In 1945, Senator J. William Fulbright proposed a bill to use the profits from selling surplus U.S. government war property to fund international exchange between the U.S. and other countries. The timing after the Second War was important. Along side the United Nations, the Fulbright Program was an attempt to promote peace and understanding through educational exchange. The bill had a plan to forgive the debts foreign countries piled up during the war and in return for funding an international educational program. This program was planned to be an essential vehicle to promote peace and mutual understanding between individuals, institutions and future leaders anywhere in the world.