New School in Nepal
A village in Nepal has a beautiful new school, thanks in part to members of several RPCV groups: Friends of Nepal, Friends of Moldova and the North Carolina Peace Corps Association. They were among the donors for the new home of the Vidhya Mandir Boarding School in the eastern Nepalese village of Samalbung. The school has 126 students, many from indigenous and marginalized groups. School fees are low and some students receive full or partial scholarships. My wife, Champa, and I led the fundraising effort and donated most of the budget for the new school, which was dedicated on April...
Democracy on the Streets of Dakar
It’s a story as old as the Peace Corps, which every generation of volunteers knows. No, not that one. Not the one about the tee-shirt, or blouse or sweater that Mom gave you last Christmas, which mysteriously disappeared when your house help returned with the laundry, minus one article. Which you eventually repurchased from the secondhand clothes stall in the market of your dusty provincial outpost. Although my story is a story cut of common African cloth. On a much larger scale. It is the story, in part, of presidents and governance. If you served in Africa, you know them. Stories of...
A Royal (Caribbean) Reunion
In what may be a first for Peace Corps reunions, eight former Peace Corps Volunteers, now in their 80s, members of the “Malawi 4” (or “Malawi IV”) public health project (1964 to 1966), plus spouses and supporters, headed out to sea to celebrate an exciting 60-Year Reunion in the Caribbean. They embarked on a memorable 6-night cruise called “Western Caribbean & Perfect Day,” departing Fort Lauderdale on May 25, 2025 aboard Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas. They were an extraordinary group of 41 people, sent to Malawi, Africa, in 1964, the poorest nation on earth at that time. They...
Would They do it Again?
In its early days, why did mostly young Americans — average age 24 — volunteer for the Peace Corps? And if they could be 24 again, would they do it in today’s challenging political environment? Thirteen Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, now in their 80s and still politically engaged, were asked to respond to this question. Their answers might surprise you. David Bohnke, College Professor, West Virginia (Colombia 1962-64) “My older brother had been killed in Korea, so a military career was out of the question. I wanted to do something exciting and patriotic. I joined the Peace Corps with pride in...
Made in America
Charlie Clifford (Peru 1967–69) is the founder of Tumi Inc., a global travel luggage brand, as well as Roam Luggage. He spoke with WorldView editor Robert Nolan about how Peace Corps helps develop entrepreneurial skills and gives RPCVs the tools and confidence to start their own business ventures. RN: What skills did you learn in Peace Corps that helped you when you embarked on a business career upon your return? CC: I think it takes a certain amount of entrepreneurial DNA to be interested in something like the Peace Corps. Once you’re assigned to a particular location, everything you’ve spent...
Spring/Summer 2025 Issue
As budget debates churn and partisan fault lines widen around the role of the American government, the fate of federal programs dedicated to foreign aid, national service—and yes, even peace—hangs in a precarious balance. In an era of accelerated austerity, when the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) seeks to remold public priorities with little nuance or precision, Peace Corps lives on (for now) with fewer resources, little fanfare, and an outsized return. Often cast in the long shadow of its 1960s origin story—idealism in a moment of upheaval, John F. Kennedy’s call to service, Sargent Shriver’s boundless energy—Peace Corps is...
Return on Investment
Editor's Note As federal funding for international aid and cultural exchange programs continues to shrink, policymakers are increasingly asking whether these initiatives deliver tangible benefits to Americans. In 2021, National Peace Corps Association commissioned a major study to mark the Peace Corps’ 60th anniversary. The result—The Domestic Dividend of Peace Corps—was published in 2023 and stands as the most comprehensive analysis to date that demonstrates how Peace Corps service benefits communities back home. What follows is an executive summary, as written by the task force. Preface In August of 2019, two of my 1960s PCV friends, Art Flanagan, and Randy...
“Bigger Than Peace Corps”
California Service Corps is the largest state-based service program in the United States, and the program is on track to place more than 10,000 volunteers across the state in 2025. Indeed, California’s Governor Gavin Newsom proudly calls the program “bigger than the Peace Corps,” a comparison Josh Fryday, chief service officer of California Service Corps, says stems from the inspiration Peace Corps provides as the “gold standard” of American service opportunities. WorldView’s Robert Nolan recently spoke with Fryday about the program, how it might be replicated in other states, and what federal funding cuts to AmeriCorps, which makes up part...
Signal Boost
The digital world is awash in voices seeking monetary reward or improved social status, as the online acronym goes, IRL (in real life). There are, however, some that have dedicated their time, effort, and social media platforms to those who are in most need of the spotlight. Not surprisingly, these voices include several Returned Peace Corps Volunteers. In many ways, social media has transformed how the Peace Corps’ third goal—to help promote a better understanding of other peoples on the part of Americans—is achieved. Storytelling by Volunteers is at the heart of this goal; now, that storytelling is done with...
Garden of Refuge
As part of our commitment to continued service, the Seattle Peace Corps Association (SEAPAX) is partnering with World Relief Western Washington to support a refugee community garden. For the last five years, teams of SEAPAX Volunteers have worked in the garden, clearing weeds in the spring to ready the beds for the planting season and planting cover crops in the fall to prepare them for winter. At the suggestion of refugee and immigrant community members concerned about the lack of access to healthy food, World Relief Resiliency Program created an urban garden in Kent, Washington, in 2017. In transforming a...