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Our Heritage 

The People to People movement dates back more than half a century to its founding by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956. Eisenhower was acting on his firm belief that direct interaction between ordinary citizens around the world can promote cultural understanding and world peace. That proud legacy of hope lives on in People to People Ambassador Programs on seven continents.

A Legacy of White House Support

"I have long believed, as have many before me, that peaceful relations between nations require mutual respect between individuals," said President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He put the ideal behind these words into practice when he launched the People to People initiative in 1956. Since that time, U.S. presidents have served as the honorary chairman of People to People International.

As President John F. Kennedy so eloquently said, "The nature of People to People activities is as varied as the individuals involved. The housewife whose recipe contains the yeast of kindness, the soldier whose arms embrace homeless waifs, the doctor who heals with humility, all assert a single theme—the power of people, acting as individuals, to respond imaginatively to the world's need for peace."

People to People Ambassador Programs continues to partner with People to People International to provide imaginative responses to the world's need for peace.

Dwight David Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
Lynden Baynes Johnson
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard M. Nixon
Richard M. Nixon
Gerald R. Ford
Gerald R. Ford
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
George H.W. Bush
George H.W. Bush
William Clinton
William J. Clinton
George W. Bush
George W. Bush
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