Only two years ago, Aizel Quisano was one of thousands of young people in the Mindanao region of the Philippines who were both out of school and unemployed. A future in her hometown of Lamitan City looked bleak. She was desperate for work and even considered leaving her family to seek employment in Cavite, a city 850 miles to the north, near Manila. But now, those days are behind her. New life skills and a new job at an organic farm in Lamitan City are enriching both her life and her community.

Ultimately, youth who participate in US government-sponsored exchange programs are empowered to become ambassadors for good governance—advancing democracy in countries undergoing political transitions, like the Gambia. With access to a vast network of program alumni across a country or even a continent, these young ambassadors can tap into tools, guidance, and resources to help them fight for good governance, human rights, and rule of law.

The eyes of the world are on South Sudan right now after famine was declared on February 20. The threat of famine also looms in Somalia, Yemen, and Nigeria. What caused these crises and what does the international community need to do now? Here’s a Q&A with Chris Hillbruner is the deputy chief of party of analysis for the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), a USAID-funded project that compiles data and warns of impending food insecurity in almost 40 countries around the world.

We are on the cusp of achieving what, for decades, was considered to be unlikely: an effective vaccine against a human parasite. The parasite in question — malaria — has stayed several steps ahead of the human immune system for millennia. While we’ve made great progress shrinking the global malaria map, no single tool will rid the planet of this pernicious parasite, which is why PATH is working on multiple approaches and solutions, including vaccines.

USAID is pursuing a new model of development focused on partnering with a diverse array of partners to create innovative, cost-effective, and results-oriented development solutions. And we believe the private sector has a unique and growing role to play in global problem-solving, particularly when efforts are linked to a shared value approach or inclusive business approach which engages the bottom-of-the-pyramid markets as suppliers and producers in their value chains.

For four years, we were busy creating access to safe sanitation for communities in Liberia. And if not for an unprecedented epidemic of what is now one of the world’s most feared diseases — Ebola — almost no one outside of the country would have known about it.

A personal account and a look at what Save the Children is doing to contain the Ebola outbreak.

The very definition of doing well by doing good.

At least not as far as national defense is concerned.

The face of international development is rapidly changing. Today, major U.S. businesses are partnering with public sector organizations like the State Department and USAID to emphasize the importance of U.S. investments overseas as not just the right thing to do, but also the smart thing to do.