The Foreign Service Journal, January 2009

12 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J A N U A R Y 2 0 0 9 of which have only modest security measures in place, the report notes. Public diplomacy and relations with South America. The Brookings Insti- tution, whose Presidential Transition Web page we highlighted last month ( www.brookings.edu/topics/presi dential-transition.aspx ), has issued two more high-powered foreign policy reports aimed at the incoming admin- istration. As part of a comprehensive plan to enhance Washington’s public diplo- macy, “Voices of America: U.S. Public Diplomacy for the 21st Century” urges the creation of a nimble and entrepre- neurial new nonprofit organization, the USA-World Trust, to complement and support U.S. government efforts, drawing on the good will, creativity, knowledge and talent of the American people and like-minded partners over- seas ( www.brookings.edu/reports/ 2008/11_public_diplomacy_lord.as px ). The report’s diverse board of advis- ers included Intel Chairman Craig Barrett; Harvard professor, ambassa- dor and former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs R. Nicholas Burns; National Security Adviser-des- ignate Gen. James L. Jones; and for- mer USAID Administrator Andrew Natsios. The report’s recommenda- tions are based on an appreciation of the new realities the U.S. faces in en- gaging the world. Brookings’ Partnership for the Americas Commission’s recent report, “Re-Thinking U.S.-Latin American Relations,” argues that a hemispheric partnership is essential and offers spe- cific policy recommendations in five key areas: energy and climate change, migration, trade, organized crime and drug trafficking, and U.S.-Cuban rela- tions ( www.brookings.edu/reports/ 2008/1124_latin_america_partner ship.aspx ). Open government. A diverse non- partisan group that spent 20 months studying the problem of excessive gov- ernment secrecy and how to fix it, under the aegis of the nonprofit OMB Watch, has released a series of recom- mendations aimed at bringing federal record-keeping and communication into the 21st century. “Renewing Gov- ernment” encompasses recommenda- tions in three areas: national security and secrecy, usability of information and creation of a government environ- ment for transparency ( www.omb- watch.org/article/archive/551 ) . The group points to www.usas pending.gov , a Web site launched this year under legislation co-spon- sored by President-elect Obama re- quiring the Office of Management and Budget to put government contract in- formation online, as a precedent for the kind of change needed. This edition of Cybernotes was com- piled by Senior Editor Susan Brady Maitra. C Y B E R N O T E S 50 Years Ago... H illary’s appointment is a sign to friend and foe of the serious- ness of my commitment to renew American diplomacy and restore our alliances. There’s much to do, from preventing the spread of nu- clear weapons to Iran and North Korea and seeking a lasting peace between Is- rael and the Palestinians, to strengthening international institutions. — President-elect Barack Obama, announcing Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s nomination as Secretary of State, Dec. 1 ( http://change.gov/ newsroom/entry/the_national_security_team/ ).