Helping the world

As a resident of New Haven County as well as an ambassador for The Borgen Project, I would like to raise the awareness of the importance of the International Affairs Budget. The International Affairs Budget is a small aspect of the larger federal budget which supports multiple aspects of critical development around the world. It is responsible for staffing American embassies overseas, provides aid that helps fight pandemics and diseases, it provides emergency responses to natural disasters, it implements agricultural programs that help promote stability and prevent hunger, it saves millions of lives with HIV/AIDS medications, and it provides essential good governance to emerging democracies. In Fiscal Year 2021, the International Affairs budget was $52.7 billion, which is only 1 percent of the entire federal budget.

The purpose of this letter is to encourage my fellow Connecticut residents to use their voices and reach out to their congressional representatives to raise the international affairs budget in response to the challenges that have arisen from COVID-19 around the world. 265 million people globally are at risk of starvation due to socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19. I encourage my readers to take action because providing relief to the world’s most vulnerable places and populations protects the health and security of all Americans.

If you have taken the time to read this letter, then I encourage you to please call, email, and write to your congressional leaders asking them to both increase and support the international affairs budget.

Erica Klarman Ambassador for The Borgen Project Branford