Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy at USC

Born in the University of Southern California, with a mission to “advance student diplomacy, through accessible and affordable cultural exchange summits and programs,” Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy (BCEA) is USC's citizen diplomacy organization. We aim to empower students to develop their global intelligence ( key concepts: open your eye, your ear, your heart, and your hand). We are committed to empowering a new generation of student diplomats by building a global community filled with empathy and inclusivity. BCEA has two programs: the Student Diplomacy Lab and the Online Cultural Exchange Summit. 

In the virtual Cultural Exchange Summit, our goal is to use the power of the gamification of virtual exchange and digital peacebuilding to make the cultural exchange and people-people connection accessible to everyday students, without the financial and time commitment of traditional study abroad. We broke down the summit into 2 systems: Academic and Bonding. The Academic segment allows students to delve into global challenges, like educational inequality and gender disparities; In the Bonding system, the goal is to increase the connectedness and togetherness of students. Students are randomly assigned to four colleges, cooperating with peers from 21 countries to win the "House Cup'' through team projects, case simulations, and debates. We successfully reduced stereotypes and promoted collaboration among students, resulting in a remarkable 92% program satisfaction rate. 

Since 2021, We are honored to host renowned speakers such as Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, Former US ambassador to Cambodia, Speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle, former Dean of the USC School of Communication Earnest Wilson, and Harvard University philosophy professor Michael Sandel, and Abby Falik, Founder of Global Citizen Year. These outstanding scholars and social leaders bring unique insights and life stories to our students. The Bridge Cultural Exchange Academy has cooperated with dozens of research centers and educational institutions in China, Singapore, the Philippines, and the US. In total, We have engaged with 1500+ students from 21 different countries in cross-cultural exchange.