The International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), launched in 1940, is the U.S. Department of State’s premier professional exchange program. IVLP connects current and emerging leaders with their American counterparts through dynamic visits to the United States during which professional meetings help advance professional development and U.S.-Croatia ties. More than 200,000 International Visitors have engaged with Americans through the IVLP program, including more than 500 current or former Chiefs of State or Heads of Government. In the past 30 years, nearly 800 Croatians have participated in the IVLP program in fields such as journalism, education, entrepreneurship, policy-making, economics, local and central government affairs, and civil society. Many IVLP alumni are now Croatian Government officials, city mayors, business leaders, prominent journalists, and civil society advocates.