28 JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2026 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL FOCUS HONORING EXCELLENCE AND CONSTRUCTIVE DISSENT William R. Rivkin Award for Constructive Dissent by a Mid-Level Officer Eric Burkett, Andrea Capellán, Andrea Cristancho, Jessica Carlson, Abtin Forghani, Heather Wirick, Meghan Waters, Joshua Schramm, R. Clark Pearson, and Sam Kraegel Defending Development In March 2025, a coalition of USAID and Department of State Foreign Service officers—Eric Burkett, Andrea Capellán, Andrea Cristancho, Jessica Carlson, Abtin Forghani, Heather Wirick, Meghan Waters, Joshua Schramm, R. Clark Pearson, and Sam Kraegel—submitted a Dissent Channel cable opposing the dismantling of USAID, the termination of foreign assistance programs, and improper reduction-in-force (RIF) actions. For this act of constructive dissent, they have received the 2025 William R. Rivkin Award, which recognizes mid-level Foreign Service officers (FS-3 to FS-1) who have demonstrated intellectual courage and integrity in addressing substantive foreign policy or management issues. This group formulated their opposition in a well-reasoned, fact-based cable, providing concrete examples of how the elimination of USAID and Award winner profiles compiled by Associate Editor Mark Parkhomenko. All images are courtesy of the award winners, unless otherwise specified. 2025 AFSA AWARD Winners
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