Gandhi-King Scholarly Exchange Initiative Act of 2017

Gandhi-King Scholarly Exchange Initiative Act of 2017

This bill authorizes the Department of State to carry out, in cooperation with the government of India, the Gandhi-King Scholarly Exchange Initiative comprised of educational, scholarly, and professional exchange programs, including:

• an annual public diplomacy forum for scholars from the United States and India that focuses on the legacies of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.;
• a professional development training initiative for government employees to develop international conflict solutions based on the principles of nonviolence developed in consultation with the president and chief executive officer of the United States Institute of Peace, the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs of the Department of State, and U.S. cooperating partners; and
• an undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate student exchange for students to study the history and legacies of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Mahatma Gandhi, visit historic sites in India and the United States that were integral to the American civil rights movement and the Indian independence movement, and research and develop papers on the importance of peace, nonviolence, and reconciliation in current conflict regions.