Dear prospective Delegate,
Thank you for your interest in the US-Mexico Forum for Cooperation, Understanding and Solidarity (FoCUS). FoCUS offers a unique opportunity for young leaders across Mexico and the United States to interact, collaborate, and forge new relations. In addition, FoCUS provides delegates with valuable tools and experiences to help them become engines of growth and cross-national innovation.
Each year, FoCUS selects 30 outstanding students—15 from each country—to become our delegates. This group of young leaders will benefit from a wide range of academic and cultural opportunities while working on collaborative projects in preparation for the biannual FoCUS summits, which brings the selected delegates together twice a year - first in Mexico and then in the United States.
PROGRAM A) MEXICO CITY - SILICON VALLEY: This year, the program will focus on security, commerce, and equality. The first summit will take place in Mexico City (November 13th-18th, 2018), hosted by the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) and ITESM (Tec de Monterrey) and the closing summit, hosted by Stanford University, will take place in Palo Alto, California (April 2019).
Delegates are selected based on their potential for becoming leaders and advancing the relations between Mexico and the United States in a wide spectrum of sectors, including: public service, academia, journalism, technology, and business. It is important that delegates be committed to developing innovative ideas and project proposals with the potential to positively impact the relations between the people of both countries. This element is of utmost importance to the selection committee. More than experience, we are searching for delegates with unique perspectives and creative ideas that will contribute to the diversity in interaction that we hope to encapsulate in our summits.
There are no fees associated with applying or participating in this program. If you are selected as delegate, we will provide lodging and some, but not all, of the meals. Nonetheless, delegates are expected to contribute to their travel expenses (i.e. airfare and transportation costs). We want to ensure that financial need does not prevent anyone from becoming part of this project. If you are not able to cover these costs, we will make an effort to provide financial aid on a case-by-case basis. It is important to note that the applicant's ability to pay for the airfare will NOT be a factor in the admission decision.
Finally, please keep in mind that you will need a valid passport and VISA (for non-US citizens) to travel to Mexico and the United States. In addition, the official language of both conferences will be English and Spanish, for this reason, we recommend all applicants to have a basic proficiency on both languages.
If you have any questions, please contact us at info@usmexfocus.org. Thank you again for your interest. We look forward to read your application!
Sincerely,
The FoCUS Team