Harnessing the power of Americans abroad

We’ve all seen estimates that there are at least 4 million United States citizens living abroad, but the truth is we don’t really know the number. The Census Bureau has been working to get an accurate number, but it’s a complicated process and those of us living abroad need to cooperate. According to the Census Bureaus‘ report, Issues of Counting Americans Overseas in Future Censuses:

“While data are available from Census 2000 on federal civilian employees and military personnel1, the Census Bureau does not know the number of private Americans living abroad under the other categories. No accurate estimate exists of the total number of Americans living abroad or of the other components of this population.”

Still, it’s a safe bet that the number of American citizens living overseas is in the millions so the question is, “How should the United States government utilize this invaluable community and engage it continuous dialog so that we might act and interact more effectively in our respective host countries, i.e. with the respective governments, interest groups, organizations, and individuals, and thereby enhance America’s world standing and trade opportunities while modeling American ideals?”

Please leave a comment if you have any suggestions.