The Foreign Service Journal, December 2010

D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 49 In addition, let me highlight one longer-term chal- lenge that is not yet at the forefront of the global agenda: urbanization. Consider the fact that for the first time in human history, more than half of the world’s population now lives in cities. That proportion will continue to rise to about 70 percent by 2050. While we’ve always had cities, we’ve never had this kind of population concen- tration. That has huge implications for environmental policies, political organization, economic development and much more. Clearly, there are benefits that stem from urbaniza- tion, sometimes including improved access to education and more varied employment options. But the very real and potential challenges associated with the rapid pace of urbanization — crime, economic exploitation, environ- mental degradation, public health crises — should prompt us to give more thought to how we manage this phenomenon at the local and national level, and how we can best cooperate in multilateral arenas to maximize the benefits and minimize the perils. Q: What advice would you offer to Foreign Service and Civil Service personnel who are interested in work- ing in a multilateral office or mission? A. First, I’m convinced that diplomacy in the 21st century will have an increasingly large multilateral com- ponent. Given that, I firmly believe that our foreign af- fairs professionals need to seize all available opp- ortunities to develop and flex their multilateral muscles. For Foreign Service officers, those opportunities include excellent, demanding positions at any of IO’s seven mis- sions. As I’ve previously noted, however, all State Depart- ment bureaus and missions deal with multilateral issues, and seeking roles that allow you to develop those skills will serve you well throughout your career. I strongly en- courage interested personnel to reach out to someone they know who is already working on multilateral issues to learn more. Q: Thank you, Assistant Secretary Brimmer. ■ F O C U S