Warren Snowdon (Lingiari, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Northern Australia and Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Every year for the past seven years, students from around Australia have undertaken a journey, travelling halfway around the world, often at their own expense, in order to learn about another culture, to witness another system of government and to work as part of the United States congress. The students undertake this journey as part of the Uni-Capitol Washington Internship Program, a program which offers university students around Australia the chance to undertake an eight-week internship in a congressional office in Capitol Hill, Washington DC.

These students work alongside staff undertaking constituent liaison and research, meeting with elected members and attending briefings, press conferences and other major functions. Past students have also attended briefings at the US State Department and the Australian embassy, as well as discovering the history of American democracy through visits to Philadelphia’s Independence Hall, Congress Hall and the National Constitution Centre, to name but a few of their exploits.

The program began in 1999, starting with a handful of students from a single university who were matched according to their skills and interests with a host congressional office. The program’s success has continued over the years, growing today to eight participating universities with the final intake now expanded to 12 students, all individually assigned to one of 18 possible congressional hosts. The students can intern in the offices of Democrats and Republicans, personal offices and committee staffs, and in both the House and the Senate—offering these young Australians a wide variety of learning experiences across the political spectrum. The students are drawn from a diverse range of cultural backgrounds and study interests, with past students having specialised in areas such as international relations, politics and law, through to science, social science and communications.

The program is run pro bono by Eric Federing, a former senior congressional advisor and currently Director, Business Public Policy, Government Affairs for KPMG LLP. Mr Federing lectured on American government, politics and media across Australia in the 1990s. This helped to develop a strong relationship with our country and its people, ultimately contributing to the creation of the program. In 2004 he received a KPMG Chairman’s Award for Excellence in Volunteerism in Washington DC in recognition of the continued success of the program.

This success is also due to the way in which these young ambassadors have acquitted themselves. In the last seven years, eight statements in the congressional record have confirmed the importance of this program and consistently praised the manner in which these students have conducted themselves while representing their nation. They have also received the commendation of a former US secretary of transportation and officials at the Australian Embassy in Washington, as well as many of those who have worked alongside and helped these young Australians during their visit.

The value of the program was reflected on by Congressman Alcee Hastings of Florida in the congressional record of 15 February 2006. He said:

Such experiences are invaluable opportunities for these students to gain knowledge and a deep understanding of the internal workings of the United States Government while bringing their own skills and backgrounds to their respective Congressional offices.

The congressman continued:

The Program facilitates this by enabling the formation of genuine friendships and the exchange of views and ideas between the Australian interns and their respective offices. I have often enjoyed the interaction that has occurred between my Australian and American interns. This, my colleagues, is how we build relationships which will ensure that the U.S. and Australia remain friends and allies for years to come ... The program has been, and will continue to be, an extremely beneficial experience for all involved.

Programs like this give young Australians a once in a lifetime opportunity. This program provides students with a strong interest in civics and in progressing and developing our nation further through new ideas and new policies with an avenue through which to gain invaluable skills, knowledge and understanding and experience that will help them achieve their goals and, in turn, make their own contribution for the benefit of others.

Young Australians will go on to work all around the globe in a variety of fields and careers, as we know. It is important, however, that we have programs that offer dedicated students who have an interest in public service and public office places where they can come to learn and experience. We need to continue to foster such educational and employment opportunities so that we can continue to have a strong and vibrant pool of individuals who are equipped to represent and work for the Australian public.

I commend the many people who have made such a program possible—the congressional hosts, the variety of people and organisations that have taken time to meet and help the students during their stay, the universities involved in the program and the program coordinators who make this possible. Without their help and the help of many others, this opportunity would not be available to our students. One of those students, Luke Toy, was an intern in my office for some time and then was employed by me for some time, before becoming an intern on Capitol Hill. He came back not only praising the experience but also saying that he had learned a great deal about the relationship between Australia and the United States and, most importantly, about the United States system of government.