Americans will be electing their next president this year, which is a reason for both hope and fear for many here in Turkey and across the world.  Although there is much promise in a new American president, we have gotten our hopes up before and been disappointed.   

The American president often impacts the lives of foreigners as much as he (or she :-) does the lives of American citizens.  This often frustrates people, but just because we cannot ourselves vote for better American leaders does not mean we cannot have any impact on the election.  Many of us have friends in the United States and we can talk to them about the impact of American policies abroad and encourage them to support a candidate that will take a new approach to global problems.  

Make a commitment speak to Americans you know or run into in your country about the importance of electing someone who will work with the global community, not against it.