Past Publications

Academy current issues, past actions, and views on reform.

A strong State Department, based on a strong Foreign Service and a strong Civil Service, is a critical component of America’s security.

In the aftermath of September 11th, and with the ensuing need for a broad and multi-layered international coalition to respond to the terrorist threat, the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy (ISD) and the American Academy of Diplomacy initiated a major project on coalition building and maintenance.

The book’s opening sentence—”Security and prosperity are the two great goals of American foreign policy, and they are closely linked”—accurately identifies the two key underpinnings of our policy.

The Foreign Service Officers of the Department of State and the Agency for International Development (USAID) are the foot soldiers of smart power. These men and women lead and staff our 195 Embassies, 55 Consulates, and 85 USAID Missions around the world. They are our nation’s first line of defense.

Although America faces many complex foreign policy challenges, several recent studies have found that the U.S. State Department, USAID, and the Foreign Service do not have the human and financial resources to appropriately respond to them.

US foreign policy interests face an unparalleled set of political, economic, strategic, and cultural challenges. Since at least 2001, America’s “smart power” equation has been out of balance.

Preventing Genocide provided a blueprint that could enable the United States to take preventive action, along with international partners, to forestall the specter of future cases of genocide and mass atrocities.

In May 2013, the American Academy of Diplomacy and the Simons Center for Interagency Cooperation jointly hosted a conference called The Foreign Policy Advisor Program: Diplomats Among Warriors on the role of the State Department Foreign Policy Advisor, or “POLAD,” who serve with the US military.