The Foreign Service Journal, November 2014

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | NOVEMBER 2014 17 Our ability to help navigate a very complicated international landscape in the pursuit of our interests and values remains enormously significant. East peace issues over the years. And we worked together on what were then secret negotiations with the Libyans some years ago. And then I would mention Jim Timbie, another institutional treasure. He has been working on nuclear and arms control issues for a very long time, and I’ve worked very closely with him on the Iranian nuclear negotiations. Those are two people whose names don’t often appear in public, but I think they reflect the very best that this department has to offer. Another superb public servant, Mary Dubose—who has put up with me off and on for a quarter-century both in Washington and overseas—is not only the finest Office Management Special- ist I’ve ever worked with, but as decent and as skillful a profes- sional as I’ve ever worked with. And I’ve served with some wonderful Foreign Service Nationals—I date myself when I say that, I should say Locally Engaged Staff. Nadia Alami worked in public affairs at Embassy Amman and did a terrific job when I was ambassador in Jordan. But she is just one example of the many extremely talented and dedicated Foreign Service Nationals with whom I’ve enjoyed working over the years, just as you have. RJS: Absolutely. Let’s look for a few minutes toward the future. Taking out your crystal ball, could you just give us some gen- eral thoughts on how you see both professional diplomacy and, specifically, the U.S. Foreign Service evolving to meet current and future challenges? WJB: The world is obviously an increasingly complicated place. Compared to the moment when I entered the Foreign Service in January of 1982, power is more diffuse in the world— there are more players on the international landscape. Diplomacy is no longer, if this was ever the case, just about foreign ministries and governments. It’s about nongovernmental players. It’s about civil society groups and private foundations, as well as the forces of disorder, whether it’s extremists or insur- gents of one kind or another. And on top of all that, information flows faster and in greater volume than at any time before. So the challenges for profes- sional diplomats are, I think, as great as I’ve ever seen them. But I continue to believe that our work matters as much as it ever has. Our ability to add value and to help navigate a very complicated international landscape in the pursuit of our interests, remains enormously significant. That should be a source of pride, not just for our generation of Foreign Service officers, but for succeeding generations, as well. And, fortunately, as I speak to A-100 classes and to our colleagues around the world, I am continually struck by the quality of the people with whomwe work. RJS: Y es, I agree. We were just coming from an A-100 recruit- ment lunch, and felt the same way, that there are incredibly talented people coming in. What would be your specific advice to the A-100 newcomers, and not just A-100, but all those in the early years of their Foreign Service career? What should they be doing to prepare for these future challenges? WJB: First, don’t take for granted the opportunity that you have. Ours, I genuinely believe, is a life of significance. We do work that matters with some exceptionally talented and dedi- cated people. And that’s a rare-enough thing. Second, I think you want to take some chances in your career, as well. Learn new things, whether it’s working in a different region, or learning a different language, or taking on a different set of functional skills. I think all of those things are going to be very important, because for the State Department, whether it be the Foreign Service or Civil Service, staying ahead of the curve is an unusually important challenge. That’s why, as you look at issues that have been emerging in recent decades, whether it’s climate change and energy security (especially the energy revolution in this country and the oppor- tunities strategically that that provides the United States), or whether it’s global health issues (as we’ve just been reminded in the midst of the Ebola crisis), diplomats have an extraordinarily important role to play in dealing with those kinds of challenges. Equally important is economic diplomacy, something to which both Secretary [Hillary Rodham] Clinton and Secretary [John] Kerry have attached a lot of emphasis. One of the things I have always enjoyed most as a chief of mission is commercial advocacy, trying to ensure a level playing field for American companies overseas.