On Friday, January 27, 2017, President Donald Trump signed an executive order which bans entry of all refugees to the United States for 120 days, and which suspends entry for refugees, immigrants, dual nationals, and US permanent residents from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen for 90 days, or longer. [...] As such, the ISA strongly condemns any action by any government which prevents the free movement of scholars engaged in research on international affairs, or any other scholarly discipline.

It started out in Washington. Then it went to Jakarta. Then across Africa. One version even showed up on Facebook. Within hours, a State Department dissent cable, asserting that President Trump’s executive order to temporarily bar citizens from seven Muslim-majority countries would not make the nation safer, traveled like a chain letter — or a viral video.

American Music Abroad is a people-to-people cultural exchange program designed to promote American music and culture on the global music scene. As part of the 2017 "American Music Abroad" program, Jonathan Scales Fourchestra is scheduled to visit Taiwan, China, Hong Kong and Indonesia as cultural ambassadors, the AIT said. 

The rekindling of a row between Japan and South Korea over symbols of the “comfort women” could hinder efforts to strengthen security cooperation between Washington’s two key Asian allies, according to an American scholar versed in Tokyo-Seoul ties.

Protecting our nation is one of the most important roles of the federal government, and we do need to be thoughtful about how to establish effective immigration polices. However, the broad-based nature of the ban flies in the face of decades of support for the power of international exchange. Even a foreign policy hard line approach would typically be softened by an ongoing support of international exchange.

On Monday night, acting Attorney General Sally Yates did what so many (male) figures in the U.S. government have been unwilling to do: push back on a potentially unconstitutional executive order. She was quickly relieved of her duties, but her actions made a powerful statement, hopefully paving the way for more acts of resistance at the federal level. 

Leaders of several American companies have announced plans to hire, house or otherwise support people affected by President Trump's sweeping freeze on people seeking asylum in the U.S. or traveling from seven largely Muslim countries. [...] Starbucks Chairman and CEO Howard Schultz says his company plans to hire 10,000 refugees in the next five years in the 75 countries where it does business.

Public diplomacy is one of the most powerful tools a president has to inform and influence the world by communicating American values and interests. By engaging with citizens overseas, we expand and extend our national security through the dissemination of news, information, culture, education, entrepreneurship and everything else that make a democracy strong.