The high school component of the Young Diplomats of Utah program is our Young Diplomats Leadership Certification. This is a leadership development program for high school students interested in engaging with the global community right here in Utah. World affairs is the fundamental basis of our program - we combine knowledge and resources with field experience including cultural events, diplomacy simulations, and volunteerism.
Graduates of our program are committed to civic activism, engaged with Utah's diverse peoples, and practitioners of citizen diplomacy.
If you have questions about the Young Diplomats Leadership Certification program, email Kara Vail.
Become a Young Diplomat of Utah
The Young Diplomats Leadership Certification is free of charge open to all high school students in the state of Utah.
The application for the 2022/23 cohort of Young Diplomats Leadership Certification has closed.
Qualifications
The only qualification is that you attend a high school in Utah. Students attending school at home are also encouraged to participate.
Commitment
The Young Diplomats Leadership Certification program runs for a full-year academic calendar (November – May). Participants can expect a flexible time commitment of about an hour a week throughout the school year.
Young Diplomats are expected to attend hour-long online cohort meetings every other week. During these meetings, cohort members will have the opportunity to talk with experts, meet their peers, and participate in complex diplomacy simulations.
Join the Young Diplomats with Youth Ambassadors from Bolivia and Peru on October 22! Learn more on the event page.
The Young Diplomats earn badges for every activity they complete. For instance, scholars may earn a badge on International Affairs in Europe by attending a lecture on the impacts of Brexit, or a Digital Diplomat Badge for participating in a virtual international exchange program.
Badges are grouped into five categories: 1) Citizen Diplomacy, 2) Events, 3) International Affairs, 4) Young Diplomats, and 5) Civics & Advocacy. Scholars are encouraged to collect badges from each of the categories, though they may select the badges that most closely align to their interests.
The intention is for scholars to:
- Enhance their understanding that Utah is a global community;
- Deepen their understanding of world affairs through lectures, dialogues, and other cultural learning opportunities;
- Develop and increase leadership skills encouraging critical thinking and problem-solving skills, collaboration, and diplomatic negotiations.
A selection of badges, linked with their digital credential page, are below:
Upon earning 25 badges, scholars receive the Young Diplomats of Utah Leadership Certification, a digitally verifiable certification that they can carry with them through their education and career.
The Young Diplomats of Utah curriculum is aligned to Utah Core Standards for grades 7-12 Social Studies, emphasizing Civic Preparation goals. An outline of the YDoU learning goals is included below:
Academic WorldQuest, a global knowledge competition for high school students, becomes more fun & fierce each year as foreign policy buffs, United Nations enthusiasts, young international entrepreneurs, global change agents, and the universally curious mix, mingle, laugh, and compete for Academic WorldQuest domination.
Teams of four students compete by answering a set of questions in various global categories. Our talented emcees read each question and four multiple-choice options, which are also projected by PowerPoint onto screens. After each set of category questions, your answer sheets are collected by the scorekeepers, and then the emcees review the questions with the correct answers, so you know how your team is doing in real-time.
Utah Global Diplomacy is proud to offer facilitation of US Department of State Diplomacy Simulations as a key part of our Youth Programming. If you would like Utah Global Diplomacy to facilitate a simulation in your school or classroom, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
