 Hello everyone and welcome to the oceans environment and science at state session. My name is Alexis linen I serve as an events and communication specialist here in our in our office of science and technology cooperation I am a proud Hampton University alumna, and I will be moderating today's panel I'm joined today by a few of my colleagues who share my excitement in our opportunity to tell you a little bit more about our Bureau the Bureau of Oceans International Environmental and Scientific Affairs It's a mouthful. We call it. Oh, yes for short We're here to talk tell you about how our work informs foreign policy and also how you might work here one day We'll have a chance to go into more detail about our backgrounds and how we got where we are And we've saved some time at the end for Q&A So as we're speaking if you have questions that come to mind Please feel free to drop them in the chat box below and we'll be sure to get to them at the end Before we jump into the panel I would like to introduce to you our fearless leader in a personal inspiration to me just for the strides that she's made in this field Ambassador Marsha Bernica Unfortunately, she couldn't be here with us live But she's very passionate about these issues and these efforts to diversify the department So she pre-recorded these remarks that you'll get to hear now Everyone my name is Marsha Bernica and I am delighted to be participating in this important conference I had the opportunity to speak at last year's conference too And I guess I didn't do too badly since you invited me back I had been looking forward to joining you live But remotely But I have been called into a senior level meeting on one of this administration's priority issues climate change So that conflicted with the conference schedule Please accept my apologies for recording this message to you But rest assured some very talented colleagues of mine from the department of state will be on hand to answer your questions after this I think we all wish we were able to do this in person instead of in front of our screens So that we could meet and get to know each other even better But I am happy that this venue does allow so many more people to participate I can only imagine how frustrating it is to be a student right now This is the time you are supposed to be getting out into the world not stuck at home possibly with your parents just around the corner Even though we are not able to physically connect today We still want to hear from you So please do take advantage of that chat box and send questions our way And I am thrilled that we will be joined by a few of my colleagues Including an hbcu alum They will share a bit about what they do and how they came to serve in the department of state I was looking at the conference agenda and there is a great lineup of speakers and some interesting sessions lined up for you I hope that by the end of these two days You will seriously consider a career in international relations And especially here at the department of state the premier foreign affairs agency where I have spent my now nearly 40 year career That's right. I have been a diplomat for nearly four decades now So I speak from experience and with some authority when I say that a career in foreign affairs Is among the most interesting and rewarding that you can ever find Today I would like to tell you a little bit about my career and the work we do in the bureau I represent at the department of state the bureau of oceans and international environmental and scientific affairs Yes, that is a mouthful. So we call it the oes bureau for short I am delighted to speak before an audience attending institutions known for their academic rigor and their commitment to service And I applaud the higher purpose these institutions instill In you their students faculty and staff It was academic rigor and commitment to service and higher purpose That led me to lafayette college in pennsylvania Let's just say a few years ago I always saw myself as a trailblazer as someone who could be anything I aspired to be Thanks, especially to my parents So I went to lafayette college in the second cohort of young women allowed on campus Shortly after the college decided to become co-educational And I entered university in the wake of the civil rights movement Moreover two destructive world wars had left indelible scars on my parents generation I knew I wanted to be part of something that would prevent such atrocities from ever occurring again As well as help so many newly independent countries develop viable governments and economies To understand the present and then shape the future One needs to really know the past So I majored in history And through a mentor at the time I learned about the league of nations And its successor the united nations efforts to maintain world peace I still do not know I wanted to become a diplomat But I knew I wanted to be part of this noble effort So I went to georgetown university for graduate school Shortly after serving as a state department intern at our embassy in liberia. I joined the foreign service I have had the privilege of serving the american people under seven different presidents democratic and republican I have worked in u.s. embassies and consulates in nine countries Learned to speak a few languages and have had the honor of serving as our country's ambassador twice First to senegal in guinea basal and then to bangladesh Currently I wear two hats leading the u.s. Government's global economic diplomacy effort Covering policy areas related to trade development cyber security sanctions energy technology the environment science and much much more while also overseeing the oes bureau And I would like to spend a few minutes telling you all about oes and why it matters to you and our fellow americans Oes's official mandate is to advance america's security and prosperity through international leadership on oceans environment science space and health I am not exaggerating when I say we work on everything from the depths of the ocean to the vastness of outer space And that work directly affects the lives of every american in some way Let me give you some real examples of our work, which should help you better visualize the important role we play in foreign policy We are all witnesses to the havoc and destruction caused by covid 19 The very reason we are having this discussion virtually today Well, oes is the lead bureau in the state department working on the global response to And recovery from this pandemic We have an office dedicated to international health and biodefense Which is working tirelessly to make sure us researchers and innovators have access to the information Tools and samples needed to spur covid 19 research and development We help facilitate and coordinate us efforts to rapidly identify new global sources of diagnostics and therapeutics We have taken a leading role in coordinating efforts to distribute vaccines therapeutics and diagnostics across the globe My colleague will talk a little more about the hard work they are doing to help us overcome this pandemic Did you know that about 75 percent of emerging infectious diseases such as covid 19 and dibola are zoonotic in nature Meaning they are transmitted to humans from other animals That means that infections between humans domesticated animals and wildlife are a key crossover point for new infectious threats The problem is particularly acute in parts of the world where wildlife are hunted trafficked and sold in unregulated and unhygienic markets Well, OES is fighting to stop the sales of high-risk species and change these practices to prevent future pandemics We have an office dedicated to combating wildlife trafficking and other conservation crimes like illegal logging But it is not easy. These crimes generate up to hundreds of billions of dollars each year for transnational criminal organizations We have made progress over the years though in helping governments develop strengthen and enforce laws to stop illegal wildlife trade and other criminal activity And we will keep at it Think about this next example of our work the next time you go to the grocery store and see the great variety of fresh fish and seafood that is available OES helps make it possible for that fish to be there We negotiate treaties and regulations to support sustainable fishing and fish farming And promote ocean conservation We endeavor to solve the problem of lost and abandoned fishing gear worldwide And stop bad actors from catching and selling fish illegally Illegal fishing costs the fishing industry tens of billions of dollars in lost revenue each year And undermines the sector that supports 1.7 million jobs in the united states How about when you open google maps to plan your route and navigate your way to that important internship interview or party Before the pandemic, of course You guessed it OES is working behind the scenes to create the standards and build the alliances needed To allow various countries gps systems to function accurately and interrupted uninterrupted all over the world And with all the satellites now orbiting above it is getting crowded in outer space at least near outer space OES is working with countries around the world to promote responsible behavior and pursue safe activities in outer space and here on earth Through an initiative called the Artemis accords we are working with nasa to build a global coalition That will join us in exploring the moon after the united states lands the first woman and next man on the lunar surface And then the goal is to take the next giant leap supported by the Artemis program and send astronauts to mars You will have seen in the news recently that the perseverance rover touched down on mars on february 18th Guess what OES worked to pave the way diplomatically to prepare for a smooth launch and a successful landing But even going way back to before the very first astronauts ever set foot on the moon The state department helped create the multilateral treaty framework for what nations can and cannot do in outer space And setting and building on those standards is even more important as we enter the era of increased commercial activity in space We all know that there is no greater long-term challenge confronting the united states and the world than climate change My colleague will talk to you in a few minutes about the work OES is doing to address this critical issue Climate change is however just one of many environmental issues OES officers work on each day I want to give you one last example of the work we are doing to address pollution and plastic waste Air pollution is ranked fourth among all mortality risk factors globally It kills nearly seven million people each year In the united states, we have reduced air pollution by 69 percent since passing the clean air act in 1970 But not all countries have a clean air act and so we are working directly and indirectly to help them tackle air pollution And we have had a real impact on this issue One of the best examples at our embassy in beijing china We set up an air quality monitor in 2008 and started publishing the readings on our embassy social media feed You all know the power of social media Well because the horrifically bad pollution numbers Measured by a trusted source were reaching the chinese public That public eventually forced chinese authorities to make significant changes to improve air quality And guess who makes the best technology to help countries monitor and improve air pollution? US companies So our work not only led to improved health outcomes in china, but also helped us companies export their technology Finally, let me touch on the troubling issue of plastic pollution About eight million tons of plastic pollution ends up in our oceans every year Think about that for a minute eight million tons This pollution is accumulating at an unprecedented rate and jeopardizing marine ecosystems navigational safety natural resources and economic health OES is helping countries build capacity for environmentally sound management of waste And is encouraging countries industries and individuals to adopt a more sustainable approach to plastic use and disposal to counter the plastic pollution crisis We help governments improve their waste management systems enforce related laws and standards and strengthen import regulations and improve their monitoring to better understand the scale scope and impact of ocean plastic pollution And of course OES works closely with other offices at the state department and the us agency for international development As well as with the environmental protection agency The departments of energy agriculture commerce and interior And even with the us trade representative to achieve these goals and more I could go on and on because the problem set OES works on is that vast But I want to leave some time for my colleagues to share their work and to address any questions you might have But before I do that, let me just say that you don't have to be studying at a certain school Or have a specific background to get a job in OES Our foreign service and civil service officers have studied at universities across the country and come from diverse backgrounds Quite frankly, that's what makes the work we do so dynamic and is the type of workforce We want to continue to cultivate here in OES Diversity and backgrounds Perspectives and values is the only way we can solve our most pressing global issues I hope I've convinced you to consider a career here at the state department and specifically in OES Although of course, I am a bit biased Thank you for being a kind and patient audience While I have enjoyed telling you a little bit more about the work we do I want to encourage you again to use the chat box to ask any questions you might have for my experience colleagues We are all excited to hear from you Thank you Thank you, ambassador Bernacoff for those very informative remarks. I told you guys how awesome she was but those remarks further approved it Next I'm going to pass the mic to my colleague Vanessa Adams who works in our office of international health and biodefense Vanessa over to you Thank you, Alexis Lauren if I could also get a little assistance with my camera or I'm happy to continue my remarks as is I'll go ahead and start Hi, everyone. My name is Vanessa Adams and I work in the OES bureau in the office of international health and biodefense Or IHB for short I joined the state department as a wrangle fellow And I am a foreign service officer The wrangle fellowship is something that seeks to increase diversity within the department And I am happy to go into more detail about that program during the q&a session if anyone is interested The main difference for me as a foreign service officer Is that many of my two to three year tours will be spent abroad working at different embassies and consulates As compared to my colleagues in IHB who are subject matter experts I am a generalist and I stay with the office for a relatively short period of time So the IHB office is divided into a pandemic response and a policy team While the department of state is not the lead US agency for health Or for pandemic response Sorry We are responsible for strategy coordination and messaging It has been all hands on deck During the pandemic but on a normal day in the office My colleagues in the pandemic response team Track different outbreaks around the world Our response the impact on trade and travel medical countermeasures and supply chains And policy impact in global response For the policy team our main responsibility is interagency coordination through the global health security agenda Which was initiated in 2014 and seeks to build partner capacity To prevent, detect and respond to infectious disease threats Since I am not a subject matter expert in infectious disease I work in the policy side of the office and handle the multilateral portfolio Which includes providing input on the US government position On statements in the world health organization The United Nations G7 and G20 I also support agreements between the international institutes of health And foreign researchers on a variety of research topics And bilateral health cooperation agreements between US agencies and foreign governments It is a dynamic and rewarding time to work in the OAS bureau And I welcome additional questions during the Q and A session. Thank you Thanks so much, Vanessa It's always so interesting to be reminded of how our bureau is responding to some of our most pressing global issues like COVID-19 Guys just a reminder to place any questions that you have for us in the chat box and we'll get to them at the end Next up we have my colleague Farhan Akhtar Who will talk about our office of global change and his background Farhan over to you Thank you, Alexis. Hi, my name is Farhan Akhtar I'm a civil service officer in the office of global change, which is the climate change office within the OAS bureau We've led climate negotiations since the early 1990s And we were closely with a special presidential envoy for climate change office. John Kerry who was announced Are into that position a few weeks ago and where we're actively working with him on the range of issues that he is prioritizing now Our office since the 90s has been primarily focused on The discussions at the framer convention on climate change, which is a treaty we signed that lays out a process to cooperate on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and building resilience and also discussion on how we can support countries as they as they pursue those Those changes at home You may have heard in the news a lot of discussion about the Paris agreement that was negotiated as a underneath this framework convention We our office We're closely with the special envoy under the Obama administration to negotiate that agreement making sure that it's aligning with US policy objectives and in interests We continue to follow the negotiations throughout the previous administration And you know work towards pursuing us efforts and making sure we're that we are pursuing the white houses foreign policy within these discussions regardless of which which administration is in power It's important to note that the work of On climate change just doesn't really fully finish when we announce these big landmark deals that On the Paris agreement or before that the Kyoto protocol There's a lot of rules that have to get negotiated and discussed After those big agreements go put into place So we work with other countries to lay out what those rules look like How do we track progress? How do we discuss the progress we're making? Is our need for additional? Rules or additional support for countries as they pursue their goals and aims Our office is the lead office to make sure that those those Discussions are in line with our foreign policy priorities to make sure that That other countries are living up to their end of the bargain when they put the agreements that they've signed And also to make sure that you know, we are presenting The the US story as positively as possible We have a team of about 30 experts that go to the negotiations twice a year There's two week long meetings twice a year and we are up all hours and long conversations with our colleagues Negotiating the details of decisions all night long and we have lots of stories where you know We're hammering out deals and we have to huddle them at 2 or 3 a.m. And then finally Can can have a breakthrough and have an agreement We also our office doesn't primarily only focus on the Paris agreement and the Framer convention we also cover discussions at the international maritime organization and the international civil aviation organization where There are ongoing discussions about how do you manage emissions from international transport? Either airplanes ships Where you're outside of any particular countries boundaries, you know, there's a there's an ongoing discussion on how do we actually reduce emissions from them Who's responsible who pays for it? Those are all things that we we discuss actively with our partners A big part of my portfolio in the office is to cover the international Or sorry the intergovernmental panel on climate change IPCC which releases reports periodically on the state of climate science and then lays out Sort of what we know about the the response To climate change and so we spend a lot of time making sure that that is That those reports are as scientifically robust as possible We're also working closely with us the special envoy carries a team on helping and supporting countries to Accelerate their transition to low carbon economies to pursue net zero targets by 2050 and then to keep the one and a half degree Cool warming target within reach our office directly manages upwards of 90 million dollars Foreign assistance programs every year when we also closely coordinate with USAID on on their work as well And so just a little bit about my background and how I got to the state department I'm a little bit different than a lot of people at the state department because I have a scientific background I I went to Georgia Tech And uh majored in urban atmospheric science Uh, and then got into being my phd there with uh, focus on air pollution and urban areas Um, I worked for three years at the environmental protection agency focusing on their quality modeling and how you Establish both climate and air pollution rules to achieve our policy aims and both fronts um, I moved to dc and and was looking for a job in dc and ended up getting placed in a as a fellow and under the American association for the advancement of science fellowship. So it's a triple as fellowship, which places phd's graduates in In federal agencies and in congress to work for two years At the end of my fellowship, I was able to convert over into a full-time employee and In in the same office and climate office and and I continue to work there on issues that range from the climate negotiations overall But also focus in on some issues around Loss in damage and how we talk about impacts that countries are facing on climate change as well as science issues more broadly Thank you Alexis Looking forward to any of your questions Thank you so much farhan climate change. Like you said, it's such a huge issue It's one that we opt to do the work of chipping away at but it's always great to know that we've got a dedicated team here at the department that's making such huge impacts in that area Farhan's remarks are actually a really great segue into the office that I represent Which again is the office of science and technology cooperation The cool thing that I love about our office is that it's really cross cutting and touches on quite a bit of everything As mentioned in our office title, we cooperate with nations to establish what we call science and technology agreements These agreements give us a vehicle to formalize working relationships with specific countries on certain topics such as health Entrepreneurship advanced tech women and STEM renewable energy just to just name a few To accomplish this we organize dialogues manage foundations that support bilateral projects and work with the range of stakeholders including other USG agencies foreign governments universities businesses and so forth These efforts ultimately strengthen international cooperation These bilateral relationships Help us also to work to protect threats to open science and promote reciprocity We do this by working with foreign allies and federally funded scientists to raise awareness Of and and mitigate the risk to international to the international research enterprise Ultimately, our goal is to create a trusted network where the us and its partners can collaborate on science and technology With confidence in each other's due diligence Lastly, we execute public diplomacy programs that empower leadership and science and technology We implement economic programs in some emerging markets that connect american businesses with young science and technology Entrepreneurs through a program called the global innovation through science and technology initiative or gist We have two additional programs at our disposal to execute public diplomacy as well Those are our embassy science fellows program Which is a program that sends us g scientists to our embassies overseas to work on science and technology programs With local scientists, and then we have our science ombuds program, which engages extinguished Distinguished american scientists and engineers to forge connections with governments businesses universities in the private sector So as you can see, no day in my office looks the same one day You might be negotiating a science and technology agreement with france And then the next day you could be overseeing a pitch competition with entrepreneurs from all over the world Trying to solve the climate crisis. It's pretty exciting and is why I've been here as long as I've been here I know that that was quite a bit of information And I'm happy to go into further detail about anything that I touched on in the q&a But I think the the range of information that was just shared for myself And all of my panelists even it is really reflective of the department and why I choose to pursue it as a career destination I started here in the department back in 2016 as a bright-eyed intern Um, I didn't know much and walking into to the door. I didn't really know what to expect But what kept me here was the fact that I was constantly feeling challenged And I felt like there was an opportunity to learn something new every day and I can honestly say that still holds true today Since interning here, I've worked in three different offices and worked on things from Entrepreneurship to women and STEM to public-private partnerships and a little bit of everything in between This is such a huge organization and I believe has a little bit to offer everyone There's not many workplaces that you can go that give you the opportunity to travel all over the world Learn about different cultures all while serving the public and making the world just a little bit of a better place And with that said if we haven't convinced you enough We want to open the floor for questions But just before I do that I want to introduce you to you the oes chief of staff suer Harris who has graciously agreed to step in um in ambassador brunica's Absence to fill q and a for us suer Harris. Is there anything that you would like to share with the audience before we jump into the q&a Thanks, lexus and hi everybody Mostly I want to convey ambassador brunica's real regret that she couldn't be here today When she said she enjoyed it last year. She really meant it And she considers, you know, this sort of group of people the best sorts of people to talk to bringing people in to do the kind of Really amazing stuff we get to do every day Is fantastic So I I really do hope that over the course of the Opportunity you've had with just a few of us on this screen You're all excited and you're all going back and thinking about how you can possibly apply for all these jobs And we want you to do that and we want you to come join us because we're having a lot of fun here and Doing really fulfilling things um I have been at state department for 10 years And I was at NOAA the national oceanic and atmospheric administration for 20 years before that And I can tell you that there's a lot of work in the u.s. Government on international issues That is getting done at all sorts of levels and there's a lot of jobs out there um State department's a great place to start, but it's not the only place Farhan told you about epa Every agency has an international office pick something you love and make a phone call But I want to hear your questions. So I will stop talking now and answer when you come up with them Thanks Thanks so much suer that's such great advice. I wholeheartedly agree pick up the phone pick an area and make some phone calls But without further ado, let's take some questions um So we got a question from the chat Would a phd and political science and international relations be sufficient to work in the office of global change? Or is there is there an expectation more that you come with a degree in stem farhan from the office of global change? Would you like to take that question? Yeah, no, it's a great question. We have um a lot of folks with degrees in all sorts of different backgrounds We have folks that have Communication backgrounds and have degrees in communications to legal backgrounds. We have a actually a A large number of lawyers on our team that I are actually You know have backgrounds in environmental law And our people we recruit actively I think a large part of the the people that we do recruit For our jobs, especially the the civil service jobs that that I'm sitting and Have backgrounds specific to climate policy and international climate policy We're always looking for candidates that have backgrounds and interests from in in climate policy generally and That that background and could be very very variety. There's a large variety of the backgrounds some of them are Working for NGOs in school and doing internships. There's a wide variety of backgrounds for folks that come in I actually my my phd in Schooling it had very little to do with climate change directly. I was I was as I said focused on urban air pollution Which is not something I get to work on very often in my office now, but yeah Thanks so much. Yeah. Thanks so much for and that was a great answer um We had another question So as a graduating senior And someone seeking to attend graduate school and hopefully becoming a wrangle fellow Would you suggest looking for internships within? Oh, yes Vanessa, do you want to take this question? Absolutely, um, you know, of course seek internships in oas, but in terms of the wrangle program Graduating seniors a perfect time to look into applications You know, it's been a little while since I had applied but Usually the application starts or the deadline is in the spring And we'll provide the website so that you can look into that a little more on your own But they pick about 45 people every year And it's an incredible program. It helps pay for your graduate degree. And then you have a Contract to work with the department of state For about I think it's five years now. And then if you are a tenured you can choose to stay It's an incredible program a wonderful resource and I wouldn't be here without it Thanks so much, Vanessa. It's always good to know about the different, you know avenues you can take to get into the department There are quite a few so Okay, so we have another question the secretary of state Talked recently about the importance of creating a more diverse and inclusive workforce at the state department Can you talk a little bit about what what oes specifically is doing to promote diversity and inclusion in the bureau? So we're here is would you feel comfortable taking that question? Absolutely Well, you know, you guys our new secretary of state, anthony blinkin today announced New commitment to investing in diversity and inclusion at the state department And I have to say The department of state takes it seriously It's really important when you represent the us that you look like the us We are all sorts of different things and we've got to represent that And that means that everybody needs to be able to have these jobs that and be part of our team How do you make that work? Well, the department has just created a new position But here in this in oes, we have a council an internal group of people who meet relatively frequently To explore different ways to empower our bureau and its diversity and the individuals helping create career paths for people so that There's always something new and exciting and more challenging to move on to once you've really Accomplished what you set out to do in the first job It's a complicated challenge But it's one that is Better Because there's so many people committed to make it happen um, I think you've several of you here on the The little picture squares are um Our members of the diversity and inclusion council and boy, it's a creative group of people. They've been coming up with some great ideas um, so I'm I'm pretty convinced that the commitment is real and we're going to figure out some Really interesting new ways to empower each other Hope that helps Super helpful. Thanks so much to air great answer um, another question that we've got With john carrey as the president special envoy for climate Can you talk about how how oes works with him and his office to advance us climate policy? Farhan you touched on this a little bit in your remarks Would you like to answer this question? Maybe go into a little bit more detail if you can Sure, I'd be happy to Yes, it's a It's interesting point of transition right now in our office as I said, you know our office has been around since the early 90s We're sort of the The the constant in our international foreign policy. We've obviously served Every administration since then In the under both under obama the obama administration and now under Biden we are They both both of those we've worked closely with a special an appointed special envoy who Sets up another office within the state department and reports directly to Either the secretary of state or the president on on their work And it's a it's a way to elevate our issue to the point where you know, when we work with international partners When you have someone like secretary carry Meeting with with four leaders. It's obviously a It belays how important it transmits how important it is for us to Or the message that he's sending is that he is speaking on behalf of the the president of the united states and is absolutely, you know emphasizing how critical an issue this is for the administration Our office, you know because we have sort of the longevity of following the negotiations And a lot of the international policy here around the world We're able to assist the incoming social envoy's office and his staff in understanding, you know, where are their opportunities? Where can they Make the biggest difference and where where can we where do we need more attention to To get a country moving in the right direction So, yeah, we work closely with them. It's it's right now. It's a little bit of its earliest days in the administration So we're we're working out exactly how we work with their staff and in being responsive to their needs as they come up to speed and hire higher people But it's it's been a interesting time to to work closely with a lot of really really smart and engaged people That work with secretary carry Thanks Thanks so much farhan. That was a really really great answer Um, the questions are flowing in if you guys have any more don't hesitate to drop them in the chat box We're going to get through as many as we can The next question we have is Are there opportunities for non-us residents slash citizens who are passionate about working on climate environmental policy in the us? I'm a first-generation student from the uk and intend to defend my phd dissertation in spring of 2022 So we're here is do you want to talk about opportunities for non-us residents that maybe are passionate about working in the space? And then maybe farhan um if you want to add anything to that question as it regards um climate and environmental policy feel free to jump in as well Sure. Um It's uh, I'm going to parse out the question a little bit forgive me Um, we have colleagues who are um foreign nationals. They aren't they don't Carry us passport. They aren't us citizens, but they passed the security clearance um They are our colleagues and uh, yes, please You can work with us Overseas there are also some tremendous opportunities What we at the embassy there are foreign service officers like venessa But there are also what we call locally engaged staff So when the embassy needs some support they will hire people on the ground in whatever country you happen to be in um, and they will hire Local nationals They'll hire americans. Um, they're just looking for people to come work and do some really great work. So, um The answer is yes Thanks to air um farhan anything you want to add Yeah, I would just say um, just you know, you can also cast a wider net beyond the state department I know a lot of other agencies have opportunities Um, uh for for folks with a variety of backgrounds. Um, I think and pretty on the program You can you can see whether or not, you know, what sort of requirements they have as far as Citizenship or residency Yeah, great answer great answer Um, I think it's a good segue into our next question too It sounds like there are a lot of specialized officers working in oh, yes Do you need a phd or an other advanced degree to get a job in oh, yes Do you need to study it at a university in washington to realistically work for oh, yes, or the state department? um Yeah, I'll I'll just say before I um hand it off to panelists I think the answer to that is absolutely not Um, some of our panelists have already kind of given background on this But we all come from different backgrounds have studied different things. We certainly all did not get degrees Here at schools in washington or in the dnv area um, I for one have a background in communications and um Got my degree in hampton at hampton university In sociology first and then I went on to get my master's degree in international communications But I work with colleagues who have backgrounds Mostly in science now that I'm in this bureau But the you know, the variety is just very very vast for you know The types of backgrounds the areas of study the levels of degree that you can have to work here I think it really boils down to experience and your desire to serve the public Um, Vanessa, do you want to say anything about about this? I know especially with the wrangle and the picturing fellowship We have a lot of People that came from different backgrounds and studied different things and came over to the foreign service. For example Yeah, thank you. That's actually the entire point of the program is trying to Access groups of people who don't typically apply for these things who don't have That in in the washington Arena to think okay. Well, I want to go and work for the state department So just as an example my background. I'm from california My undergraduate degree was in anthropology I didn't know anything about the state department and had not ever considered becoming a foreign service officer before You know finding out more information about the wrangle fellowship So Yes, we we want that we we want to get people from all across the the united states And just as sue where harris pointed out um in her remarks We want a department that represents america and that needs to look like america Yeah, can I just can I pipe up just one thought? Please do. You know, we haven't talked about the foreign service exam Which is what everybody thinks about when you think about going to work for the state department This is sort of like going through the front door um You take the foreign service exam And it's offered several times a year And you find it on w w w dot state dot go And while you're there also look because they've got All of the information all of the links for the wrangle fellowship triple as uh presidential management fellows um From noah c grant fellows, um, there's a lot of different programs out there To encourage you to spend a little bit of your career working with us. It doesn't have to be forever, but a couple of years Please do That is a great piece of advice and something great to add on to that question and actually speaks to our next question So maybe see where you can kind of expand on that a little bit um our next Viewer asked is there a path to a career at the at oes or at the department of state for career changers Specifically, those of us who are no longer students but are working professionals There seems to be many many opportunities for students at the entry level But I would love to know more about opportunities for career changers Um, it is exactly the same answer and what's really interesting to me is that Foreign service officers are often mid-career often um, take the exam if you want to have the life of excitement that Vanessa explained of Traveling to and living in different posts around the world. It's tremendous fun um The rest of us definitely mid-career Uh, there's an awful lot of resumes that I see go by that bring in tons of expertise and experience from a very diverse set of jobs and education and um, not working All of that makes you valuable to us and I promise that's how we look at it Don't ever count yourself out because we you don't have this Pedigree that you think you need to have Your experience makes you valuable Yes, I 100 could not agree more Um, many of my colleagues have you know had full-blown You know complete opposite careers prior to come into the state department And I just agree with sewer here is that it's what makes them dynamic You know the perspective that they're able to bring to the conversation is often one that you know would be missed if they weren't there So, um, we absolutely value that and we encourage, you know any and all to explore avenues to the state department specifically Oh, yes, a lot of us came in from different backgrounds And I think another really good example of transitioning mid-career or or being interested in transitioning mid-career is exploring like barhans route using the triple as fellowship um Farhan do you want to speak a little bit about? Your path to the triple as fellowship and maybe some experience that you've had or that you've heard of with others who? matriculate to the state department or usd general through triple as Sure. Yeah, I can give a little bit of background on the triple as program and it sort of answers the question That we were discussing a little bit earlier about whether or not you need a phd to work for the state department I think it's actually the other way around. I think the vast majority of people at the state department do not have phds, you know On on scientific issues for sure But the triple as program and it's when it was created I think in the late mid 70s What was it was created an intention to get more phds into federal services? actually There are times where it's it's hard for someone who spent a lot of time in school to qualify for positions in the federal government because as you You can qualify positions based on experience or based on education And sometimes there's a disconnect for a particular job that if you only have an educational experience But no no actual Direct experience in work or it's It can be difficult to to match into a job. So that's where you know, for example A traditional foreign service officer position or a civil service officer position May have requirements to spend a certain amount of time on you know public political science or Other sort of backgrounds. It's very hard for someone with with a background like mine, which was on You know geosciences to necessarily qualify for those sort of positions. So the triple as program targets of what, you know, what wide variety of phd graduates To apply for programs in a number of different agencies across Washington DC. So you come into DC as a cohort of Fellows and I think there's About 150 or so a year that come in Maybe it's more than that now. It's it's been a number of years since I've I've participated directly in the program But you end up going through a matching process where you interview in a course of a week In offices around the around the city around Washington DC Understanding what the jobs are what they're looking for And and talking about yourself to a variety of different offices And then it's a matching process every office lists all the people they interviewed and the candidates that they they would like To hire and then the candidates themselves also list the offices and then there's a matching on on preferences Um, and and you're gonna get getting placed in an office someplace in Washington DC And that can be everywhere from the government department state to us a id the department of defense EPA HHS that you know, there's a wide variety of different agencies you can end up in and there's also Somewhat separate of a track, but there's a track underneath the triple s program to work directly with congress And there you would be spending a year in a congressional office working Um, you know as a member of either a senator or representative staff Um, and then at the end of the the two years that the fellowship is You end up having to make a decision, you know Sometimes if if things line up and there's a ability to for the office that you were a fellow in to hire you on permanently that that that goes forward There's also about a third of fellows go back to academics and become professors and about a third of fellows end up Moving on to another Area, it's not necessarily government service or academics, but in geo advocacy work. There's a wide variety of other places where fellows end up Thanks so much varhan that is an awesome answer. Um, we are going to provide Links at the end of the panel that you'll see come up on the slide But also in the chat box To more information on triple s the wrangle Inpickering fellowship the internship program and then just to our general website just so that you guys can explore other options I'll also we'll add that, you know The the routes that we came in through are not the only avenues, you know, there are other fellowships we have the of veterans innovation preference fellowship, which I think is um Annually where it, you know prioritizes veterans coming into the department There's the presidential management fellowship. So there are lots of different options that you should explore to getting into the department We are nearing the end of the panel. I think we have time for just two more questions So this next question i'm going to ask of suer here is and it is OES priorities seem to fluctuate depending on the presidential administration's priorities How do you cope with working under republican and democratic? administrations with completely different views on issues like climate change health security and s&t collaboration That is a great question, especially now um But the I think you want to mute suer one accident So I think you're muted There you are That's the nature of the job We are civil servants Foreign service and civil we work for the government Regardless of who is in charge of that government um We take an oath to the constitution And I take it seriously. It's really cool to pledge to the flag and say I promise that I will um But policy is set by elected officials in this country And that's one of the beauties of it and that means that if the administration changes the policy changes And it's our job To find a way to implement that policy to the best of our ability um I have been in government since the first bush administration Right after the end of the reagan administration. You guys remember that, right? um Every single time There has been a significant shift in policy And yet those of us who work for the civil service Get the job done and keep getting the job done every single day And it's tremendous um farhan has Had a front row seat in a change in policy direction um A lot of it changed some of it didn't and We all Stay as long as we feel proud representing and carrying out the job that we're asked to do How's that for the answer? I think it was perfect spot on if you ask me Um, so we have one final question that actually I would like all of our panelists to contribute to and the question is In each of the panelists, please share what they love most about their respective jobs And I'll just start because I love singing the praises of state department and my job here um, I kind of mentioned this earlier, but it's just that I feel like i'm constantly learning something new um currently working in our office of science and technology cooperation I have a background in communications and work amongst, you know, many phd scientists And so I'm learning something new about things that I would have never, you know known prior to coming into this office um The opportunity to travel to some amazing places that I've never that I don't think I would have gotten opportunity to travel and see And just the amazing people that I meet from all over the world and different backgrounds. I would say Is an extreme highlight of my job. Um, so I think that's what I love most. Sue, where would you like to go next? What is my favorite part about the job? Yes Feeling that I'm doing something that matters I really do. Um, I admit that I'm a bureaucrat and I'm really good at it, but I feel like I'm contributing to something better and I I have found through my career that um I have met some of the most amazing people in the united states and around the world Who are committed to doing the same thing And I get to be part of that I'm happy every day to do That's beautiful. Thank you Vanessa, what about you? What what do you love most about your job? Gosh, I think you guys already covered it I work with an incredible group of people. I'm constantly impressed by the thoughtfulness Intelligence and passion that people have about the issues that they work on in the department of state and I love that We're working on things that matter um It's exciting. It's interesting. It's dynamic and constantly changing and I feel that working with these people Makes me a better colleague and a better person Great answer. Thanks so much, Vanessa Farhan. What about you? Yeah, um, can I answer just be all of the above? You guys have hit everything that I was going to say I think to a large degree Yes, the people the work Is it's really amazing that the ability to travel and see the inside of policy discussions that you know Very few are privileged to be a part of is always, uh, you know awe inspiring I was that one Little thing that I think is really fun about my job It's I like going into a meeting and having to argue A us position that no one else will agree with you and When at the end of the day and get everyone to agree to me by the end of the day and convince everyone You know why? You know my position is the best position and so maybe that Gives you a little bit of insight into my personality, but I think it is a It is a fun an awesome responsibility to be able to go into a room and represent the United States of America and and You know Participate in the process that you know That that is so important to the the world and everyone So Yeah, that's That's what I have No, thank you. Thank you. Thank you all Um, that was our final question on behalf of the entire bureau We just want to thank you for joining us today. You guys have been such a great audience We hope this panel was both informative and also persuasive We really do hope you consider the state department as a career destination Just a moment. You'll see the screen that we talked about earlier that has all of the links that you can access Um, thanks for your time today And I just want to encourage you or remind you rather to be sure to head to the main room For the power panel right after this one. Thanks so much for your time and have a great rest of the conference. Bye