Next to Pearl Harbor and 9/11, the Iranian seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran on November 4, 1979 and…
CORDS Alumnus Gives Perspective on U.S. Role in Vietnam
Should the United States ever have gone to war in Vietnam? Nearly fifty years after the last American troops were…
Development in South Asia and Latin America: USAID in the ‘90s
There’s never a dull moment in the life of a USAID social anthropologist! The foreign service can indeed present a…
Making the Most of Adversity: Managing the Consular Section in Guangzhou, China
Adversity can often bring out the best in those who are willing to rise to the challenges it throws at…
Senegal’s Locust Plague in the late 1980s
The year is 1986. A Senegalese farmer walks out in his field a short while after the drought season has…
U.S.-Russia Competition in Ukraine in the ‘90s
This moment is one of four in a series about Russia, Ukraine, and U.S. relations in a world of post-Ukrainian…
Combating Terrorism in Iraq and Syria: Stephen Kontos and the Counter-ISIS Coalition
In the midst of war, terrorism, and instability, Stephen Kontos was tasked with uniting a coalition to combat one of…
Fighting for Peace: Serving During the Sri Lankan Civil War
As a USAID (U.S. Agency for International Development) officer serving in Vietnam during the firefights and bombings of the Tet…
Women in the Workplace in the Foreign Service
For a long time, the American workplace has been a difficult place for women to navigate, and the Foreign Service…
Captivating Times in India—What it Means to Travel Across the World as a Foreign Service Officer
Upon joining the Foreign Service, most officers are immediately assigned to locations all over the world. Postings can vary from…