Citizen Diplomacy_a Very Diplomatic Idea_brent M Eastwood

AMERICAN.COM A Magazine of Ideas

‘Citizen Diplomacy’—A Very Democratic Idea By Brent M. Eastwood Friday, August 10, 2007

Corporate leaders and other private actors are doing their part to represent America abroad. More often than not, the “art of the deal” requires superb skills in international relations. Today‟s corporate leaders face a never-ending schedule of hectic overseas travel. This means CEOs, COOs, and VPs often act as American ambassadors and envoys—sometimes meeting with more international business and political leaders than U.S. Foreign Service Officers. “Corporate diplomacy” is becoming one of the new supplementary faces of American diplomacy. Corporate leaders have the skill sets to communicate effectively, diffuse conflict, and build relationships with their international counterparts. These efforts become more important in the context of America‟s national need to build soft power and to prevail in the war of ideas. It is well understood that today‟s international environment can be challenging for even the most diplomatic American traveler. Corporate leaders are often on the front lines when it comes to dealing with anti-American sentiment—after all, negative perceptions of Americans can be bad for business. “Most international business has a relationship aspect and if you do not take the time to understand and appreciate the local culture, languages and customs it can be a deterrent to a productive and profitable relationship. You have to overcompensate relative to the perceptions and in many cases keep the „American drive‟ in check so that the pace of business discussions does not overwhelm,” says Chris Celtruda, Vice President of Aerospace Products for Circor International, Inc. The San Francisco-based group Business for Diplomatic Action is a private-sector task force that tries to help multinational companiesimprove U.S. perceptions overseasand maintain America‟s

image abroad as a global leader. Most Anti-Americanism stems from disagreement with U.S. foreign policy. Sometimes it is cultural. Europeans may think American political leaders are over-religious while Muslims may believe Americans are immoral and materialistic. The Pew Foundation conducts yearly surveys on global attitudes and the U.S. has undergone a precipitous drop in “favorable opinion.” For example, in 2000, Germany had a 78% favorable opinion of the U.S., in 2006; it had dropped to 37%. In 2000, Indonesia had a 75% favorable rating of the U.S.; it was at 30% in 2006. Turkey dropped from 52% favorable to 12%. “Some of the stereotypes about Americans say that we can be loud, arrogant, and rude. The perception is that we do not listen and that we are not educated about the language, culture, and customs of the countries we do business with,” says Cari E. Guittard, Executive Director of Business for Diplomatic Action. The group trains corporate leaders in the subtleties of public diplomacy. Most are already adept at negotiation and conflict management on the global level because it affects the bottom line. Others are encouraged to listen more to their international counterparts; be open to other points of view; and to refrain from being offensive. Les Grove, a decades-long veteran in the medical instruments industry, has trained his employees along these lines and keeps them up to speed on the Safe Harbor Act. A “safe harbor” framework is an agreement between the U.S. and the EU in which U.S. companies avoid experiencing interruptions in their business dealings with the EU or facing prosecution by European authorities under streamlined standards for privacy protection. “I make sure my people are „culture conscious‟ and have them call or check the U.S. Commerce or State Department websites for travel advisories before they depart. I think we have become more culturally-conscious and are more sensitive to language and customs since 9/11,” says Grove. Celtruda has seen some examples of anti-Americanism abroad including blowback against the Iraq war; anti-Bush and other anti-American graffiti; and even protesters in France destroying a McDonald‟s. “It is our role to act as a diplomat and emissary of the U.S. whenever we travel abroad in conduct and in message. It is interesting to recount interactions with people who I have met that may have emigrated to the U.S. from the region I am doing business in and share the specific things that make them proud and thankful now that they are a citizen or working in the U.S.,” says Celtruda. Members of Congress are joining these citizen diplomacy efforts as well. The House Democracy Assistance Commission (HDAC) is comprised of twenty House Members from both parties who conduct outreach and education projects to improve legislatures in emerging democracies. The need for legislative assistance became acute with the advent of new democracies in Central and Eastern European countries after the Cold War. Now the commission focuses on twelve countries that are in various stages of democracy development. The main effort is to help foster a functioning and independent legislative branch that is capable of oversight and checks and

balances. Delegations from HDAC visit these emerging democracies and help implement programs to improve committee structure, oversight hearings, constituent services, and independent budget analysis. HDAC Ranking Member Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) cites projects in Indonesia, Mongolia, and East Timor in which each country‟s leadership was willing to improve democratization. The commission recently was able to convince the president of Indonesia to allow the parliament to pick their own staff members in a process that is independent of the executive branch. This reform can help Indonesia‟s parliament to become more autonomous and conduct better oversight. “The U.S. Congress has over two hundred years of experience, and it is very rewarding to pass along some of our lesson-drawing to emerging democracies. It is great to have so many countries who want to be a part of this project. But we have to remember that just because a country holds an election; it does not mean it is a democracy. These partnerships provide countries with the foundation and building blocks to become effective legislatures,” says Rep. Dreier. While it is not clear how effective these citizen diplomacy efforts will be in terms of improving perceptions of Americans overseas, it is a step in the right direction. The transformation of American attitudes and behavior while interacting with the global citizenry is a critical portion of an improved international relations strategy for the U.S. Brent M. Eastwood is an Adjunct Professor at George Mason University School of Public Policy.