In the News Archives - Page 2 of 22

A view of the main entrance to Embassy Niamey, designed by The Miller Hull Partnership, LLP and constructed by B.L. Harbert International. Photo courtesy of OBO

Embassy Niamey recognized for future-forward design

By Evan Lewis In recognition of the Department of State’s commitment to environmental leadership and sustainable design, the new U.S. embassy in Niger recently achieved Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum from the...

Department publishes its first Geospatial Data Strategy

By Erin Dudley The Geospatial Data Act (GDA) was signed into law, Oct. 5, 2018, and recognizes geospatial data as a critical component of the national infrastructure and economy. GDA identifies the Department of State...

From left: U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, and Bureau of Diplomatic Security Assistant Secretary Gentry Smith discuss the "Climate-Security Nexus: Impacts on U.S. Organizations Abroad,” during the 2021 OSAC Annual Briefing, Nov. 17. Photo courtesy of OSAC

OSAC Annual Briefing forges meaningful security connections

By Elizabeth Winter The Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC), a unit within the Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS), partners directly with security professionals at U.S. organizations operating abroad to build threat awareness and trusted networks...

JAFFA interim-President Shalom Konstantino (right) speaks with U.S. Special Envoy for Holocaust Issues Cherrie Daniels (center), and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley (left) at the global virtual gathering, “Together We Stand Against Anti-Semitism,” August 2021. Photo courtesy of GPA

New EAG represents Jewish American employees and friends

By Jesse Victor In July 2021, a swastika was found carved in an elevator near the Harry S Truman Office of the Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. This event prompted messages reminding the...

From a modest booth at the Black Hat cybersecurity conference in Las Vegas, Aug. 5, 2021, Rewards for Justice (RFJ) staff handed out mini wanted posters and t-shirts (left). When scanned by a mobile device, the QR code on the t-shirt led individuals back to RFJ’s webpage (bottom right) for the reward offer. Also at the booth, a large video screen (top right) flashed ads for the cyber reward offer in English and multiple foreign languages, including Russian. Photos courtesy of the Bureau of Diplomatic Security

Rewards for Justice incentivizes critical infrastructure protection

By Rachel Schindel Gombis The Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program—which advertises an up-to-$10 million reward for information on foreign government-linked malicious cyber activities against U.S. critical infrastructure—raised a few eyebrows due to its innovative...

Consular Officer Bradley Geer (far right, standing) conducts the Guangzhou Baroque Orchestra as they perform selections from Handel’s “Messiah,” September 2021. Photo courtesy of the Guangzhou Baroque Orchestra

First-tour FSO conducts musical diplomacy

By Farrell Harwood While serving as a first-tour consular officer in Guangzhou, China, Bradley Geer found himself quite literally conducting person-to-person diplomacy, employing a skill he had not used for 10 years: choral conducting. A...

Using ADR and mediation to resolve conflicts

By Krish Das and Paul Foisy At the Department of State, managing conflict is among the 10 leadership and management principles that are outlined in 3 FAM 1214—within the Foreign Affairs Manual—as important for all employees...

From left: Managing Director for Construction, Facility, and Security Management Tracy Thomas, Maputo City Secretary of State Vicente Joaquim, Mozambican Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy Ernesto Max Elias Tonela, Ambassador Dennis W. Hearne, and Maputo Province Governor Julio Parruque cut the ceremonial ribbon officially opening the new embassy campus in Maputo, Sept. 30. Photo by Anissa Arune

New embassy building dedicated in Maputo

By Vanessa Rozier Toscano Embassy Maputo formally dedicated its new, state-of-the-art embassy campus with representatives from the Mozambican government, political parties, civil society, the private sector, academia, and the media, Sept. 30. The event signaled...

Hispanic Employee Council of Foreign Affairs Agencies board members Isabel Romero (top left), Harold Jahnsen (top second from left), and Camelia Valldejuly (top third from left) speak to students during a networking event during Hispanic Heritage Month, Oct. 14. Photo by Isabel Romero

HECFAA highlights role of Hispanics in diplomacy

By Moises Mendoza The Department of State has been challenged to ensure that its workforce accurately reflects the U.S. population. Despite the fact that 18.5 percent of people in the United States claim Hispanic heritage,...

The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations recently celebrated the ribbon cutting for a new residential complex for Embassy Addis Ababa. The new residence helps advance OBO’s Diplomatic Residential Program by allowing for shorter commutes and providing high-quality, seismically safe, and secure housing for U.S. diplomats and their families. Photo courtesy of OBO

OBO’s survey seeks feedback to improve living conditions

By Connor Horgan The Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations (OBO) is working to improve the living conditions for all staff serving overseas through its Diplomatic Residential Program (DRP). One of the tools that has significantly...