The Ralph J. Bunche International Affairs Center at Howard University, in strategic partnership with the Global Futures Collaborative (GFC), recently announced the launch of its Global Futures Collaborative Community Network. The initiative establishes a subnational framework designed to cultivate reciprocal community collaboration aimed at expanding the scope of traditional diplomacy with a goal to advance meaningful global engagement by national leaders. 

The newly established network brings together an inaugural cohort of 14 GFC Community Liaisons who are positioned throughout the United States. The initiative is designed to leverage the cohorts deeply rooted local leadership, bridging their respective home communities directly with senior international practitioners, fellows, and global leadership networks affiliated with Howard.

“The Global Futures Collaborative Community Network represents an essential evolution in how we conceptualize subnational global influence,” said Dr. Tonija Hope, assistant provost for international programs and the executive director of the Bunche Center. “This is a chance for Howard University to be constituency building in real time, connecting local leaders and vital initiatives deserving of international recognition to institutional global architecture.”

More about the GFC Community Network

The inaugural cohort, appointed by GFC leaders for a one-year renewable term, will serve as non-resident affiliates of the Bunche Center and the Global Futures Collaborative. Chosen for their demonstrated global potential, selfless peer empowerment, and intentionally grounded local stewardship, these leaders are tasked with driving systemic change. Within the network, they act as critical resources for local economic empowerment, collective solidarity, cultural preservation, and ancestral memory, ensuring that underserved communities are no longer left on the margins of international thought leadership.  

“We are actively countering an era of global retrenchment by broadening community agency,” said Alex T. Johnson, GFC’s director and senior fellow. “Our GFC Liaisons are actively reimagining diplomacy exemplifying reciprocal exchange and mutual respect.”

Throughout their term, GFC Community Liaisons will engage deeply with broader Howard networks through virtual and in-person programming. Strategic collaboration opportunities include place-based immersive learning experiences highlighting the liaison’s home geographies, and participation in delegations to contribute identity affirming, community-grounded expertise.

“Embedding exceptional community leaders into our programming establishes direct conduits between local ancestral knowledge and the global policy engine at Howard,” said Christopher L. Scott, GFC’s co-director and senior fellow. “The GFC Community Network allows us to connect with hyper local initiatives in the most authentic way.” 

GFC Community Liaisons will focus on proactive collaboration, long-term community impact, and mutual leadership development alongside GFC fellows and executive leadership. By centering human dignity and identity-affirming exchange, the Community Network seeks to build explicit, intentional pathways that safeguard well-being, access and international success for historically marginalized constituencies, specifically supporting youth and communities of African descent. 

For more information on the Global Futures Collaborative Community Network, visit the official GFC hub.