Academic ambassadors, Pacific allies

Book excerpt: This study is the first in-depth analysis of the Fulbright exchange program in a single country. Drawing on previously unexplored archives and oral history, the authors investigate the educational, political and diplomatic dimensions of a complex bi-national program as experienced by Australian and American scholars. The book begins with the postwar context of the scheme’s origins, moves through its difficult Australian establishment during the early Cold War, the challenges posed by the Vietnam War, and the impacts of civil rights and gender parity movements and late 20th century economic belt-tightening. How the program’s goal of ‘mutual understanding’ was understood and enacted across six decades lies at the heart of the book, which weaves institutional and individual experiences together with broader geopolitical issues. Bringing a complex and nuanced analysis to the Australia-US relationship, the authors offer fresh insights into the global significance of the Fulbright Program