12 SEPTEMBER 2024 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL TALKING POINTS Diplomatic Landmark Declared Endangered To kick off Preservation Month on May 1, as it has done since 1987, the National Trust for Historic Preservation released its annual listing of “America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.” This year, for the first time, the list includes an overseas property belonging to the American people, the storied Tangier American Legation. U.S. EMBASSY ISLAMABAD WIKIMEDIA/DIEGO DELSO U.S. Embassy Islamabad’s Citrus Grove Team in front of the grove on the embassy compound. From left: Muhammad Sohail, Danish Maqsood, Asim Mehmood, Muhammad Irfan Munir, Ali Khan, Zafar Mehmood, and Atta Ullah. Spotlight on Climate Curriculum The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) has significantly expanded its climate and sustainability curriculum since 2021, when President Biden signed Executive Orders 14008 and 14057 requiring climate literacy for all federal employees. Deepening knowledge of the effects of climate change on the department’s mission and honing the skills needed to advance climate action are critical. To that end, FSI now presents a range of dynamic, interrelated, and expanding courses. Now available to foreign affairs professionals at FSI are two new five-day climate courses on diplomatic issues and tradecraft, and six advanced two-day workshops covering climate finance, security, resilience, communications, technology, and ambition. These classes have reached more than 350 students, including all the State Department climate officers. Beyond the classroom, the Office of Management Strategy and Solutions (M/SS), Greening Diplomacy Initiative (GDI), and FSI co-chair a climate literacy and workforce working group to drive progress and maintain an online resource hub of information for management professionals on sustainable operations. FSI, GDI, and the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) aim to continue to equip foreign affairs professionals with the strategic context, science, technology, and management tenets necessary to reduce the environmental footprint of U.S. diplomacy. FSI’s climate courses aim to better equip the workforce with the knowledge and tools to identify the intersection between job responsibilities, the climate crisis, and the actions everyone can take to make a difference. Greening Diplomacy Awards For more than a decade, the Greening Diplomacy Initiative (GDI) has cata- lyzed climate and sustainability solutions in State Department operations to conserve natural and financial resources, cut emiss- ions, build climate resilience, and showcase U.S. innovation. Every year, GDI honors teams and initiatives that advance sustainability principles at U.S. missions worldwide. On April 22, during the State Department’s Earth Day celebration, Embassy Islamabad, Embassy Bogotá, and Embassy New Delhi received the 2024 Greening Diplomacy Initiative awards. Embassy Islamabad received the Award for Excellence in Team Sustainability Performance for a comprehensive range of activities including reducing gas consumption, increasing HVAC efficiency, planting a citrus grove to act as a carbon sink, reducing fertilizer usage, and replacing plastic containers in the cafeteria with recyclable aluminum. Runner-up U.S. Embassy Bogotá sponsored the Carrera Verde de Bogotá (Bogotá’s Green Race), which saw more than 6,500 participants fund the planting of 20,000 trees, and expanded the embassy’s electric vehicle fleet. The People’s Choice Award winner, U.S. Embassy New Delhi, was recognized for its revenue-generating waste management program that funds other sustainability projects, such as electric motor bikes and solar-powered charging stations for the facilities team. Old American Legation Museum, Tangier, Morocco.
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