PUBLISHED BY THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION MAY 2017 DIPLOMACY FOR GLOBAL HEALTH THE SOCIAL MEDIA IMPERATIVE FOREIGN SERVICE May 2017 Volume 94, No. 4 32 Focus on Global Health Diplomacy FS Know-How 23 32 41 Leveraging Health USAID FSOs Reflect on My Legal Battle with Investments for Global Health Diplomacy the World’s Worst U.S. Diplomacy Health-focused development programs Property Manager Health programs are not have been a core activity at the Here is some hard-won advice about just international good deeds; U.S. Agency for International dealing with a common feature they can be a powerful instrument Development since the agency’s of Foreign Service life: property in the ambassador’s toolbox. establishment in 1961. managers. By Mark C. Storella By Maria B. Spadacini By Aaron P. Karnell 26 37 PEPFAR: Fighting Pandemics: Feature Making the Lessons Learned Impossible Possible State’s new, multitiered pandemic response mechanism is the result of 43 By Deborah L. Birx understanding and applying lessons The Migrant Crisis in learned during the past decade. Europe and the U.S.-E.U. 29 By Nancy J. Powell Relationship HHS and Health and Gwen Tobert Changes in the Brussels- Diplomacy Washington equation may affect By Jimmy Kolker the European Union’s refugee resettlement efforts. By Kathleen Sheehan THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MAY 2017 5 FOREIGN SERVICE Perspectives 74 Local Lens Departments Stockholm, Sweden 7 By Kevin Chambers 12 Letters President’s Views 14 Talking Points Seizing Transition Opportunities By Barbara Stephenson 74 58 In Memory 10 67 Books Letter from the Editor Health Diplomacy and the Strength of “Soft” Power By Shawn Dorman Marketplace 19 69 Classifieds Speaking Out 71 Real Estate Digital Diplomacy: Will State 73 Index to Advertisers Ever Take the Plunge? By Amelia Shaw AFSA NEWS THE OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE AMERICAN FOREIGN SERVICE ASSOCIATION 47 Continuing the Conversation: Securing Diplomacy for the Next Quarter-Century 48 State VP Voice—Make Your Voice Heard! Vote in the AFSA Election 49 USAID VP Voice—The Human Resources Transformation 50 FAS VP Voice—Washington Without FSOs 56 50 AFSA Welcomes New LM Staff Member 50 2016 Annual Report Published 54 Outside the Beltway: AFSA Expands 51 Notes from Labor Management—Packing Out Outreach Efforts 52 AFSA Holds Election Town Hall 55 2016 Sinclaire Language Award Winners 52 Your Vote Matters—Use It! Honored 53 Retiree Corner—Getting the 56 Local Engagement in Global Affairs Most Out of Your Social Security 57 ADST Launches FSI at 70 53 Retiree Outreach in Action On the Cover: From left, 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. Photo: U.S. Embassy Lusaka. 6 MAY 2017 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL PRESIDENT’S VIEWS Seizing Transition Opportunities BY BARBARA STEPHENSON t is easy at times like this, in the midst We need to field a Foreign Service team trained, of a political transition that includes proposals to cut foreign affairs fund- equipped, resourced and structured to play Iing by 30 percent and undertake a at the top of its game. sweeping reorganization, to overlook the opportunity that change on this scale presents for addressing issues that have plagued us and undermined our effectiveness. budget. In this we have joined forces with play at the top of its game. I know. As a regular speaker on the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, I propose that we seize the oppor- “Leading Change” in FSI courses, I have which fights for full funding of the 150 tunities presented by this transition to become over the years a cheerleader account that covers foreign affairs, and I make the Foreign Service stronger as for making the most of transitions to have been making multiple pilgrimages a key instrument of American global reexamine priorities and ask what we each week to speak to Hill supporters leadership. For starters: could drop or cut back to make room for about why this is not the time to weaken Let’s recast the conversation on new priorities. Yet even I have found the America’s global leadership by starving risk. As I argued in the March FSJ, to scope and scale of the changes currently the Foreign Service of funds. lead, we must be present; and to be under discussion a bit daunting, and I How, I ask during Hill meetings, present, we must effectively manage the fully understand if you have, too. would we explain to voters a decision risks that are inherent in our deploy- I suspect that writing a column like to pull the American Foreign Service ment to 270 posts around the world, this will invite criticism that I, as AFSA team off the field and forfeit the game to most of them in difficult environments, president, should be fighting to stop our adversaries? Nine in 10 Americans and many in dangerous ones. the cuts and rallying the membership favor strong American global leader- An effective risk management policy to oppose reorganization. But AFSA’s ship, which is unthinkable without a does not guarantee that everyone record-high membership levels and the strong, professional Foreign Service comes home safe and sound. It means response and feedback from our “struc- deployed around the world protect- we manage risk smartly, according to tured conversations” (now in their sec- ing and defending America’s people, established best practices, to weigh and ond year) and other communications interests and values. I see no signs of a document risk-benefit trade-offs in the tell me that many members are open to mandate to weaken American leader- decisions we make as we go about our a sophisticated approach by AFSA that ship; rather, I see a hunger for American priority work advancing America’s inter- draws on our core diplomacy to deliver wins. ests abroad. competencies as How then do we, the professional In his interview with me during our diplomats. career Foreign Service, work to ensure new “Continuing the Conversation” We have, of that we are fielding a diplomatic team series, former Diplomatic Security course, been advo- capable of delivering the wins the Assistant Secretary Greg Starr talked to a cating for ade- American people want? We need to packed house at AFSA about taking the quate funding for field a Foreign Service team trained, next steps to adopt a comprehensive the foreign affairs equipped, resourced and structured to risk management framework at State. Ambassador Barbara Stephenson is the president of the American Foreign Service Association. THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL | MAY 2017 7 I propose that we seize the opportunities civilian workforce and the nearly two presented by this transition to make the million members of the uniformed military (1.4 million on active duty plus Foreign Service stronger as a key instrument 580,000 in the reserves). The number of of American global leadership. American diplomats is not much big- ger than the number of people in U.S. military bands. Though not as dramatic, compari- sons with other diplomatic services We need to build on the new 2 FAM 030 Let’s reintroduce the Foreign Ser- show that the U.S. Foreign Service is dis- risk management policy and the Vital vice. As a quick glance at AFSA’s daily tinctly modest in size. Take the United Presence Validation Process to put in media digest shows, there is great inter- Kingdom, for example, which has about place a comprehensive risk manage- est now in the well-being of the Foreign one-fifth the population of the United ment framework that extends to the Service, certainly more than I have ever States, and a military roughly one-tenth operational and tactical decisions made seen in my career. We need to make the the size of ours. The U.K.’s Department at post by Emergency Action Commit- most of this interest to achieve a long- for International Development reports tees. sought goal: increased awareness of and staff of 2,700, more than the total num- If you missed Greg Starr’s interview, appreciation for the Foreign Service. ber of FSOs at USAID; and the Foreign watch it on AFSA’s YouTube channel, This is a chance to shed some false Office reports about 5,000 diplomats, and give careful thought to the oppor- narratives, including the one about not vastly smaller than the 8,000 FSOs at tunities the political transition presents members of the Foreign Service being State—and U.S. numbers, in contrast to to move our organization to a firmer unwilling to serve in Iraq a decade ago U.K. numbers, include those adjudicat- risk management footing. Doing so will during the height of the war. I regret ing visas. help ensure that the Foreign Service that we did not do a better job then of Despite our small size, much is team can be where we need to be, any- explaining to the American people that expected of the highly skilled, dedicated where in the world, to defend America’s we did fill every one of those Iraq posi- and flexible U.S. Foreign Service—and people, interests and values. tions, but at a cost. long may that be so. We are, I would Let’s refocus on core diplomatic We met our Iraq surge obligations argue, exactly the right national security work. For all of you who have lamented by moving Foreign Service personnel, tool for the moment: a Service designed (quite rightly) that the profusion of and then positions, from other impor- to be regularly redeployed around the special envoys and the proliferation of tant posts, sustaining vacancy rates of world in pursuit of U.S.