In 1984 Donald Lyman left the State Department after seven years of service. Although it was a brief stint compared…
Ethic Tensions Boil Over in Malaysia’s 13 May 1969 Incident
A single election can have many impacts, but one in particular unmasked a deep, controversial issue based on ethnic tensions.…
George W. Bush and the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief
Forty million total cases. Three million deaths. One year. This was not the casualty of a bloody global conflict, but…
The Last American Diplomat in Medellín—Countering Anti-Americanism in Cartel-Era Colombia
Guns, cocaine, and kidnappings—this was the state of much of Colombia in the early 1980s. Medellín in particular, home to…
“Jesus, now I can really do some business”—Jump starting the Economy of War-Torn Bosnia
Bosnia, 1995: utterly decimated infrastructure, near-universal unemployment, and a state bank straight out of Nineteen Eighty-Four. Such were the conditions…
Building Trust and Supporting Human Rights in Apartheid South Africa
In 1988, a formidable coalition of Democrats and moderate Republicans passed the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act (CAA) over President Reagan’s veto.…
One City, Two Countries: Manning the Mexican-U.S. Border in Nuevo Laredo
Bustling with commerce, illegal border crossings, and cocaine trafficking, in 2000, Nuevo Laredo was the third busiest visa post in…
The 1964 Murder of Noted Composer Marc Blitzstein in Martinique
In 1964 on the French island of Martinique, well-known American composer Marc Blitzstein was found on the street badly injured…
Employment Opportunities
ADST Office Manager (Office Manager Position Description (PDF)) The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training (ADST), a small nonprofit with a…
Thanksgiving: How U.S. Diplomats Celebrate an American Tradition Around the World
Gobble, gobble! Thanksgiving is a unique American holiday — one that U.S. embassies, foreign service families, and American expats of…