The Foreign Service Journal, December 2019

THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | DECEMBER 2019 45 Avis Bohlen Award for a Foreign Service Family Member Laurent Charbonnet Bicycle Diplomacy Helps Refugees in Frankfurt L aurent Charbonnet, a Foreign Service family member and retired FSO at U.S. Consulate General Frankfurt, has received the Avis Bohlen Award for the diplomacy via bicycles program he initiated through the consulate community’s Frankfurt Refugee Outreach Committee. Mr. Charbonnet volunteers weekly as a bicycle mechanic at a refugee center in Frankfurt’s Bonames district. The center is home to hundreds of recently arrived refugees who rely on volunteers like Mr. Charbonnet to develop survival and self- sufficiency skills. Over the past three years, the informal bicycle program has significantly enhanced the morale of Consulate Frankfurt’s community, said Stephan Langley, a general services officer: “Laurent’s initiative and volunteerism serve as an inspiration and model for others, and his visionary leadership will ensure that the program and the consulate’s ties to Frankfurt’s refugee com- munity will endure long after his departure from post.” At the center, refugees acquire English-language proficiency, learn the cul- tural mores necessary for integration, and ultimately prepare themselves for employment and school- ing in Germany. Mr. Charbonnet collects donated bicycles from the consulate community and elsewhere. He volunteers his time, energy and effort to repair and replace broken parts, creating safe, functional bicycles frommyriad pieces. The bicycles have given refugees greater mobility and new recreational opportunities for their children. Laurent Charbonnet at the AFSA Awards Ceremony at the State Department Oct. 16. AFSA/JOAQUINSOSA Laurent Charbonnet, right, and retired FSO Paul Cantrell work on bikes at a refugee center in Frankfurt. COURTESYOFLAURENTCHARBONNET