Nurturing Ties Through Academia

Bharti Chhibber (right) meets Senator Chris Coons during her exchange visit to the United States as part of the Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI) for Scholars. (Photograph courtesy Bharti Chhibber)

Bharti Chhibber, a University of Delhi assistant professor and expert on U.S. foreign policy and relations, brought a wealth of experience to the summer 2023 program of the Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI) for Scholars. She has authored several books, and more than 150 research papers and articles in mainstream journals.

The SUSIs for Scholars are postgraduate-level academic programs for mid-career foreign scholars, faculty, practitioners and secondary educators whose purpose is to strengthen curricula and to improve the teaching about the United States in academic institutions abroad. During the program, scholars engage in rigorous academic coursework and panel discussions, interact with American scholars, meet with experts in respective disciplines, visit civic institutions, and in some cases, participate in research symposia and conferences. The 2023 program gave Chhibber the opportunity to network with a global cohort and develop valuable professional relationships.

Chhibber and the other participants were hosted by the University of Delaware for four weeks, followed by a week of traveling around the United States for campus visits. The cohort examined the role of key influences on U.S. foreign policy, like government branches, the media, the U.S. public, think tanks, nongovernmental organizations and multilateral institutions.

Chhibber also received a warm welcome as a representative of India. “I saw a lot of respect for India and the India-U.S. partnership working for a more peaceful and prosperous world,” she says. Speakers from different backgrounds acknowledged “how India is an important actor in U.S. foreign policy and diplomacy, and [the] increasingly close relations between the two,” she adds.

The program

Chhibber’s cohort comprised 16 participants from different countries, including Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates, Hungary and Georgia. “Some of us are planning to work together in the future,” she adds.

The group participated in a workshop focused on U.S. domestic politics and international policy-making, including simulation exercises. These exercises offered the scholars an interactive experience and were based on hypothetical case studies. Acting as their assigned politicians, the cohort members assessed policy, a hypothetical initiative’s organizational and political consequences, developed strategies and presented them to the group.

“During the simulation, I portrayed Senator Richard Durbin (D-Illinois) and spoke on the simulation topic of biohazard, relating it to the threat of biowar with the tagline ‘Prepare for Biowar,’ ” says Chhibber.

The 2023 SUSI included visits to the United Nations in New York; the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland, and a Battle of Gettysburg tour in Pennsylvania. The scholars also met Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, who chairs the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics and serves as a member of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

Looking ahead

Chhibber, who has taught at the University of Delhi for almost 20 years, has also worked extensively with other organizations to create awareness and empower people on environmental, educational and gender issues, including writing and directing street plays on environmental conservation and gender issues.

She found the SUSI program enriching, with a good balance of interactive sessions and academic studies. “Interactions with the experts, policymakers and the wider U.S. communities were engaging,” she adds. “The academic program examined the challenges, opportunities and foundations of U.S. foreign policy and foreign policymaking process based on traditions and new approaches.”

Chhibber came away from the SUSI program with a renewed respect for both the United States and her home country, and a heightened resolve to use what she learned to contribute to her global goals.

“The United States and India are the two greatest democracies of the world,” she says. “I will take this experience forward and contribute further to deepen India-U.S. relations and also work as an expert on U.S. foreign policy in tune with the objectives of a democratized, peaceful, progressive and sustainable global order.”

Steve Fox is a freelance writer, former newspaper publisher and reporter based in Ventura, California.

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