American Council of Young Political Leaders

What a night as we celebrated 60 years of bipartisan exchanges and honored two esteemed alums, Sen. Marsha Blackburn & Senator Gary Peters.

Thanks to all the alumni, friends, and partners who joined us for our 60th Anniversary Honors Evening.

As Senator Blackburn said, "thank you for continuing to open doors of opportunity for young leaders, and to let them see what foreign affairs and diplomacy is all about.

Here's to 60 more years!

That's a wrap on our first inbound of the year, with a delegation of ten Japanese leaders visiting DC, MD, and KS!

In DC, they met with the RSLC to discuss GOP policy priorities, sat down with the U.S. Department of State to explore the U.S.-Japan bilateral relationship, heard from campaign finance expert Matt Sanderson (Japan 2019), and got a briefing from Rosa Mendoza (Mexico 2023) on polling heading into the midterms.

In Maryland, they were hosted at the State Capitol by Delegate Jon Cardin (Morocco 2005), met with a variety of other delegates on topics ranging from health care to appropriations, and had lunch with Secretary of State Susan Lee.
In Kansas, they were hosted by Representative Jo Ella Hoye (Japan 2024), toured the Brown v. Board of Education National Historic Site, toured the State Capitol, got a firsthand look at Panasonic's EV battery production facility — the largest in the world — and visited the Shawnee Mission School District's Career and Technical Campus and Center for Academic Achievement.

Thanks to our wonderful alumni hosts and to all the leaders who gave their time to make this exchange possible!

Former Speaker Kevin McCarthy stopped by our office to meet with the ACYPL team and share memories from his exchange to China 1995.

Always great to reconnect with alumni from our 60 years of bipartisan exchanges!

Last week, our first U.S.-Mexico 360 delegation of 2026 traveled to Mexico City, in partnership with our friends at the U.S.- Mexico Foundation.

The delegation of 10 emerging leaders in policy & politics met with Senator Waldo Fernández and Cristina Planter of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, among other notable leaders, toured the Universidad Panamericana and the Palacio de Bellas Artes, and discussed topics from trade agreements and the bilateral relationship to regional security, government affairs, media, economic development, and local industries from automotive construction to consumer products.

Always great to introduce emerging leaders to our southern neighbors and strengthen our diplomatic and economic relationship!

See the full list of delegates: https://acypl.org/mexicospring26/

Thrilled to welcome four committed alumni to our Board of Trustees as we kick off 2026!

Monica Combest, Director of Political Engagement, Government and Public Affairs, at Enterprise Mobility, has traveled on three exchanges to Argentina, China & Taiwan, and our 40th anniversary China trip in 2019.

Tracey Hester, State Government Affairs Director at Cigna, traveled with us to India & Pakistan in 2007 and led a group to South Korea in 2011.

Justin Rodriguez, Bexar, TX County Commissioner, traveled on an exchange to Hungary & Croatia in 2013 and has nominated great Texans for participation since he traveled.

Ashley Spicola, Managing Partner at Continental Strategy, first traveled on an exchange to New Zealand in 2022, before hosting delegations from North Macedonia and South Asia in Florida and escorting a trip to Argentina in 2024.

That's a wrap on , our last exchange of the year!

Six emerging Canadian leaders visited DC & Oklahoma, discussing trade with alum and Deputy Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Michelle Bekkering (India & Pakistan 2011), visiting the White House and learning about the National Energy Dominance Council, meeting with Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols, leaders from the George Kaiser Family Foundation, and OK state legislators from both parties, touring Tinker Air Force Base and meeting with the Canadian Detachment, and learning about issues from local economic development and Oklahoma history to the oil & gas industry and tourism.

Thanks to alum Carri Hicks (Canada 2024) for serving as an amazing state host — and to all our alumni and partners who met with this delegation and made this exchange possible!

A delegation of Argentine leaders are on their way back home after an unforgettable exchange in DC and Pennsylvania!

In DC, they met with alums including Congressman Joaquin Castro (Argentina & Uruguay 2007), Edith Jorge-Tuñón of the RSLC (Romania, Hungary, & Croatia 2024), & Allison Ealey of the American Gas Association (Japan 2023), in addition to experts from the State Department, ClearPath, Inter-American Development Bank, & Bipartisan Policy Center.

In PA, they were hosted by Pittsburgh City Controller Rachael Heisler (Argentina 2024) and got the chance to tour the State Capital and Range Resources Marcellus Shale sites, meet Executive of Allegheny County Sara Innamorato, leaders from U.S. Steel, ACYPL Trustee Gerardo Interiano of Aurora (Mexico 2022), and Sharpsburg Mayor Kayla Portis, among other officials, and discuss issues from manufacturing and public safety to economic development and labor unions.

Thanks to Rachael Heisler for serving as an amazing state host, and to all our alums who met with the delegation and made this exchange possible.

Onward to more bipartisan exchange!

This fall's exchange is in the books — thanks to our partners at U.S.- Mexico Foundation for making this exchange possible. 🇺🇸🇲🇽

Ten emerging American leaders, and our own Hannah Stewart, spent five days in Mexico City meeting with leaders in politics, business, and policy, covering topics from the bilateral relationship and trade to supply chain, energy production, automation, and more!

Eight emerging American leaders are returning home from an unforgettable exchange in Australia! 🇺🇸🇦🇺

They traveled to Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Melbourne and got the chance to tour Parliament, observe Question Time, meet elected officials from multiple parties, visit University of Sydney, and discuss issues from trade and foreign affairs to local economic development, state government disaster preparedness, Aboriginal culture, and public transit!

Thanks to all our partners who made this bipartisan exchange possible.