We've known for the past several years that Americans are concerned about the U.S. image abroad, which continues to decline. A jointly-sponsored poll from World Learning and the Aspen Institute confirms this finding again. For instance:

• 66% believe that foreign governments are less likely to support us
  
• 63% worry that Americans themselves will be less welcome abroad
  
• 61% worry about a greater likelihood of terrorist attacks because of rising distrust of the United States.
  
• and 36 percent believe negative perceptions of the US could prompt boycotts of American products and retailers.

But the real news from this poll centers on support for a citizen-led solution: Americans think they themselves can and should help improve perceptions of the U.S. around the world.

According to the new findings, many Americans believe that overseas experiences by average Americans, playing the role of citizen diplomats, can improve the United States’ image abroad. Nearly eight in 10 (77 percent) believe that studying or working abroad has a positive impact on Americans’ awareness and appreciation of other people and cultures. Conversely, 78 percent believe that when more Americans go abroad, they change local perceptions of our people and culture for the better. And when asked about the most effective means to improve relations with foreigners 39 percent believe that increasing business contacts with other countries is the best means of achieving that goal.

The World Learning/Aspen Institute survey found that young people (33 percent) and African Americans (36 percent) believe that studying abroad is the most effective means to improve relations with people in other countries. Yet today fewer than 1 percent of all college students study abroad, and of this small number, less than 8 percent are Hispanic or African American, even though these populations represent 25 percent of all college students.

Of course, while some American students, businesspeople, and professionals will act as citizen diplomats on their own initiative, these sorts of high-quality exchanges often take some doing. We're not talking about a holiday in Europe -- for the most part, one doesn't find opportunities for transformative citizen exchange on Expedia. (Respondents ranked travel lower than both business links and student exchange in rating its potential to impact views of the U.S.)

For a more immersive experience, most Americans turn to agencies like the Peace Corps and organizations like World Learning (which creates "high-road" exchanges in developing countries) or Bardoli Global (which brokers placements for minorities, who are near-absent in most exchange programs). These organizations are the vehicles that enlist and enable citizens to act as diplomats. And they have more to do with the United States' standing in the world than first meets the eye.