Shawnee councilmember Stephanie Meyer leading delegation of American political leaders on trip to East Timor

Shawnee councilmember Stephanie Meyer is gearing up for her second political trip overseas to represent the United States as a democratic country.

This month, Meyer will lead a group of seven American political leaders on a weeklong trip through East Timor, a small Southeast Asian island country north of Australia. Meyer and her colleagues will talk with the country’s leaders about the initiation of their democratic process. The relatively new country gained independence from Indonesia in 2002.

“I’m excited to talk to them about how the last 17 years have been and what struggles they still have,” Meyer said. “Hopefully, we can provide areas where we can be helpful in our insight, being in a little bit older democracy than they are.”

The politicians’ trip is part of an initiative by the American Council of Young Political Leaders, a nonprofit organization in part supported by the U.S. State Department that provides political leaders under 40 with the opportunity to share democratic ideas and best governmental practices with other countries. It’s also an opportunity for participants to practice diplomacy.