An Idea That Travelled
World Learning/US Experiment
In 1932, 23 young Americans crossed the Atlantic with a bold idea: that living alongside people from another culture could help build understanding.
On 23 June 1932, 23 young Americans sailed from New York towards Europe with Donald B. Watt. Their journey was the beginning of The Experiment in International Living.
The idea behind it was simple and ambitious: could meeting people and sharing their everyday lives help create greater international understanding? In 1933, the programme began placing participants with host families in Germany, helping pioneer the homestay model.
Learning by living together
A host family offers something different from a sightseeing itinerary. It makes room for ordinary life: meals, routines, conversations and the small surprises of sharing a home. Instead of viewing another culture from a distance, participants have an opportunity to experience it through relationships.
An idea that travelled
The Experiment’s influence reached beyond its early exchanges. Its intercultural experience contributed to training early US Peace Corps volunteers; Sargent Shriver, the Peace Corps’ first director, had participated in an early Experiment programme. What began as a bold educational experiment became part of a wider movement.
Still relevant today
We can speak instantly to people across the world and still misunderstand one another. The Experiment’s founding insight remains relevant: genuine connection asks for more than access to information. It asks us to listen, share time and discover the humanity in someone we might otherwise call a stranger. Sometimes a more peaceful world begins with an invitation into a home.
