Historical Background
Since 1996 the government of the USA holds the program “Community Connections”, which stipulates trainings of professionals of different specialties. The main goal of the program is development of community contacts between Ukraine and the USA, acquaintance with the American experience, culture, way of life, assistance in development of the Ukrainian state.
Selection of candidates for trainings is held by open competition. During these years over 200 professionals have had trainings in the USA. They were the staff workers of local state authorities, lawyers, businessmen, journalists, ecologists, representatives of NGOs, workers of social services, physicians, those working with disabled people and solving the problem of family violence. This year businessmen and teachers of higher educational institutions will go to the USA.
The majority of the participants of the program had their trainings in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This city is very much alike Donetsk and its sister city. In the past it was a big industrial center with numerous mines and metallurgical mills polluting environment. This problem was solved by transforming the city into the scien5tific and cultural center after closing big industrial enterprises. This caused decrease of the population of the city, development of educational, cultural and entertaining institutions and infrastructure of food and servicing industries. That is why it is of interest for Donetsk community to study the experience of Pittsburgh to solve problems, which Donetsk faces. Some groups have visited Jackson, Mississippi, Louisville, Tucson, Arizona.
Contacts
being established during trainings and the necessity of their development, the
need to spread the American experience in Ukraine required creation of a special
organization uniting all the participants of the program “Community
Connections” for development of community relations between Ukraine and the
USA, as well as other states.
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