Global Initiatives

YSEALI

UND is a partner with the Mansfield Center at the University of Montana to host international fellows from the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative Professional Fellows Program (YSEALI PFP), an exchange designed to boost cultural ties between the U.S. and Southeast Asia.

The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, invites young leaders representing the Southeast Asian nations of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam to gain experience working in the fields of civic engagement, economic empowerment, governance and society, as well as sustainable development and the environment. According to the State Department’s website on YSEALI, it is the U.S. government’s signature program to strengthen leadership development and networking in Southeast Asia.

The program brings fellows to the United States twice a year, in the fall and spring semesters. UND hosted a cohort of fellows in the Spring of 2024, who worked alongside faculty and community members on various professional projects. Fellows also had the experience of living in homestays across Grand Forks. If you are interested in learning more about YSEALI please visit About YSEALI - U.S. Mission to ASEAN (usmission.gov). If you think you would be interested in serving as a UND Fellowship Host or a Homestay Host to a future YSEALI fellow please reach out to Vice Provost Randi Tanglen.

UND Stories about YSEALI

Scholars at Risk

Collaborates with colleges and departments to support scholars (i.e., faculty, students, and academic professionals) whose lives, liberty, well-being, and pursuit of intellectual freedom is threatened in their home countries by providing temporary safe haven at UND and elsewhere in the form of research, teaching, academic support positions, or educational opportunities.