the American Embassies in the countries in which they travel. These countries are rarely those served by commercial impresarios. In FY 2000 five trios traveled to the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and Latin America ($265,000).

The Performing Arts Calendar is a web-based compilation also co-produced with the Kennedy Center that provides to U.S. Embassies and other impresarios the overseas tour schedules of U.S. performing artists, facilitating additional public and private sector concerts and performances ($25,000).

Creative Arts Exchanges Programs link American arts administrators, artists and cultural institutions with their counterparts in other countries by partially funding non-profit institutional projects involving two-way international cultural exchanges. The program fosters on-going relationships between cultural organizations in the U.S. and abroad. In FY 2000, six such exchanges took place ($350,000)².

International Partnership Among Museums is supported by the Cultural Programs Division along with a prestigious list of additional sponsors and carried out by the American Association of Museums. This program pairs U.S. museums with foreign museums to carry out cooperative projects in education, exhibit development, design, management, collections care, and technology ($175,000)³.

American Cultural Specialists carry out short-term residencies at overseas cultural institutions in diverse fields, including cultural preservation, the role of the arts in conflict-resolution, promotion of tolerance for other cultures, arts management, literature/publishing, film, visual, and the performing arts, among others. Specialists conduct workshops, give lectures, and carry out consultations and master classes. More that 60 American Cultural Specialists programs were carried out in FY 2000 ($290,000).

The Feature Film Service provides 35mm feature films at no programming cost for ambassadorial screenings, Mission-sponsored film festivals, international film festivals, and other events. It does so with private sector support of the Motion Picture Association of America, the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, the American Film Marketing Association, the Director's Guild, and others. Primarily in-kind budget.

Special Millennium Projects sponsored by the Cultural Programs Division through FY 2001 include a major fine art exhibit touring Europe, "Andy Warhol: His Art and Life," a 20th Century photography exhibit, "Observing the Century," touring the Mid-East, an exhibit of Navajo textiles, "Woven by our Grandmothers," touring South America, and the "American Film Preservation Showcase" traveling to several continents ($495,000).

¹Includes $115,000 of FY 2001 contribution.
²Projected for FY 2001 based upon overall ECA budget
³Biannual contribution

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