Since 2007, Galina has served the Gainesville community by tirelessly working with numerous professional Russian-speaking delegations in Gainesville as part of the Congressional Office of International Leadership’s “Open World” program, as well as sister city delegations, connecting Gainesville institutions, organizations and individuals with their counterparts in Gainesville’s nine sister cities. Galina has been an active participant of the Open World program for 14 years, hosting 20 delegations, including federal judges, political leaders, educators and other high-level professionals. Sponsored by the Congressional Office for International Leadership and the State Department, the Open World program is one of the most effective U.S. exchange programs for countries of the postSoviet era. The program has enabled more than 29,000 current and future leaders from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Ukraine, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan to meaningfully engage and interact with Members of Congress, Congressional staff, and thousands of other Americans, many of whom are the delegates’ direct professional counterparts.
Aimed at establishing mutually beneficial relationships between future leaders of other nations, Open World is a value-added program that permits practical and depoliticized options for engagement. Open World is extremely cost-effective and unencumbered by bureaucracy, and serves the Legislative Branch as a program that offers members of Congress the opportunity to meet with their colleagues from Eurasia. In this capacity, Open World is an important resource for members of Congress. The Congressional Office of International Leadership (COIL) enhances U.S. foreign policy objectives in building more secure, democratic, and prosperous societies. COIL’s bipartisan nature and independence from the priorities of any presidential administration is an important asset for the program.
As a dedicated citizen diplomat, Galina has contributed to the Open World program by both in assisting Congress in its oversight responsibilities and in conducting exchanges that establish lasting professional relationships between the up-and-coming leaders of Open World countries and Americans,
dedicated to showcasing U.S. values and democratic institutions.
Galina Wladyka is also a Senior Lecturer of Russian Studies at the University of Florida.