The Foreign Service Journal, October 2020

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | OCTOBER 2020 21 Speaking Out is the Journal ’s opinion forum, a place for lively discussion of issues affecting the U.S. Foreign Service and American diplomacy. The views expressed are those of the author; their publication here does not imply endorse- ment by the American Foreign Service Association. Responses are welcome; send them to journal@afsa.org . number of people employed as seafarers … are vulnerable and potential victims of trafficking.” The benefits of this approach seem pretty clear. If we had the option of a POV stipend instead of shipment, some portion of us would accept the allow- ance. The result: fewer FS cars in transit, less spent by the department on ship- ping each year, a smaller administrative burden on embassy staff all the way from expeditors to the warehouse workers to the motor pool to management coun- selors, and less negative impact on the environment. In a time of diminishing budgets and climate change, shouldn’t every effort be made to maximize scarce resources? n The result: fewer FS cars in transit, less spent by the department on shipping each year, a smaller administrative burden and less negative impact on the environment.