Photo of the Week: Behind the Scenes With Under Secretary Sonenshine

Posted by Hannah Johnson / April 27, 2012

Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara Sonenshine prepares for her swearing-in ceremony with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on April 24, 2012. [State Department photo by Ben Chang/ Public Domain]

About the Author: Hannah Johnson serves as an Assistant Editor for DipNote.

This week's "Photo of the Week" comes to us from Foreign Service Officer Ben Chang and shows Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Tara Sonenshine as she prepares for her swearing-in ceremony with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2012.

At her swearing-in ceremony, Under Secretary Sonenshine said, "Policy is about people. Without a deeper understanding of foreign publics, our policies are just flying blind. We can't depend only on conversations with political leaders. We have to connect with people, and let them know we are listening, we care, and we are working to support them.

"We have… more »

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Celebrating International Jazz Day

Posted by David T. Killion / April 26, 2012

Louis Armstrong, atop camel, enchants the ancient sphinx and pyramids at Giza, near Cairo, Egypt January 28, 1961. His wife Lucille, lower left, records the scene on film as the camel perks its ears in appreciation of the unusual concert. The Armstrongs are on a U.S. State Department sponsored Goodwill Tour of Africa and the Middle East. [AP File Photo]

About the Author: David Killion serves as U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO.

Back in the United States my colleagues at the State Department have long recognized the power of jazz as a means of connecting people. More than 50 years ago, the Department launched a landmark jazz diplomacy effort featuring American musical legend Dizzy Gillespie. Ever since then, jazz has been a continuing feature of U.S. cultural engagement programs. (See some great old photos here.)

Well, I am very proud to announce the latest chapter in the State Department's "jazz diplomacy" program kicks… more »

Posted under: Behind the Scenes

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A Discussion With Russian Civil Society Leaders

Posted by Thomas O. Melia / April 26, 2012

People walk on a sidewallk in Moscow, Russia, March 10, 2012. [AP File Photo]

About the Author: Thomas O. Melia serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor.

Today I was delighted to welcome to the State Department a dozen inspiring civil society advocates from Russia who work tirelessly to protect the human rights and dignity of prisoners, and for the rule of law. We were joined by Deputy Secretary William Burns, formerly our ambassador to Russia, USAID Deputy Administrator Donald K. Steinberg and Assistant Administrator Alexander, as well as Mark Kappelhoff, Chief of the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division at the Department of Justice. As we are seeing increasingly in Russia and in many countries across the globe, the United States included, civil society… more »

Posted under: Europe & Eurasia

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The Hunt for Impact Investments: Are Philanthropists Key?

Posted by Maura O'Neill / April 26, 2012

Special Representative for Global Partnerships Kris Balderston introduces U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton at the first-ever Global Impact Economy Forum at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on April 26, 2012. [State Department photo by Ben Chang/ Public Domain]

About the Author: Maura O'Neill serves as the Senior Counselor and Chief Innovation Officer at USAID.

How donor grants may unlock billions of investment dollars for impact enterprise.

In 2010, JP Morgan released a figure that shocked the investment industry: the group estimated that the potential capital market for impact investing -- putting dollars into enterprises that would deliver positive social impact -- was between $400 billion and $1 trillion. Buoyed by the success of the microfinance revolution, philanthropists, governments, entrepreneurs and investors began in earnest to see how else they could do well by doing good.

Impact investors have surged forward with capital, ready to support the pioneering entrepreneurs creating fortunes and development gains at the base of the pyramid (BoP). There are now 200 impact investment entities poised to pour billions of dollars into impact enterprises in the next year. They have cast wide nets, but it… more »

Posted under: Policy

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Visionary Innovators and Intellectual Property in the 21st Century

Posted by Robert D. Hormats / April 26, 2012

A photo taken at the University of Michigan shows a “responsive envelope system prototype,” a model for a structure that would be used in a building's exterior as part of a system to reduce its external power use and carbon footprint, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 2011. [AP File Photo]

About the Author: Robert D. Hormats serves as the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment at the Department of State.

Today, we celebrate the contributions of scientists and innovators such as Steve Jobs, Thomas Edison, and Alexander Graham Bell. We recognize the writings of Jonathan Franzen, architectural designs of I. M. Pei, movies of Steven Spielberg, and many others like them whose works have changed the way we view our world and live our lives. Why today? Because April 26 marks World Intellectual Property Day, the annual celebration commemorating the formation of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 1970.

This year's theme -- visionary innovators -- recognizes the unique and valuable contributions made by gifted individuals all over the world. Without innovation, civilizations remain static. The economist Robert Solow was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1987 for showing that technological innovation was responsible for over 80 percent of economic growth in the United… more »

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