IGE President to Advise Secretary Clinton’s New Strategic Dialogue with Civil Society
By IGE on 01 September 2011
IGE President, Dr. Chris Seiple, has accepted a nomination to serve on the Federal Advisory Committee to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's "Strategic Dialogue with Civil Society." Dr. Seiple will also serve as Senior Advisor to the Committee's Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group.
According to the U.S. Department of State, the "Strategic Dialogue with Civil Society" is designed to elevate the importance of the U.S. Government's work with members of civil society and to underscore U.S. commitment to engage, support, and protect civil society around the world. As such, the initiative reveals "a broader commitment to make engagement beyond the state a defining feature of U.S. foreign policy."
The "Strategic Dialogue with Civil Society" features five thematic working groups: Governance and Accountability; Democracy and Human Rights; Empowering Women and Girls; Religion and Foreign Policy; and Labor. These groups will be led by senior U.S. Government officials, with membership comprised of civil society leaders from around the world.
The State Department will officially launch the Religion and Foreign Policy Working Group on 18 October 2011. The working group includes four task forces: Religion in Foreign Policy and National Security; Religious Engagement and Conflict Prevention/Mitigation; International Religious Freedom: Advocacy to Combat Religious-Based Violence and Human Rights Abuse; and Faith-Based Groups and Development and Humanitarian Assistance.
In accepting the nomination, Dr. Seiple observed that "This dialogue is what we do at the Institute for Global Engagement—a "relational diplomacy" that works simultaneously from the top-down (governments) and bottom-up (grassroots). This "track 1.5" approach also happens to be, I believe, a defining characteristic of sustainable impact in the 21st century. I look forward to supporting this much needed initiative."
Last updated 23 November 2011