Serving the U.S. State Department presents many challenges in the 21st century, but future diplomats are going to successfully tackle them, said Ambassador Marc Grossman in a lecture on U.S. diplomacy.
On Sept. 2, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the university's School of International Service, Grossman concluded the third annual Caroline and Ambassador Charles Adair Memorial Lecture on the role of U.S. diplomacy in the 21st century with a positive view for the diplomatic future.
Grossman's lecture, sponsored by the American Foreign Service Association, the School of International Service and American University's Washington Semester Program, was one in a series of talks and classes that Semester students receive.
Grossman, now vice chairman of The Cohen Group, a global business consulting group, draws on 29 years of foreign service experience as undersecretary of state for political affairs, U.S. ambassador to Turkey and assistant secretary of state for European affairs.
The foreign service profession is looking for people who are "courageous, smart, purposeful" -- people who are ready to "make a case for the U.S.," Grossman said. The State Department is attracting growing numbers that fit this profile. The majority of people who start working in foreign service are young, technologically adapted and not interested in hierarchy, Grossman said. This new generation of diplomats wants to "be part of what is happening" and they want "professional education," he said.
The State Department offers a variety of foreign service opportunities, but Grossman said it was time for it to change. The State Department has reached a "tipping point" and is experiencing a "crushing of human and financial resources." To address these issues it must increase its personnel numbers, Grossman said. But before the Department can increase its personnel, it has to start taking advantage of new technologies, the young generation's tremendous knowledge in this field, and their eagerness to succeed, Grossman said. This generation is an asset for the Foreign Service, and should be seen as an important investment opportunity, he said.
It will be the young generation's task to address the diverse challenges of contemporary democracy, characterized by Grossman as rapid globalization, the need to conserve and rationally allocate resources, nuclear proliferation, the need to restore the "global balance" between those who benefited from globalization and those who did not and the fight against extremism and terrorism.
Diplomacy will look very different 35 years from now, Grossman said. It is a field in flux and constant change is what makes diplomacy such an exciting field to work in, he said. However, only a small share of the population is interested in foreign service, he said.
"Americans need to know more about diplomacy," Grossman said.
Without public interest it is difficult for diplomacy to effectively represent U.S. policies, Grossman said. If Americans start paying more attention to the diplomatic relations that represent the American public, Grossman predicted a bright future for the Foreign Service.
The challenges are many, but Grossman said he had confidence in the new generation of diplomats.
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