Ambassador Ashley Wills (A&S ’71, International Politics and Economics) makes a gift each year that enables dozens of UVA students who are eligible for financial aid to apply for and receive a passport at no cost. The passport grant removes a common barrier to participation for education abroad and brings students one step closer to pursuing a global experience.

University of Virginia alumna Michele Buster graduated in 1986 and was among one of the first cohorts of UVA students to study in Valencia. Since then, she has built on her connections to Spain and Italy to build her company Forever Cheese, an importer of fine cheeses and other specialty foods from Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Croatia. Buster chose to give back to the University community by creating the Flashrouge Round the World Global Experience Scholarship, enabling extraordinary global experiences for a new generation of students.

In a world where democratic values are increasingly at risk, young Sudanese activists offer a powerful example of resilience and determination. Through UVA’s Democratic Futures Project (DFP), these activists are exploring pathways toward a more inclusive and just political future in Sudan.

In October, UVA hosted a delegation from Bologna, including Mayor Matteo Lepore, senior city and municipality officials, and faculty from the University of Bologna, to begin a series of conversations with UVA and the City of Charlottesville on our shared areas of interest and potential future collaborations. As part of the visit, Mayor Lepore gave a public talk on municipal leadership in Bologna and his vision for the city.

The University of Virginia will host Mayor Matteo Lepore from Bologna, Italy and his senior academic advisers on Grounds and in Northern Virginia October 17-18 to explore an exciting and innovative new research partnership.

Earlier this month, Bologna’s mayor and university leadership invited an interdisciplinary delegation from UVA to begin exploratory discussions on the prospect of a formal partnership in pursuit of exciting new research horizons.

It was clear that the 40 democracy activists who came to UVA for People Power Academy share a love for the founding principle of our University to “follow truth wherever it may lead” in an atmosphere of personal freedom, tolerance, and respect in service to the greater good.

Activists from all over the world converged at the University of Virginia last week to learn from each other in a three-day event titled People Power Academy. UVA Global spoke to Nobel Peace Prize nominee and Democratic Futures Fellow Félix Maradiaga about his work protecting religious freedom in Nicaragua.

The University of Virginia’s Office of the Vice Provost for Global Affairs has appointed Tina Mangieri as the inaugural Director of Global Initiatives, a post she assumed on March 4. She shares more about her work and her priorities as she starts this position.

Ambassador Steve Mull shares the details of global partnerships and expansion in the works at Global Affairs for 2024.

During these difficult times, it is important to rededicate ourselves to the values that make this University great and good by caring for those in our community who are most traumatized by these events; creating safe spaces for empathy, mutual understanding, and free inquiry into the history of this conflict and the search for an equitable peace; and respecting the right of all to express their views civilly and peacefully without fear of reprisal. 

It’s a wrap for another successful year of Global Week at UVA! Global Week is organized by the Office of the Vice Provost for Global Affairs every year and is an opportunity for those interested in global topics to learn more about the research opportunities, global collaborations and services available at UVA. This year more than 30 events across Grounds featured art, politics, and culture from around the world and exciting new contributions from students, including five CIO-sponsored events.

The new academic year in the Global Affairs family promises to set historic records in the University’s rapidly growing international engagement, with substantial increases in study abroad opportunities with expanded scholarship support; plans to establish new permanent UVA offices in key regions around the world; and expanded staffing to support more global opportunities right here on Grounds.

Owen Selden is a third-year student majoring in the Human Biology Distinguished Majors Program and a 2023 Center for Global Health Equity University Scholar. He talked about the global health experiences at UVA and in Rwanda that have inspired him to pursue a future in public health.

A delegation from the University of Virginia led by Vice Provost for Global Affairs, Ambassador Stephen D. Mull, visited The Bahamas in August 2023, to assess prospects of the University's academic engagement.

Ambassador Steve Mull, Vice Provost for Global Affairs on the global engagements this academic year and looking ahead

UVA recently hosted Democracy Dialogues: The worldwide struggle for democracy where leading democracy activists from around the world spoke about what it is like to fight for democracy in a country that has been plagued by political violence. A couple of activists share their experiences and what faculty and students can do to support democracy work around the world.

Miriam Hossaini is a 4th-year double majoring in Architecture and Global Studies on the Middle East and South Asian track. Raised in Richmond, Virginia, she wanted to reconnect with her Persian heritage from which she had been disconnected since her grandfather’s passing.

The convergence of so many prominent democracy advocates on Grounds in March and April is a powerful reminder of the global resonance of the values on which our University was founded, and that while we have a lot to learn still about democracy, we also have much to give and inspire. 

Eren Okandan is a third-year student majoring in global public health who loves to read crime fiction, and follows sports such as Formula 1, soccer, basketball, and football. Originally from Kayseri, Turkey, a city located in central Anatolia, Okandan has been helping raise awareness about the recent deadly earthquake in Turkey that has claimed more than 50,000 people.

As classes wrap up this December, among them will be a series of courses in the Engagements curriculum that bring first-year students out of their worlds and into the global.

The International Student Citizen Leaders Fellowship has chosen a new cohort of fellows for this academic year.

Vice Provost for Global Affairs says that during his visit to India, they discovered a remarkable range of opportunities of potential interest and benefit to UVA even beyond the already successful engagement in India with the Yamuna project

Elizabeth Wittner has run a volunteer-led program for English speaking and intercultural exchange since 1999 but notices serious interest from students who want to help in the last couple of years after the pandemic.This year, she says, more than 400 volunteers applied to the program, which is a part of the Center for American English Language and Culture (CAELC). She and her team were able to place 352 volunteers in various capacities.

A weeklong trip by Ambassador Steve Mull and a UVA delegation to India from September 12-17 brings into focus the long and deep relationship the University of Virginia has enjoyed with the world’s second-most populous nation and look to take it to a higher level.

This summer, a group of UVA professors and graduate students traveled to Makhanda, South Africa to co-design a new space with The Black Power Station, a DIY, self-managed, community-driven art space and organization. The project was funded by a Three Cavaliers grant, which supports professors from multiple disciplines and their students, to create collaborative interdisciplinary projects.