United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice

“What Goes On in Other Countries Affects Americans” ~ UN Ambassador Susan Rice

Conference Call with United States Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice on July 28, 2010.

Thanks to Young Professionals in Foreign Policy (www.ypfp.org), I was able to be a part of this conference call in which Ambassador Rice discussed the importance of public service and the qualities she looks for when hiring a team member before taking a few questions from YPFP members.

Rice began by stating that she recognized the enormous challenge presented by public service, but also the “amazing privilege” that such service presents. For all of us young and enthusiastic foreign policy geeks, she said this new generation will be focused on economics and a web of security issues unknown to her and her predecessors.

One comment that I greatly appreciated was Rice’s statement that “what goes on in other countries affects Americans”. I wish each of us really understood this. I also would like to point out, for those billions of non-Americans in the world-what goes on in some of the most remote places on earth trickles back and affects you and I in ways we often never realize. This is part of the reason why I started this blog-no country is isolated-globalization has removed that possibility.

I hope to delve further into this in later posts…

Now for the meat and potatoes of the call:

If you are considering a position with the U.N., Rice is looking for these qualities, in addition to relevant skills and expertise:

· People who have spent “quality time overseas, either lived or served” outside of the U.S.

· Fluency in Languages-yes, plural-although fluency in one language outside of English is great, those who can speak 2 or more other than English will get her staff’s attention.

If the Europeans can master 5 languages in a lifetime, why can’t we?

· Flexibility-adapt and adjust to whatever is thrown at you

· Be a good writer! She heavily emphasized that she will not waste time trying to train an otherwise great candidate how to write well and be creative.

· A Selfless Teamplayer-if you don’t get this figured out, you will have a hard time being successful anywhere

When asked if there was one topic she recommended young people be conversant in, her answer was:

“The language of Money and Budgets. You need to be able to understand how budgets work and be able to marshal resources. You’d be surprised how rare that knowledge is in government.”

And finally, her thoughts on family and still being dedicated to a high profile position:

“If you want to start a family, don’t wait until you think it’s the perfect time-that perfect time may never come. There’s always something professional you want to get done, but you will find the rewards outweigh the stresses. Having a partner ready and willing to share and trade-off with you is very important. And, being there for your family and loved ones should always top the priority list: you will only regret not being there. There is always someone who can back-stop you at work temporarily, but no one else can be that sister/brother/daughter/son.

One Last Note, since the Office of Presidential Personnel also joined the call.

If you are interested in joining the Obama Administration, be sure to submit your resume to the link on www.whitehouse.gov. This is not for jobs inside the White House, but for political appointments. You do not have to have campaign experience, (although that helps), but be sure to be specific when listing your qualifications. The top five areas of expertise that the OPP is looking for

1. Economics

2. Energy & Environment

3. Domestic Issues

4. National Security Council

5. Boards and Commissions

Kosovo

Update from Kosovo: July 27, 2010

A recent brownbag lunch with an American colleague who works in a field office in Kosovo enlightened our little group with his experiences living and working in and around Pristina for the past 1 ½ years.
I took notes and wanted to share them and my insights.

For those who are not familiar with Kosovo: Roughly 2 million people live in this land-locked region that has been at the center of international attention off and on since the former Yugoslavia broke apart in the early 1990s. Kosovo is home to ethnic Albanians who are predominantly Muslim. Also living in this area are ethnic Serbs who are predominantly Orthodox. Serbia administered control over Kosovo when Yugoslavia broke apart; then in 2009, the ethnic Albanian majority in Kosovo declared independence from Serbia. Serbia, Russia and nearly half of the rest of the nations of the world have yet to recognize Kosovo as a legitimate nation-state which adds to the complexity of its government situation and its lack of economic activity.

With that, here is a brief update on what you need to know about Kosovo:
Recognition or No Recognition-What’s the Big Deal?
Despite last week’s ruling by the International Court of Justice which decided that Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence was legal, Kosovo is still not recognized by almost half of the world’s nations. It is terribly inconvenient and economically backwards not to be universally recognized as an independent and sovereign state by some of the major world powers. For example, Kosovo is unable to obtain a postal code-which means many countries in the world refuse to send mail or packages anywhere with a “Kosovo” address. If you try to purchase a book on Amazon, there is no drop-down for “Kosovo.” Kosovo passports are not recognized by nearly half of the world’s countries. Kosovo has no designated country-code for international phone calls; currently, it is renting Monaco’s country code. For the majority of people living in the least developed countries, these basic essentials are available-but not to those living in Kosovo.

Separation is Leading to a Serious Lack of Communication-Serbian enclaves in Kosovo have removed themselves almost entirely from the society of ethnic Albanians (called Kosovars) with separate schools that teach only Serbian and possibly English. The Kosovars have in turn begun growing up learning only Albanian and possibly English; however, very few Albanians or Serbs learn English or any other “neutral” language. These days, most people under the age of 30 speak only their ethnic language. Most Albanians over age 30 can speak Serbian, but are not often with Serbs since their communities have become so divided. This is potentially very dangerous since the two ethnicities are becoming mature adults who have no idea how to communicate with a large portion of their fellow “citizens.”

Economic Outlook: Look Out!
Bleak. That is the simplest way to put it. Kosovo’s population (no census has been taken in years, so numbers are hard to come by) is estimated at 60% youth (under the age of 32) and unemployment is estimated at 50% on a good day. Although the international community has turned its focus from security and ensuring the safety of both ethnic groups to the economy and education, the big question now is whether the tipping point will be reached before these foreign aid projects can be fully implemented. Hundreds of thousands of angry youths with nothing to do and less than bright future prospects equates to the perfect recipe for violence, drug and human trafficking, high suicide rates, and eventually a failed state before it was even given a chance to be a state. Kosovo needs a solid governing body-something the EU has tried to take on-and an education system that gives youths the opportunities to advance from poverty and chaos to a stable life.

For further reading on the International Court of Justice’s ruling on the Legality of Kosovo’s Declaration of Independence, check out this link: http://www.usip.org/resources/the-icj-and-kosovo-independence

Comments welcome!