Grassroots Student Diplomacy: The Junior Diplomat Initiative (JDI) in Prague, Geneva, Paris and Tbilisi

Abstract

The democratisation of diplomacy in recent years has opened up new opportunities for non-state actors’ engagement and activities in the public interest or on behalf of governments. Scholarly literature has broadly reflected the inclusion of civil society into governance frameworks, non-state public diplomacy and non-governmental institutions. Nevertheless, due to the complexity of these issues, as well as their dynamics and rapid innovations, many blind spots remain. This article focuses on the neglected topic of the engagement of future practitioners, students in diplomacy-related undergraduate and graduate university programmes, in people-to-people diplomatic communication. Drawing on the concept of grassroots diplomacy, it examines the activities of the Junior Diplomat Initiative. It deconstructs the effect of student organisations’ diplomacy projects by showing how they translate into innovative interactions with domestic and foreign youth communities. Lessons for diplomatic practice are also addressed.