Guest Post by Nicole Helmers, University of Indianapolis, freshman majoring in Psychology and Occupational Therapy.

While all my wild friends were getting spray-on tans and neon bikinis for Panama City Beach for Spring Break 2012, myself and a couple of my classmates from the University of Indianapolis met up with other students from other Indiana Universities and headed to Washington, D.C. in dress pants and heels.

Last week Citizens for Global Solutions held its Annual Conference, which included a day of lobbying senators and representatives and a visit to the White House. Lobby day was filled with discussions of global problems, how to lobby your representative in government, and the role and the importance of social media in grassroots movements.

The most important message I got out of the Annual Conference is that no matter who you are, you have a voice. You can use that voice to talk to your government and advocate for global issues that you want to put on the national agenda. It is too often argued that because of the financial crisis in the United States, foreign relations should be put on the back burner of national policy. But after seeing the excitement at this conference and the many people who feel as strongly on global issues as CGS does, it is clear that the United States needs to stay present in the global scene.

Last week, staff gathered around a table in our office and discussed the sad accounts of Syrian activists feeling disillusioned and abandoned after Russia and China vetoed a UN Resolution aimed at stopping the conflict.

We knew we had to do something for the Syrian activists, but what?

The international community was moving at a snail’s pace, so our political advocacy options were unclear. But we did know one thing – even if mostly symbolic, it was important to let the Syrian people standing up for their freedom know that U.S. citizens haven’t forgotten about them.

Monday night President Obama participated in the first Presidential virtual interview ever!  This Google+ Hangout event was part of the White House's continued public outreach following the State of the Union Address last Tuesday.  Since the president's address last week, the White House has been requesting that people send in questions via all forms of social media, and has been holding Twitter interviews with many of the senior administration officials. This Hangout  was the culmination of that week, and it turned out to be a great moment for foreign policy!