The Foreign Service Journal, March 2019

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MARCH 2019 7 want to open this column by following some advice from Beth Payne’s excellent article (p. 38) on resilience: Take time to express gratitude. I am grateful to each and every one of you who conducted yourselves with such dignity and profes- sionalism during the recent record-long shutdown. Thank you, stalwart colleagues. It takes character, discipline, a strong sense of mission and, yes, resilience to remain constructive in trying times. Your individual acts taken collectively make our institution strong. This was one of the roughest patches I can remember in my more than 33 years in the Foreign Service. When news of a short-term continuing resolution broke, I was set to take the stage in Portland, Oregon, for a World Affairs Council event on the state of State, and I still had not quite worked out what I was going to say when asked about the impact of the ongo- ing government shutdown on America’s global leadership. “Russian and Chinese diplomats are not furloughed” was one option, but perhaps not as constructive a note as I would normally strike. Now that we are all back at work, though warily watching the calendar as the expira- tion of the short-termCR approaches, I want to reinforce another golden nugget of advice fromBeth Payne’s article: Spend time and mental energy on issues that you can control and influ- ence, while letting go of things that are outside of your control. While the shutdown dragged on longer than almost anyone expected, I tried to follow this advice, to remain constructive and avoid paralysis. Along with my excel- lent team at AFSA, I worked on addressing an array of immediate shutdown issues affecting members (e.g., allowances, travel, pay), while preserving time to advance AFSA’s strategic agenda, particu- larly our “Economic Diplomacy Works” initiative, designed in part to bolster sup- port among our fellow Americans and on the Hill by explaining how Foreign Service work abroad helps keep us all prosperous here at home. In spite of the furlough, we went ahead with our “Economic Diplomacy Works” panel on Jan. 15, welcoming more than 6 0 people to AFSA headquarters for a lively discussion. Speakers underscored both the urgency (competition is rising—fast) and the importance (economic diplomacy underpins America’s global leadership) of focusing our attention on economic and commercial diplomacy. I encourage you to read the coverage of that thought- provoking, insight-filled event (p. 55) and visit AFSA’s YouTube page to listen to the entire program. Another key deliverable fromAFSA’s comprehensive EDW strategy—the January-February double edition of the FSJ , devoted to “Economic Diplomacy Works”—is circulating widely and spark- ing discussion among members of the Foreign Service and, more broadly, with our fellow Americans. We have been sharing the Journal extensively during meetings on the Hill, reinforcing our message that, in the face of rapidly rising competition fromChina, the Foreign Service offers a highly cost- effective, “shovel-ready” way to regain commercial, economic and political ground now being claimed by competitors such as China. This message resonates with Congress, where our Fiscal Year 2019 appropriation bill awaits approval. I hope to be able to report to you next month that Congress again rejected proposed deep cuts to the International Affairs Budget, and perhaps even began restoring funding for core diplomatic capacity. That would indeed be grounds for taking time to express gratitude. In the meantime, while we grapple with the aftermath of the shutdown both personally and institutionally and with continued uncertainty, I urge you to take care of yourself and be kind to your col- leagues. I urge you to keep your eye on what you can control and influence, on your part in maintaining America’s global leadership in trying times. On a personal level, it did me a world of good to be working on a positive, constructive agenda even as the shutdown dragged on. On an institutional level, so much—even America’s global leader- ship—depends on our ability to collec- tively insist on building regardless of the obstacles and challenges. Have I told you lately how grateful I am to have such excellent colleagues, to be entrusted with such a vital mission? Thank you. n Ambassador Barbara Stephenson is the president of the American Foreign Service Association. Staying Constructive in Trying Times BY BARBARA STEPHENSON I PRESIDENT’S VIEWS