From Harvard and MIT to NASA, the UN and leading technology companies, the 2026 USA Leadership Tour offered students direct access to global institutions and influential leaders.
Swati Bhat
India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) has concluded its 2026 USA Leadership Tour, taking Indian students across eight major U.S. cities over a 20-day programme designed around experiential learning, leadership and global exposure.
The tour covered Boston, New York, Washington D.C., Dallas, Houston, Seattle, Portland and San Francisco, bringing students into conversations with prominent figures from science, technology, business, academia and public policy.
Among those who interacted with the delegation were Nobel Prize-winning virologist Charles M. Rice, National Geographic Society CEO Jill Tiefenthaler and entrepreneur and investor Vinod Khosla. The students also had a surprise meet-and-greet with television host Jimmy Fallon.
From Harvard and MIT to NASA and the United Nations
The programme included visits to some of the world's leading universities, including Harvard University, MIT, Stanford University, New York University and Dartmouth.
Students also visited global companies and institutions including Google, Microsoft, Nike, Starbucks, HP, Cisco, Intel, L'Oréal and Nasdaq. The itinerary further included engagements with the United Nations during the period of the UN General Assembly sessions, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and NASA.
The delegation also interacted with organisations such as the Rockefeller Foundation, Gates Foundation, Dow Jones and The Washington Post, alongside engagements with Toyota, Nokia, SAP, ServiceNow and Bain & Company.
Rather than limiting learning to conventional classroom settings, the tour focused on direct conversations and first-hand exposure to organisations that students often encounter through textbooks, lectures and news coverage. “There is only so much leadership one can learn from a textbook,” said Rishabh Shah, Founder of I.I.M.U.N. “Bharat of today demands global thinkers who can take the best from the world and make our country better. This is to ensure that this happens.”
For participating students, the experience also offered an opportunity to understand how some of the world's leading institutions function from the inside. One student described the programme as their first journey outside India and said the experience helped them understand what makes institutions and leaders of such calibre work.
Building on the 2025 U.S. Leadership Tour
The 2026 programme builds on I.I.M.U.N.'s inaugural USA Leadership Tour in 2025. That edition covered five cities and featured more than 40 engagements with universities, global institutions, technology companies and financial organisations. The delegation also met Second Lady Usha Vance during that programme.
Following the expanded U.S. programme, I.I.M.U.N. is set to take 50 Indian students on a Switzerland Study Tour in 2026.
I.I.M.U.N.'s Global Youth Leadership Platform
Founded in 2011, India’s International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.) is a youth-run non-profit organisation focused on connecting young people with global perspectives and leadership opportunities.
Its programmes include simulations of the Indian Parliament and international organisations, leadership programmes, literature festivals, public affairs initiatives and experiential learning programmes.
In its 15th year, I.I.M.U.N. says its programmes have reached 275 Indian cities and 40 countries, engaging more than 7.5 crore adolescents through its various initiatives. Its platforms have brought young people into conversations with Heads of State and Government, Nobel Laureates, members of the judiciary, diplomats, scientists, entrepreneurs, artists, authors, policymakers and professionals from diverse fields.
The 2026 USA Leadership Tour reflects that broader approach: taking education beyond classrooms and creating opportunities for young Indians to interact directly with institutions, ideas and individuals shaping the world around them.
