The Foreign Service Journal - October 2017

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2017 55 AFSA NEWS tance of expanding markets and promoting America’s unrivaled agricultural prod- ucts around the globe. Chautauqua Collaboration Continues For the 33rd time since the inaugural program in 1996, AFSA arranged for six diplo- mats to travel to the Chau- tauqua Institution in western New York state in early June to spend a week lecturing on the Foreign Service and its importance to foreign policy and national security. The six speakers were AFSA President Ambas- sador Barbara Stephenson, Ambassador (ret.) E. Michael Southwick, Ambassador (ret.) Jerry Lanier, Ambassador (ret.) Lino Gutierrez, Ambas- sador (ret.) John Dinger and Ambassador (ret.) MarcWall. Among them, they covered such topics as human rights, foreign policy strategy, the trans-Atlantic relationship, doing diplomacy on a shoe- string budget and East Asia policy. The program continues to be a fantastic outreach opportunity for AFSA and the Foreign Service. This sum- mer, close to 150 participants came from all over the United States—and some from Canada—to learn about U.S. diplomacy and the individuals who carry it out abroad. Since this collaboration began, more than 4,000 individuals have participated in the program, each one bringing their positive experi- ence back to their home community and telling friends and family about the Foreign Service. AFSA’s fall program at Chautauqua takes place Oct. 1-6 and features another six speakers: Ambassadors (ret.) John Maisto and Lange Schermerhorn, and retired FSOs Molly Williamson, Rich- ard McKee, Doug Spelman and Dr. Elizabeth Shelton. We thank them all for agreeing to carry out this important out- reach, helping AFSA tell the story of the Foreign Service to our fellow citizens. Re-Connecting with Your Home State In mid-August, new AFSA Governing Board member Martin McDowell traveled to his home state of Alabama to lead outreach efforts to local audiences. Alabama has few Foreign Service retirees and is tradi- tionally underserved when it comes to Foreign Service outreach. AFSA therefore welcomed the opportunity to facilitate a visit by a serving FSO. During his visit, Mr. McDow- ell spoke with his hometown newspaper, The Cullman Times . Cullman is a city of fewer than 16,000 people. Mr. McDowell described his path to the For- eign Service, his career and the importance and contributions of diplomats and development professionals to Americans in every state. Later in the week, he met with students at the University of Alabama in Mobile, where he spoke about the Foreign Service. Such home- town visits are excellent oppor- tunities to engage in outreach. AFSA welcomes the opportunity to set up events for any members of the Foreign Service who are heading home for a few days. Contact our outreach team ( www.afsa.org/outreach) for information and assistance. Don’t forget to check out our progress toward fulfilling our 50-state strategy, offer- ing outreach programs in each state in 2017. Visit www. afsa.org/50states to see how we are doing. n From left, Ambassadors Southwick, Lanier, Wall and Dinger, at the Chautauqua Institution, where they spoke with more than 150 participants in the Road Scholar program about diplomacy, human rights and foreign policy strategy. AFSA/CATHERINEKANNENBERG