Wednesday, August 8th 2012

Mentoring U.S. State Department public diplomacy officers is one of the Council's more rewarding activities, and Nick Snyder shows why in the current edition of the State magazine.  His article (see p. 27) reviews the Kathryn W. Davis Public Diplomacy Fellowship, which the Council has assisted for several years.  The Council of American Ambassadors administers the fellowship.

Seven Council members met with Snyder to explore topics from defense and diplomacy to PD philosophy.  Through our President Bud Jacobs, Snyder met with Qorvis Communications, a leading public relations firm, to talk about social media.  Snyder called the experience "exciting" and said that through it he explored "the latest trends and best PD practices."  Snyder also attended the prestigious Summer Institute at the University of Southern California's Center on Public Diplomacy.

From my teaching experience at State's Foreign Service Institute, I know that extended study of public diplomacy is rare.  FSI offers excellent training on job skills, but no long-term training.  Snyder's 11-month experience, even though combined with language training, allowed him to "think big and expand relationships."  That's critical to building leadership in the profession.

Check the full article to read about the other Davis Fellows mentored by the Council.  This is not the only mentoring and training we do; but that's for another blog post.

Joe B. Johnson

Board member

 

Joe B. Johnson consults on government communication and technology after a career in the United States Foreign Service.  He is an instructor for the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, where he teaches strategic planning for public diplomacy.

...click authors name for more info

Author: Joe Johnson

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