Mission
The mission of the Relational Diplomacy Institute is to promote and research the best practices in relational diplomacy and cultivate the next generation of Relational Diplomats to create the building blocks for a more peaceful, sustainable, and united planet.
Mission Objectives:
- Promote the proactive and strategic use of Relational Diplomacy worldwide
- Research and build best practices and the effective evaluation of Relational Diplomacy
- Cultivate the next generation of Relational Diplomats, thereby creating the catalysts and building blocks for a more peaceful, sustainable, and united planet
Overview
The Relational Diplomacy Institute works to strengthen and evaluate the application of Relational Diplomacy by supporting rigorous research and active engagement. An agile, independent, nonpartisan, and think tank, the Relational Diplomacy Institute combines world-class research with policy analysis and innovative communications to turn ideas into action.
To carry out its mission, the Relational Diplomacy Institute engages an array of institutions and individuals, including nonprofit organizations, universities, policymakers, scholars and educators around the world, and believes in the power of cross-sector collaboration to bring about positive change through Relational Diplomacy by:
- Supporting rigorous research and collaborative projects by administering fellowships
- Co-organizing projects with a variety of other institutions
About Empowered to Educate
RDI recognizes that promising grass roots education programs and strong pilot programs often “get stuck” in their demonstration phases thus depriving them of the propulsion that can come from broader recognition and support. To address this challenge, RDI’s signature program, Empowered to Educate, shines a spotlight on rising local female leaders who have a passion for promoting girls and women’s education and have demonstrated their ability to establish effective local programs with the potential for wider regional, national and or global scalability.
Context
Despite extensive international and national efforts, over half of children out of school are girls and of the world’s 774 million illiterate adults, 2/3 are women. Further, among the world’s 123 million illiterate youth, 76 million are female. These gender disparities have remained persistent, with little change over time. Education for women, and the resulting gender equality brought about via increased education levels, has several multiplier effects which impact future opportunities for economic growth, good health, well-being and poverty reduction. If all mothers completed primary education, maternal deaths would be reduced by two-thirds, saving 98,000 lives. If all women had a primary education, there would be 15% fewer child deaths and if all women had a secondary education, child deaths would be cut in half, saving 3 million lives. If all women had a primary education, 1.7 million children would be saved from stunting from malnutrition. If all women had a secondary education, 12 million children would be saved from stunting from malnutrition. If all girls had a primary education, there would be 14% fewer child marriages and if all girls had a secondary education, there would be two-thirds fewer child marriages. Furthermore, the chance of a young pregnancy rates drop if the women receives education. Education also narrows the pay gap between men and women and increase the potential for women to find work.
Educators and teachers hold the keys to providing the foundational education that is critical for women and girls. In addition to providing classroom instruction, these teachers serve as role models, mentors, life coaches, cheerleaders and so much more. Female educators can be especially important to girl students, and stories abound of the impact that such leaders have had on the lives of their young protegees. Too often, the important and in fact innovative educational programs which are run by these female teachers stay below the radar screen and never reach the national, regional or global stages. The relative obscurity of the teacher and her innovative approaches mean that the teachers themselves are unrecognized for what they have done, and might continue to do on a larger stage, and has denied the global educational system access to these important programs. RDI aims to address this gap.