The Foreign Service Journal - December 2017

6 DECEMBER 2017 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL 49 AFSA and USAIDWelcome Collaboration 49 Making the Case for the Foreign Service 50 State VP Voice—ATime for Kindness 51 USAID VP Voice—Talking about Communication Gaps 52 FAS VP Voice—The Demographic Crisis 52 FCS and DEC Focus on U.S. Growth at Home and Abroad 53 WhereWe Stand—Unpacking “Stewardship” 54 Sharing the Story of the Foreign Service with Lifelong Learners 55 Meet the AFSA Committee: Awards & Plaques 56 Retiree Corner—Keeping Your Eye on the Bottom Line 57 AFSAWelcomes 146th Specialist Class 57 AFSA Governing Board Meeting, October 2017 58 Book Notes: Global Adventures on Less-Traveled Roads 58 Russian Roundtable: FSOs Speak with AFSA about Their Sudden Exit 59 Essay Contest Highlights Importance of U.S. Global Leadership 60 Reigning Cats and Dogs in the Foreign Service AFSA NEWS THE OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION On the Cover: Images of diplomacy at work—Top, from left: U.S.Ambassador Mark C. Storella, Zambian Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane and Minister of Health Kapembwa Simbao shake hands on signing the PEPFAR framework in November 2010; U.S. Chargé d’Affaires James P. DeHart with Norwegian Defense Ministry Director Mette Sorfonden signing a contract to purchase Boeing maritime patrol aircraft in March 2017 (Photo: Asgier Spange Brekke); U.S.Ambassador to Indonesia Lynn Pascoe (left) and USAID Director Bill Frej load supplies for Aceh after the tsunami in December 2004. Second row, from left: General Joseph F. Dunford Jr., chairman of the U.S.Joint Chiefs of Staff, and U.S.Ambas- sador John R. Bass attend a meeting with Turkey’s senior military leadership in Ankara in November 2016; U.S. Consul General Rena Bitter, of CG Ho Chi Minh City, and U.S.Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius at a temple restoration project in April 2016; Yezidi refugees who escaped from the Islamic State group talk with FSO Refugee Coordinator Matthew Johnson in Mardin, Turkey, in December 2014. Cover design by Caryn Suko Smith. Departments 10 Letters 14 Talking Points 110 Local Lens Vienna, Austria By Ke l l y M i d u r a Marketplace 104 Classifieds 107 Real Estate 109 Index to Advertisers FOREIGN SERVICE 7 President’s Views Time to Ask Why By Ba r ba r a S t e p h e n s o n 9 Letter from the Editor Diplomacy Needs Diplomats By Sh awn Do rma n 19 Speaking Out Religious Diversity Benefits the State Department By Ph i l S ko t t e Perspectives 59