Pointless Debate Vs Converging agreed points --- Humanitarian diplomacy aims to reach a consensus rather than wasting time on pointless debate. The procedure necessitates a high level of negotiation skill and culminates in a set of converging agreed-upon points.

Source author: Wossene Hailu Wossene_Hailu@wvi.org

appearance --- What about the "dress code" In the humanitarian world we tent to have a relatively casual dress code. Officials in most countries will follow a strict dress code. What about "unusual" appearances? e.g. Face tattoos, Rastafarian hair,.....

Source author: Gerhard Tauscher gerhardtoday@gmail.com

agreed result vs real action --- An important detail part. I have seen in many occasions that parties, especially the Government side agrees in the Negotiations, but finally "sits is out" and does not as agreed.

Source author: Gerhard Tauscher gerhardtoday@gmail.com

Another forms of paradiplomacy --- I agree with you Kone. In Mexico, one of the most relevant events on the northern border are the meetings held regularly by the McAllen, Texas and Reynosa, Tamaulipas chambers of commerce and those of the mayors of both border states to strengthen their collaboration, taking into account the importance of maquiladoras. Another form of paradiplomacy are the sister cities. A good example is the excellent economic relation that prevails between Nuevo Laredo, Matamoros, and Reynosa, and Laredo, Brownsville, and McAllen.

Source author: Cecilia Treemonisha Barros Ruiz cbarros@sre.gob.mx

Botswana experience --- Thank you Judah for sharing Botwana' experience. I think it is in the interest of each country to promote the training of generalists in various topics related to international relations instead of specialists.

Source author: Cecilia Treemonisha Barros Ruiz cbarros@sre.gob.mx

David and Ricardo, this is an interesting set of comments. --- When one of my books was launched in Delhi, probably in 2004 -- that would be 'The 21st Century Ambassador', the Amb of France, Singapore and the UK spoke. Two of them affirmed that much of their time (one said 60%, the other 70%), was taken up with economic work....That was also my experience at 5 ambassadorships (and one as CG in SF).....So my response, barring in major neighbors, or the major powers, EVERY embassy today is first an economic dip promoter....I welcome contrary views -- an exception might be very busy consulates overwhelmed with consular tasks.e

Source author: Kishan S Rana kishanrana@gmail.com

France is, even now, the most 'colonial' of the former colonizers --- Just look at the paternalistic manner in which Francophonie functions....And France clings on to overseas 'prefectures', which are really former colonies, which are so well subsidized that they prefer to stay on in that quasi-colonial mode, rather than seek self-determination, which would mean a much lower standard of living....This complements the examples you have given of French 'rule' in Africa.

Source author: Kishan S Rana kishanrana@gmail.com

Mohamed, a comment that... --- ...religion and sport were factors in the origin of diplomacy is perplexing. From the outset, tribal and local clusters of communities of people sought security, safety and began discourse with one another to assure this, either by overwhelming the weak, or forming alliances....And once they felt safe, they began commerce, starting with simple barter....May I suggest that religion as a factor in dealing with neighbors entered the picture, by way of conquest, gaining new territories in the name of one's faith....I am not sure where sport fits into that....May I suggest that you elucidate your comments -- perhaps I have misunderstood your intent. Thanks.

Source author: Kishan S Rana kishanrana@gmail.com

Example --- Any one please can give another example!

Source author: Nasr Al Mawali nasr.mawali@gmail.com

Diplomatic protection - prerogative of the state --- Indeed, Tarniem, the contemporary approach is that the individual could be considered a subject of international law, and the owner of international individual rights. This approach relies for its justification on areas such as investment protection treaties, intellectual property treaties, international human rights law, individual criminal liability, etc. However, we should note that the doctrine of diplomatic protection has been traditionally construed as a right (and prerogative) of the state, and not of the individual that has been wronged.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Re. modern day --- True, Malefetsane. And, at the same time, China has introduced many requisits to repatriate profit from China to another country. It will be interesting to see how the new OECD tax rules may impact that.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Colonies --- Interesting observation, David. I would be curious to hear views on this. Coming from a former colony myself, my feeling is that in some cases, like Brazil, colonial bureaucracy did try to create room for bargain in terms of the economic wealth that would remain in the colony. This cannot be called economic 'diplomacy', but the political actions reveal understanding of politics and bargaining of economic benefits. In fact, elites' dissatisfaction with regards to how the wealth was appropriated by colonizers was an important trigger of independence in many cases.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Stalemate of EU-EAC Economic Partnership (EPA) --- EPA negotiation between the EU and East Africa Community (EAC) were concluded in 2014 but unlike Kenya, Tanzania with other few member states of East Africa Community (EAC), failed to sign and rectify the partnership agreement. The overall concerns of Tanzania is on how the partnership agreement provide the EU with free access to the East Africa Community market for its goods in exchange for lowering tariffs on EAC exports to the EU market. From this kind of arrangement, certainly EAC member states had little to gain from the partnership and signing would harm their national interests. The partnership is viewed as as potential measures of killing EAC infant industries.

Source author: Frank John Mhina frankmhina01@gmail.com

career diplomats and political appointees --- I have noticed that in some African diplomatic Missions, all diplomatic staff are political appointees who at the end of their term/recall go back to their old positions outside the Foreign Ministry. I always wonder how they manage continuity/followup of projects without stability of staff retention. can some one with a familiar background shed light on the matter?

Source author: Lapologang Judah lapoduna@gmail.com

The upcoming Dubai Expo 2020 --- as an example of such international trade shows where subnational entities relevant to economic diplomacy participate in.

Source author: Malefetsane Dominic Mosala mosalalaw@gmail.com

Modern day. --- Indeed this still happens and among others still is the most favoured tool for attracting FDIs and maintaining investors in the host state. I find some states though or corporate bodies or citizens thereof abusing this favourable treatment or encouragement to investment by taking all proceeds of their investments, sometimes even leaving the host state without a give back to the society kinda initiative claiming bankruptcy. Chinese investors in Africa are very good examples of companies or investors who abuse repatriation concept.

Source author: Malefetsane Dominic Mosala mosalalaw@gmail.com

chambers of commerce --- Good question @Gnagna, considering that Chambers of Commerce also play a part in trade and investment promotion.

Source author: Omphile Sethunya Sedimo sedimosethunya44@gmail.com

of MFAs and priority to economic diplomacy --- Indeed, there is pressure for MFA´s to demonstrate due priority to economic diplomacy, especially those in the developing countries as economic diplomacy is essential to their socio-economic development. To this end, Embassies offer advice to their capitals through economic intelligience reports to guide strategic promotion and market availability of a country´s trade and investment opportunities.

Source author: Omphile Sethunya Sedimo sedimosethunya44@gmail.com

Can missions be primarily based on economic diplomacy? --- Dear David, do you think a Diplomatic Mission´s plan can be organized after setting economic diplomacy as the core of it? I am asking this question because there can be certain Missions that their nature force them to mainly perform economic activities. Currently I am posted in southeast China, this zone contributes the most to the economy and trade of China. So, the Consulate needs to focus more on commercial issues rather than cultural or consular ones. However, we often end up doing all kind of activities and the priorities are set depending on the period of time or instructions from our headquarters.

Source author: Ricardo Daniel Delgado Muñoz rdelgado@sre.gob.mx

Diplomatic protection and National-International Law --- I completely agree that diplomatic protection should be developed along with the recognition of human rights. In your comment you mentioned that individuals need to have more access to international law and forums to enforce their rights. It is true, but I also think national law should improve, both for citizens and foreigners, in order to better protect these rights. In this way, a person wouldn´t need to depend on international mechanisms to defend themselves.

Source author: Ricardo Daniel Delgado Muñoz rdelgado@sre.gob.mx

Bartering in Africa during the pre-colonial period --- It is interesting to see how there are communities in Africa that still maintain a barter system as a form of exchange. Before the colonial period, various areas in Africa, instead of using goods to barter, they used their labor power as a form of payment. Unfortunately, this type of system was later exploited by European entrepreneurs to acquire workforce that was eventually enslaved.

Source author: Ricardo Daniel Delgado Muñoz rdelgado@sre.gob.mx

Current importance of experts --- It is particularly interesting that nowadays experts sent from the central Ministries still play a great role in the functions of representative offices abroad. Given their expertise, they might hold meetings or conduct their own activities without the direct vigilance from the Head of mission. One example are agricultural attachés that are the main responsible for the agricultural agenda of their nations in the receiving country.

Source author: Ricardo Daniel Delgado Muñoz rdelgado@sre.gob.mx

Horrifying implications of nuclear --- In this context, I would argue that the AUKUS is clearly an example of a negative economic statecraft. Hence, I'm getting the understanding that economic statecraft is not only done by one strong country alone, but can come in a form of plurality as in the case of the tripartite AUKUS. As a Pacific Islander who strongly support our Leaders' declaration that the Pacific is a nuclear free (whether for energy or military) region, I see the AUKUS as a total disrespect economic statecraft from the 3 powers to the Pacific Islands, despite their close connections to these islands.

Source author: David Ateti Teaabo david.teaabo@gmail.com

Japan's economic diplomacy --- based on the economic conditions and Challenges imposed on the world economy by COVID-19, Japan has set out a strategic target that aims, in its economic diplomacy, to maintain and strengthen an international economic system that is free and open, and founded upon the rule of law. Alongside this, it has moved forward on the four dimensions of negotiations, namely the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)Agreement, the Japan-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), and the Japan-US Economic Dialogue.

The four dimensions of the Japan's economic diplomacy are not dealt with separately as individual issues, rather, they have been tackled based on the basic strategic of expanding a network of free trade across the world with Japan as a central hub.

Source author: Simataa Matali simatamatali@icloud.com

I see the connections ... --- ... between economic statecraft and bullying as elaborated by Simataa and Matshedisa's negative sanctions (aid suspensions, and asset freezes). To these effects, I see/define statecraft along these lenses and would view the big arm economies as bullies.

Furthermore, when big armed economies apply negative sanctions to small economies, aren't they interfere with the internal politics of the affected countries? If yes, then statecraft should be considered thoroughly and strategically.

Source author: David Ateti Teaabo david.teaabo@gmail.com

re. up to these days --- Interesting observation on the political dynamics, Ndeye. On the one hand, there is a risk that countries in Africa and elsewhere become the chess board where power games between Western countries and China are being played. On the other hand, because countries understand the dangers of that, it could also be a push towards galvanizing internal (regional) coherence in a political level. I think this is hapenning in Africa to some extent. That would strengthen the continent in negotiations and maybe put them in a position in which gains could be obtained from both sides. Curious to hear what others think.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Re. strategic position --- Sounds like very good advice, David. Seems this would be a key position from what you describe.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Commercial Diplomacy --- Provides dedicated support to tackle both challenges and opportunities in foreign markets. Commercial diplomacy works to ensure open and effective engagement with foreign officials on behalf of a state,companies, industries, or broader national economic security interests.

Source author: Mavis Tungulu mtungulu@gmail.com

Career diplomats and political appointees --- Indeed Mohamed. Several countries have been through a reform of their diplomatic service, and career diplomats have become the norm. This has helped to curb favoritism to an extent, but the situation varies. In some countries, it is acceptable (and maybe even valued) that public servants take 'time out' to experience opportunities in the private sector. Sometimes they go back-and-forth throughout their career in a 'revolving door' manner. There are certainly pros and cons. Is this a common practice in your countries?

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Cuban doctor diplomacy --- Good reference, Ndeye. Even before the pandemic, Cuba has very skillfully employed its high quality medical staff in missions to other countries, even developed ones. They serve not only humanitarian purposes, but there are ceratinly economic and political considerations involved.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Whole-of-government approach --- Absolutely, excellent points indeed. I would particularly emphasise the importance of this communication among different parts of the government (which also need to contribute in formulating needs and priorities for the country's external representation). Communication is a two-way street. This is not always straightforward.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Interdependence --- Thought-provoking comment, Frank. The word interdependence can be used in a more general way, as I think you did. In the context of the 'theory of interdepence' as elaborated by Keohane and Nye in the 1970s, interdependence makes reference to a scenario in which the relation among states becomes more deep and complex. Webs of economic interdependence undermine state power and elevate the influence of transnational non-state actors. In that sense I wonder if the role of the state remais as you describe (strategic coordination). In some sectors as least (digital technlogy-related ones could be an example) it seems like private sectors are playing the cards, and states are 'running' after them. Curious to hear everyone's thoughts.

Source author: Marília Maciel MariliaM@diplomacy.edu

Trade diplomacy --- Trade diplomacy as such is concerned with the management of trade regimes as well as the market factors affected by the regime. A distinctive feature of trade and economic diplomacy at large is that market actors are involved in the push pull of.

Source author: Mavis Tungulu mtungulu@gmail.com

Data Analyst --- A data analyst needs to identify the quantitative data and qualitative data. Quantitative data with specific and objectives measures of numerical facts. Qualitative data describes subjective or explanatory measures of qualities and characteristics or things that can't be measured with numerical data

Source author: YingChu Chen jungheng@gmail.com

the completion of this circle takes time.... --- ...and is a circle, so continues and eventually never ends... So there is never a definite eternal answer. This is opposed to what many people expect from decision makers. Changing advice is often viewed as a proof of being false, which can be an obstacle to advancement.

Source author: Katharina Beyer katharina.beyer@etu.unige.ch

Or: do we have a better alternative now? --- I agree that reality is different, and sometimes a theory does not prove to be false, but incomplete. This is what I think applies to the discussion about vaccines etc: If we don't (and can't for obvious reasons) know the long term effects on mass vaccination in a global pandemic, since we never had this particular situation, we have to take the least harmful option. Or in other words: the most likely or less unlikely. This means also we might know better later... (And in this case we know already that vaccination alone is not enough, but no vaccination at all is worse ;-)

Source author: Katharina Beyer katharina.beyer@etu.unige.ch

Phenomenon and behavior --- Social science for me is a method to affect human behavior in a society, a state, or international events. Natural science is systematic research to see the phenomena in nature or biology.

Source author: YingChu Chen jungheng@gmail.com

'the world seen as molecules' and 'the world seen as people' --- That's a wonderful way of putting it, Carlos. For a while, I really enjoyed reading the British philosopher Rom Harré. He introduces a distinction between 'the world seen as molecules' and 'the world seen as people'. It expresses the same idea. In some ways, science diplomacy can be seen as an interesting mediation between these two worlds.

Source author: Katharina Höne KatharinaH@diplomacy.edu

policy landscape --- I need to improve my understanding of international policy landscape.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

balance --- It seems there is balance in skills which need to improve in scientists and diplomats. I mean scientist could become diplomat and vice versa if they improve the required skills.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

New question --- Thank you Tim for sharing this article. I am reading it with great interest and it's true that sometimes we prematurely embrace idealistic narratives. A question crossed my mind: is there a structured/systematic monitoring and/or evaluation framework from a science diplomacy perspective for collaborative "exercises" such as SESAME?

Source author: Aura Fossati aura.fossati@gmail.com

ISC --- International Science Council. I think it plays the both role.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

SESAME --- My country, Iran is part of SESAME project and I am not aware of any other one if it exists.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

Complementary resource --- Thank you Katharina for the quotation and the interesting question! From my point of view, the role of indigenous knowledge in science diplomacy is as complementary resource to "scientific" knowledge to address global challenges as climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental issues (to name a few). Bringing together indigenous knowledge and science represents an innovative response for the monitoring and risk reduction of phenomena, as well as the development of adapting and sustainable options. And I think this traditional-scientific knowledge interaction has its place at the negotiations tables, whether to establish and support international scientific collaborations, or to improve relations between countries or regions, or to provide new data at the decision-making level, without forgetting its role in the recognition of indigenous rights at the local-global level.

Source author: Aura Fossati aura.fossati@gmail.com

the rise of its improtance --- Encieh, I think this is the point, that science started to make an existence in terms of its importance even in war discussions. Imagine how long it is taking governments to involve scientists in the negotiations or decision making tables. I think this is the problem until nowadays.

Source author: Muna Zaqsaw zaqsaw.muna89@gmail.com

localism as a response to a not local threat --- it was indeed interesting and surprising to see how efforts and communications turned national (even cantonal in CH) while the threat definitely did not care about borders (except oceans...). Does it mean when the threat is too imminent or seems out of our control we turn inwards? Was the local pressure on scientists so high they didn't have resources to turn outwards?

Source author: Katharina Beyer katharina.beyer@etu.unige.ch

Swissnex --- The Swissnex network is actually hosted by Swiss consulate, thus benefitting from the same status..

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

Science attaché --- In my experience, science attaché are usually working on establishing and promoting scientific collaborations between the country where they are posted and their home countries. In my opinion, it is only a small portion of what could be described as science diplomacy.

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

science diplomacy --- I believe that an important facet of science diplomacy is for countries to base their positions on scientific insights and to make sure that science provides possible scenarios on the consequences of adopting a specific policy...

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

CERN for the Earth --- I would argue that the world needs a CERN for the Earth to gain a comprehensive understanding of our natural ecosystem and to take collective action to mitigate climate change and adapt to it...

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

Still the case --- US support for CERN (as well as Russian support in fact) is most probably an attempt to maintain Europe's centrality in scientific research, at a time when new powers are emerging (think China...).

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

CERN --- CERN is a great example of both diplomacy for science (countries have a common interest to join forces because of the huge investments needed to set up such a large particles physics laboratory) and science for diplomacy (rebuild trust between European nations after WW2 through scientific cooperation)

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

institutional interests --- scientists might want to serve their institutions' interests, which could be compared to the defense of national interests by diplomats...

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

collective management --- while this definition applies well to bilateral diplomacy, I would argue that (multilateral) diplomacy is also about the collective management of our planet.

Source author: Samir Yeddes samir.yeddes@eda.admin.ch

Fairer for whom? people? animals?? --- I really enjoy your comments on this word, since this was one of my motivations to take this course. Working in places where both unfairness (= striking inequalities among others) and initiatives to address unfairness are highly visible (Gstaad and Geneva), I found myself struggling with a clear definition of it. I think it's a dynamic edge with the best win-win for concerned in the system. In health we used to place the human as the (only) concerned. We now know that we have to be fair to nature/environment as well...

Source author: Katharina Beyer katharina.beyer@etu.unige.ch

How? --- I would really would like to know how it is possible. Under our legislation this would be impossible. I will be very grateful if you can provide me with more information

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

Ideology --- You are so right, Katharina

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

Relationship building skill --- Building of relationships is usually taken for granted. You can call this as a partner life cycle involving initiation, formation, growth and maturation stages and is an important skill considering the language, cultural and society differences

Source author: George Thomas georgethomasdesk@gmail.com

Diplomacy for science --- Looking more at the three part definition of science diplomacy; Doesn't "diplomacy for science" address the existing inequalities across the global community? If yes, we could then directly question what is currently being done under this branch of science diplomacy.

Source author: Kiconco Patricia kictricia@gmail.com

resources --- Shouldn't science diplomacy include mechanisms to provide resources to improve the quality of science/ technology in developing countries? Or is it already being practiced at some level?

Source author: Lakmini Premadasa lakminisurangika@gmail.com

Missing basic skill --- There's a missing skill that could be obvious in global north but is scarce in global south. Most diplomats, despite of their high formation in humanistic fields, lack of understanding of how science works. This is a major gap for reaching an effective science diplomacy in developing countries.

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

Multilateral diplomacy --- Multilateral diplomacy is one of the diplomacy fields where we as career diplomats have not only to be more in touch with science world but also need to exercise our own scientific criteria. Health, food & nutrition, drugs, biodiversity, climate change, sustainable development are just some examples.

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

I disagree --- I think this perspective is an oversimplification of the mentioned article. Kaltofen and Acuto talk about "the encounter of world politics and the world of science" and mention actors from "different social worlds" but this does't necessarily means a confrontation between diplomats and scientists. Actually, is an encounter between different ways of thinking. The political perspective uses to think in terms of intersubjective constructions tha can be shaped according to particular interests. The scientific perspective think in terms of objective facts (as objective as is possible in the uncertain world of science) that cannnot be shaped without distorting science. Actor involved in these confrontation can be only diplomats that work with different crteria. Take world drug problem, for example. Some countries stablish their position based on "security concerns" and security is a social construction. Other countries stablish their position based on scientifi evidence that can go against traditional positions. Diplomats defending first position belong to the political world. Diplomats defending second positions belong to the science world and can be considered scientific diplomats.

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

spy? --- How one can distinguish a science attache and a spy?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

generalization? --- Can one generalize the result of this analysis?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

measure --- what is the measurement for this equality?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

diplomacy in science? --- Why not diplomacy in science?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

common! --- Even the problem of climate change is not common challenge for some countries and they do not accept their responsibility.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

ISC --- International Science Council: Diplomacy for Science

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

not successful --- As an Iranian and Physicists I am aware that even SESAME project does not help for scientific collaboration with Israel.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

CERN still as a model? --- Does CERN still continue this diplomacy? as a Physicist, my answer is no. It is difficult for non-European countries to contribute in its activities.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

final decision --- at the end the politician take decision without considering scientific advices; an example is the exit of US from Paris Climate agreement.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

global? --- If we do not share scientific results and abuse science as power, there will be no hope for global development. Sometimes there is no trust on scientific result of researches have done in south and low- and middle income countries. So how stakeholders and funders can investigate on global challenges if they do not trust?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

national or international? --- how about national collaborations; i.e. diplomacy for engaging more scientists in vital decisions of country

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

only foreign? --- Why only foreign policy? we need science in internal policy too.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

correlated definitions --- as a scientist I need scientific collaboration so if diplomacy helps to facilitate theses collaboration I am in favor of this definition, however my scientific path is affected by the rules of state actors if they do not devote budget. So i conclusion science diplomacy is a mixture of 3 definitions.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

disagree --- Unfortunately I disagree him. Nowadays some countries use nuclear science as power even if they do not have nuclear weapons. This is abusing science for political goals and in most of the cases there are no scientists in the debates among politicians and even some scientist are threaten by their government to help to get nuclear technology.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

science diplomats --- scientists

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

positive change through science --- Change the attitude of overseas especially muslim countries about US through scientific collaborations.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

COST - another example of European SD --- "COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) is a funding organisation for research and innovation networks." Great example, thanks George.

Source author: Katharina Höne KatharinaH@diplomacy.edu

parachute science and what to do about it ... --- Thanks for this article, Aura. The term parachute science is new to me. The problem of course is not. I find the article you shared quite useful. To quote: Parachute science "creates dependency on external expertise, does not address local research needs, and hinders local research efforts." One of the counters they suggest is more community engagement. The article also touches on access to research results - something that has come up elsewhere in the discussion in the course. They make suggestions on regulation to address parachute science. I know that self-regulation is a tricky thing, but their suggestion (research permits) strikes me as something that might be adding more administrative burden without real change. I'm curious to see what others think.

Source author: Katharina Höne KatharinaH@diplomacy.edu

science diplomacy and global development --- I think you are absolutely right in questioning this, Encieh. Science diplomacy does not not automatically lead to global development. Inequalities in development and inequalities of power, need to be carefully analysed. A number of colleagues in the course have raised valid criticism from the perspective of developing countries: related to research opportunities, technology transfer, and access to knowledge. States can and do practice science diplomacy with their national interest in mind. The question then becomes: how do we practise science diplomacy in a way that reduces for example inequalities in global development. These are just my thoughts for now. Does that address some of the points you raised with this comment. You highlighted the term GLOBAL? Are there further reflections on this?

Source author: Katharina Höne KatharinaH@diplomacy.edu

scientists or politicians as science attaches? --- It seems in past, scientists played the role of science attaches, however nowadays the politicians play more role. Am I right? Are there any statistics to show how much percent of science attaches are scientists?

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

Can science be against peace? --- I am wondering if science always help for peaceful world; i.e. some countries use science as a power, e.g having nuclear weapons or in future using AI for spying or even social media to collect personal informations.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

Science diplomacy and religion --- Thanks, Estefania, much appreciated. I find it intiguing that this overarching but underlying question garners so little cross-cultural discussion when it has affected global scientific history so fundamentally. I think it still affects how we deal with basic issues (e.g. biological evolution, medicine) and their current iterations (COVID19, AI, quantum physics) in international forums. Not being a subject of debate between traditional heads of state, it has, of course, no home in diplomacy. Nonetheless, I'd appreciate any links on related research and discussion.

Source author: Ginger Paque ginger@paque.org

politicalized science --- I think sometimes science diplomacy is interpreted as politicalized science and maybe that why in some countries it is still challenging for scientists to become science diplomat.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

scientific diplomacy --- Good point Carlos. Indeed as a politician you need to convince you people and the globe with scientific results otherwise no one will buy your raw idea globally especially regarding the global challenges.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

diplomacy in science --- as far as I am aware we had diplomacy in science. Whatever accelerating this topic is related to science for diplomacy

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

equity --- I prefer sustainable world

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

global? --- I am not sure 100 percent of goals in science diplomacy will lead to the GLOBAL development.

Source author: Encieh Erfani encieherfani@gmail.com

None of these --- I think the first one is limited to scientists cooperating across borders, the second one is limited to state actors and teh thir one is limited to easing relations between countries. A wider description could be Adressing globlal issues trought scientific tools

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

Another example --- Health issues are another example of science diplomacy without label. It is true that there are many political considerations in this kind of negotiations, but scientific evidence can't be ignored when we are talking about health. We can see a recent shifting fro traditional diplomacy to scientific diplomacy in the field of drug issues too

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

New actors --- Lord and Turekian make emphasis in the rising of new actors such as NGOs, private companies and social networks. Furthermore, they highlight the special needing of engaging scientific community

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

National interests --- Lord and Turekian consider science diplomacy mainly as a tool for promoting national interests in the field of public diplomacy. They mention the low global public opinion regarding US after Iraq war and point science diplomacy as a mean to recover this opinion which is neccesary for achieving national interests. However, despite this is a pioneer thought about science diplomacy, we now can see it is insufficient since science diplomacy is not only a secondary tool for fostering public diplomacy. Nevertheless, we can find the seeds of the scientific vision of diplomacy in the same article when they talk about scientific education and critical thinking skills for succesful participatory governance

Source author: Carlos Arturo Garcia Bonilla carlos.garcia@cancilleria.gov.co

Importance of Apologies --- In every culture, it is very important to accept your mistake and offer excuse or apolog for what happened wrongly or inappropriately. It could be either accepting a blame or sharing sorrow or pain with someone for their loss. Apparently it is A commitment you make with the other side that the mistake happened and I admit that it was my mistake, promising that I am not happy for this occurrence and therefore I will avoid allowing it to happen. This shows a very civilised and polite approach towards the other side restoring their honour and dignity.

Source author: Mohammad Daud Mahmoody dauodmahmoody@gmail.com

Role of tone or the way of saying sth in addition to having authority --- In addition to authority which is very important for a speaker while speaking or ordering, the tone of language or the way he/she speaks is very important. For instance, if a police officer tells to someone that he/she is gonna arrest him/her in a song like sound or in a humorous way, the person will not seriously care or comply with the order from the police. Similarly, in a family, if parents advise their not seriously to do or not to do sth, children may not pay attention to what their parents said. Therefore in my opinion, the way we speak or the tone of language we use during speaking must be tailored according to the context as well as according to our intended purpose.

Source author: Mohammad Daud Mahmoody dauodmahmoody@gmail.com

My reaction to 'Likeable enough' --- The recontextualisation involves extracting what was a funny quip from the context in which it was shared and appreciated by everybody present.

Everybody laughed, including Hillary's daughter. Hillary herself joins in the joke and uses a mocking voice about how hurt she is. In situ, the exchange works well.

Out of context, the words sound unkind.

I agree with you, Eric, that the original concern about Likeability is itself possibly sexist.

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

Obama's oath --- Great example, thank you for the reminder, Alejandra!

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

Silence as the last word? --- I find that being on the receiving end of a pregnant silence often feels disempowering. Is this perhaps because some silences act as the last word on the matter, denying a right of reply?

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

My reading of sorry and a concluding comment! --- An interesting analysis John and one which if correct, would likely have caused serious deterioration of relationships between the US and China!

I see the first 'sorry' as a conventional expression of condolence.

The second 'sorry' is much more interesting, as everybody's comments have suggested. In my view the US had to find phrasing which would make the apology as genuine-sounding as possible while still falling short of adopting responsibility.

The explanation is provided within the frame of a 'severely crippled aircraft' (no mention of how it came to be crippled because of its own transgressions and failure to heed warnings)

Sorry 'the entering... and the landing' refers to given events which are framed as having no agent (the use of the gerundive -ing form reifies them thus presenting them as 'givens' or 'fait accompli' and the absence of a subject removes any of the responsibility that come with agency)

Sorry [these givens] 'did not have verbal clearance' narrows the apology not to territorial encroachment but to the absence of verbal go-ahead with the implication that this may have been because of a shortage of time. The focus here is once again shifted away from the original transgression and the many warnings the US crew were given before action was taken.

This change of focus continues in the next clause which emphasises human survival.

What is fascinating about all the examples that we have discussed is the broad range of reactions we have offered. Same words - different meanings. The common denominator for all of us has been a recognition that the context is essential in informing our interpretation.

By and large, the closer we are to an event, the more vested we are in our own reaction and the less open we are to a re-analysis of the context.

Detective stories often play on these inclinations by inviting us to jump to conclusions and then showing us how a special kind of mind (Sherlock Holmes' or whoever's) is able to solve the case by seeing things without that bias.

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

Interesting... --- I think this is an excellent point and I hope we can have some further discussion about it. If not strictly part of "the context" it certainly can impact the way a person perceives the world and, therefore, some messages and/or signals from speakers. In Mexico we have a saying "La burra no era arisca, los golpes la hicieron". A very rough translation would be "the donkey was not aggressive, she became so after many beatings." So yes, how do previous experiences (even trauma?) can condition a conversation? And, if so, can we extrapolate it to the international/diplomatic level? Do countries or political leaders have "traumas" we need to consider when delivering a message?

Source author: Desirée Colomé Menéndez dcolome@sre.gob.mx

An historical context for the illocutionary sorry --- Since context is central to decoding language some historical context to this non-apology is offered.

In 1999 NATO deliberately bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade during the war in Kosovo alleging it was being used to transmit Yugoslav army communications. However, the bombing in former Yugoslavia was illegal. It was done without the authorization of the UN Security Council. Three years on the relationship has not improved.

I characterize the 2001 letter not as an apology but as illocutionary schadenfreude. This is defined as “the experience of pleasure, joy, or self-satisfaction that comes from learning of or the troubles, failures, or humiliation of another.”

Authentic apology is a tricky thing to pull off in politics, which is why it so seldom occurs.

Irrespective of my suggested historical context I think this communication is a case book example of spoiling an apology with an excuse.

Source author: John D. Hipsley jhipsley@igc.org

Quite powerful citation of operative 14, Petru --- Thanks for sharing it with us. It is an extensive apology regarding contents, forms of wrongdoing, consequences and active and passive subjects.

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

Do Obama really made a change of context at the debate? --- To what degree (if Obama is being sincere and precise when writing his recollection of the incident) what made the audience laugh was the ORIGINAL CONTEXT by itself: one of a debate where the audience is expected to be catching funny punches and assuming combative intentions in what one contender says to the other? Did Obama really CHANGED the context (even involuntarily)? On a preliminary analysis I see more elements of continuation of a same present context than a CHANGE of context done by Obama... He is speaking at a debate as a contender trying to prevail over Hillary exhibiting he is smarter, quicker, etc. etc. The context is right there and for me it seems to stay the same... Can you help me understand: Where do you see a re-contextualization done by Obama himself? In any case I would say Obama’s intentions were thwarted by forgetting for a second he was debating Hillary before and audience, and the practical result was Hillary receiving an original punch by the moderator and an even more cruel punch by Obama (contrary to his exposition of the incident in his memories).

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

Biden is Bluffing --- The statement contradicts a long-standing US policy of recognizing the Two-China policy. The Biden remarks further the overt US policy of containing China. This is not new but a continuation of the Trump trade-war with China. This policy of containment worked with the former Soviet Union because the world was bipolar. Today the world is multipolar only if China and Russia are considered as two independent blocs.

China and Russia are unified in their opposition to any country intent on pursuing unilateral interests at their expense. So the world has returned to a bipolar power arrangement. As Biljana has pointed out Taiwan is not a NATO member.

Under US law Taiwan’s status is defined as a Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA). This does not include a mutual-defense pact but still confers a variety of military and financial advantages that otherwise are not obtainable by non-NATO countries.

NATO’s computer simulations all result in a US defeat in the South China Sea. If there was a war involving China, it may be damaged but not defeated; while the costs to the US would be considerable. The Biden commitment to Taiwan is puffery.

The best that the US can hope for is a stalemate. This option is implicit in China’s announcement of its hypersonic nuclear-powered glider missile capable of reaching the US.

Source author: John D. Hipsley jhipsley@igc.org

A warning to China & a reassurance to Taiwan --- I read this as a message by POTUS to signal China that -despite Biden’s decision to withdraw armed forces from Afghanistan- there is right now a lot more national security determination under a geopolitical perspective by the U.S. national security apparatus to defend Taiwan (from a potential military move by main land China to take back what the PCC considers still Chinese territory) and that Biden’s commitment toward U.S. allies under the NATO charter are -again- a high priority (leaving behind president Trump’s approach of relaxing U.S. commitments abroad).

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

What are polite ways for checking in diplomatic exchanges in English lenguage? --- How pertinent are: “Do you follow me?” “So far, so good”? “Do you know whar I mean?” ? Are these only adequate for very informal chatting outside of diplomatic exchanges?

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

What would be the polite way for checking in English diplomatic conversations? --- How proper are: “So far, so good? “Have I explained myself?”? “Do you know what I mean”? Are these only proper for very casual informal chatting?

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

What would be the polite way for checking in English language? --- What would be the polite expression in English for stopping in order to verify if we need to clarify something or give the other person the opportunity for ask for more explanation on our side? Is it: “Do you follow me?”; “So far, so good? “Have I explained my self?”; “Do you know what I mean?” Are these proper for diplomatic exchanges in English or only proper under a very informal conversation?

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

Apology comes a little late for Thomas Becket --- My class colleagues have said everything that might intelligently be said about the cultural context of the ambiguous reply to the invitation for coffee. So, I will add a brief historical coda linking to the ambiguous and rhetorical question of King Henry II: ‘Will no one rid me of this meddlesome priest?”

The four knights who murdered the archbishop were never brought to justice but subsequently repented of their perfidy. They were excommunicated by Pope Alexander, however, regretting their actions, they went to Rome to petition forgiveness.

There, the Pope set their penance to serve as knights in the Holy Land for fourteen years to atone. Definitely a little late for an apology.

Source author: John D. Hipsley jhipsley@igc.org

The Guest could be trying to offer a rationale for not being able to accept the coffee --- One potential reason could be that by avoiding giving a blunt negative answer to the kind offering, the Guest could be trying to offer to the Host an explanation on why she/he “is forced” to refuse the coffee (not because it is a non valuable offering for the Guest but because it would be detrimental for the correct fulfillment of next day’ abundant tasks that would require of the Guest to get a sound sleep when going to bed this night -unobstructed by the caffeine she/he would be ingesting into her/his system-.

Source author: Eric Suzán Reed esuzan@sre.gob.mx

In my opinion, --- nothing replaces human interaction. We have grappled with that same question in our protocol programs and it is my decision not to put them online. Why? Having experienced the value of open discussions (not on a monitor), comraderie built, experiences shared, not to mention, opportunities to build long term relationships, online does not meet the mark and indeed cannot. Technology has its place and has kept the world afloat during these trying times, but it will not replace the strength (or weakness) of a handshake, good eye contact, body language that speaks volumes and is, for the most part, now relegated to the upper torso, enjoying a lovely dinner getting to know one's counterparts/colleagues...again technology has its limits!

Source author: Marie Betts-Johnson mbj@ipicalifornia.com

diplomacy and ethics --- While going throughout the text, I cannot stop thinking where are the ethics behind this.... People educated on using language to convince has an advantage over uneducated one...many examples come to my mind on how this can be incorrectly used As well, the idea of people well trained and highly capable to convince the others used by politician or bosses Or simply people with the same skill but not feeling responsible for what they achieve simply because they are following order from their boss??

Many examples come to my mind. Can this course be “teaching somebody to use a weapon without analysing the implications of it”…

https://diplomaticacademy.us/2020/08/03/ray-when-diplomacy-and-ethics-collide/

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

Personal history as part of the context? --- Is the story of a person part of the context ?

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

and yet... --- And yet...this seems to be exactly what they got.

Source author: Christian Peter Clay Mendoza cclay@sre.gob.mx

Sorry for the wrong thing --- This, I believe, is an example of how to say sorry without accepting blame. The President and the Secretary "express regret over your missing pilot"(...) Here, they express regret that the pilot went missing (IE was killed) without taking any responsibility for that death.

Source author: Christian Peter Clay Mendoza cclay@sre.gob.mx

NATO allies and others --- I think he intended to make a vague parallel between the commitment to NATO allies under art 5, and those with other countries such as Japan, South Korea... and Taiwan (though not such written commitment exists). As Blanca mentioned before, a vague statement that both serves as a warn and can later be clarified either way.

Source author: Alejandra Mayela Martinez Silva ammartinez@sre.gob.mx

Oral vs written speech --- In some countries, an oral exclamation has the force of law, whereas in others this must be in written form to be legally binding. I am curious and will read further as to the cultural reasons for this.

Source author: Christian Peter Clay Mendoza cclay@sre.gob.mx

Careful --- "Western" culture does indeed prize standing up and speaking rather than staying silent. But some Eastern cultures believe that silence, in certain circumstances, can be even more powerful than loud speech. Therefore, understanding the culture one is in is, in my opinion, paramount.

Source author: Christian Peter Clay Mendoza cclay@sre.gob.mx

Manipulating silence --- Perverse as it may be, and as much as I dislike being on the receiving end of having to interpret someone´s silence, I must admit to having used this tool more than once, both professionally as personally. Silence can be both cruel and very loud ("speak volumes"), depending on the circumstances. I certainly look forward to reading more on this subject and I wonder if everyone hates meaningful silences as well, or if some actually find it a relief.

Source author: Christian Peter Clay Mendoza cclay@sre.gob.mx

The same in the Balkan countries... --- ...Alejandra - the guest refusing and then host insisting on something is a part of the social code; the guest hence expresses his intent not to overstay the welcome and the host confirms that the guest staying a bit longer is no imposition at all.

Funny enough, this also happens between close friends where there's no need for any kind of 'protocol', which just goes to show how deeply-rooted the cultural norms are.

Source author: Andrej Skrinjaric andrejs@diplomacy.edu

Thanks Petru... --- ...for sharing this 'real life' experience! This aspect (the codification of the professional lingo) is something that is often overlooked when talking about language and communication, which we always tend to consider as something impromptu.

Source author: Andrej Skrinjaric andrejs@diplomacy.edu

Agreed Marie... --- ...in this particular case, it's clear why the US opted for apologia rather than a 'true' apology.

However, my question was aimed at the use of apologia in general - why bother with that if everybody can see through it?

Source author: Andrej Skrinjaric andrejs@diplomacy.edu

"Have I made myself clear?" Warning!! --- How interesting! In English, 'Have I made myself clear' is used as an admonition and would therefore have very different connotations, possibly even expressing a threat (depending on context, of course!). This is a good example of how the same locution can have different illocutionary force: a concern for clarity in Spanish versus an implied threat of "you'd better understand what I want from you or you'll have to face the consequences!" in English.

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

Shovels and sh-loads of work! --- I love this anecdote, Mohammad, thanks for sharing!

I also love the fact that every body's comments focus on the need for more context to be certain of the intended meaning.

The majority of you agree that the guest is probably refusing the coffee. The reasoning is probably along the lines of: Coffee has caffeine; caffeine keeps you awake; if you don't sleep enough you don't have a clear head; without a clear head you can't do your work well; since the guest has a lot of work to do, they had better not take the risk of drinking coffee. So, "no thank you!"

This is an apologia (an explanation) which is often what is used to beef up an excuse.

So sorry that the cow's death is imminent, Mohammad!

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

'Unsaid' is focussed on language --- My definition of the unsaid in these lectures is "implicit meaning that is both created and constrained by what is said". My focus is therefore on specific utterances and how language can be used to convey meaning implicitly.

Silent or Quiet diplomacy refers to behind-the-scene activities involving unofficial exchanges such as personal chats, secret negotiations, lobbying (of an informal kind), subtle signalling and other softly-softly approaches. It therefore goes beyond the meaning of specific utterances and encompasses many more activities than my narrower focus allows for.

Source author: Biljana Scott biscott@diplomacy.edu

Mexican culture --- Nice example, it makes clear the the responsibility should be for both....How we move to this in the future?

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

non native language speakers --- I think that being a non native language speaker renders you more skilled in observing the context and the body language, since one knows we are not all fully understating. There is need to use more tools…..

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

diplomats vs Academics --- I believe so, many diplomats, at least from my experience use much more silent language than non-diplomatic ones. Most of the cases they are meaning disapproval, they simply do not want to engage on a discussion where they see either no future or an “aggressive” future. On the opposite, people from the academia being more engage on the use of discussions even if they are strong ones, they prefer to use “common” language

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

Cybersecurity Investment or expense --- the investment in the cybersecurity cannot be an expense but it is important investment in protecting the society, from the increased attacks of the attackers due to the emergence of the new technological development, also the increased online time of the induvial increased the cyberattack vulnerability, lack of investment of the technology can impact millions of dollars in damages to recover the data and penalities paid through fines.

Source author: Mustafa Yaasin Sheik mysheik@hotmail.com

Fundamental Pillar for the new digital world --- The cybersecurity is becoming a fundamental Pillar in the new digital world – - it protects the data and the information in the cybers world from the cyber attackers who want to steal this information, this information can a personal data, Intellectual properties and data from governments and corporations, these attacks can be a huge negative impact economically, politically and socially.

Source author: Mustafa Yaasin Sheik mysheik@hotmail.com

maybe not but --- I think this change confirmed that the wider question of 'who owns the internet' is crucial and 'the' future topic both on the national and international level. The recognition and identification of the common problem could and will hopefully trigger more investment both politically and finacnacially to find answers in international institutions.

Source author: Andrin Schwere andrin.schwere@eda.admin.ch

Definition of Online freedom --- I would be very curious to know what the definition is of online freedom, how it relates/could relate to the broader human rights architecture and what could be legitimate options to restrict this freedom by public authorities.

Source author: Andrin Schwere andrin.schwere@eda.admin.ch

Security for states and citizens --- Hi Vlad, not being an expert, I would think that yes, both governments and international organizations should think about cybersecurity in terms of national security and citizens security (privacy and freedom of speech and choice rights). States should develop domestic regulations in this respect and international organizations binding instruments, at least UNO resolutions to start with.

Source author: Eduardo Ruiz Mazon eruizm@sre.gob.mx

Electricity Shortages --- I could also think of similar 'shutdowns' due to electricity shortages. Given the digital space is dependend on availability of elecricity and each part of ou lives are more and more dependent on digital tools this may cause breakdowns in the future of everyday live. Andrin

Source author: Andrin Schwere andrin.schwere@eda.admin.ch

Open Internet --- Indeed. Openness has both a technological meaning (that the Internet is open for any kind of innovation or content at its ends) and a political meaning (that it thus enables freedoms for innovations, expression, diversity, etc).

The 'East' has been pushing back on this concept since the WSIS (Tunis Agenda, for instance, doesn't contain reference to open Internet). Now, agreements between the sides increasingly contain the reference to open Internet/ICT environment. But, the way parties understand this term - and particularly the East - is not fully clear/elaborated.

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

Disarmament and cyber-weapons --- Ioniarimalala, valid point. Cyber-weapons (if there is such a thing) are not tangible: they may be in form of malicious code, identified vulnerabilities in software, but also in form of abusing legit features of software and hardware. This is really hard to inspect - there is no way one can count these 'weapons' the way we can record and count missiles, or control how they cross borders (again, if there is such a thing in cyberspace).

In addition, as you observe, human capabilities and skills are an equally important component of cyber-capabilities. There are attacks which don't require any single tool - and are based only on social engineering techniques that allow the attacker to take over the credentials (username and password) to a certain service; consequences, however, may be grave.

There are, however, certain options to monitor (if not control) offensive capabilities of states, such as demanding for transparency on how discovered vulnerabilities are used, in what cases certain 'weapons' can be used, against what targets and in what circumstances, etc.

We will discuss this in details in module 6.

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

IoT security - responsibilities --- Insecure IoT devices are presenting a growing problem - default passwords are big part of that. IoT don't end up only at user ends, but also get integrated into other systems, sometimes even critical ones.

On one hand, there is a responsibility of users to secure their devices, as Bennette says. But, awareness is a slow process - and there is no liability for not doing so.

On the other, product vendors should ship the products which are better protected - for instance without a default password (or requiring a passwd change before use, etc). They should embed what is known as 'security by default' - where users can reduce security on their own later if they wish, but the default is higher security. Again, awareness about this takes time, and - while some big vendors are turning to security by default - many smaller companies don't have awareness or incentives to do so. Again, there is no liability for vendors that don't secure their products.

Finally, there are the governments responsible for establishing policies that would make this happen. This may include legal accountability of users or industries, but should preferably be ways to incentivise all of them firstly.

Are there any policies in your countries that try to incentivise users and vendors to secure their smart devices?

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

Big tech --- Alan, let me add to this discussion. Big tech has a direct interest in global cybersecurity (thus beyond the security of their own services): cyber-insecurity decreases the trust of people in digitalisation, which is their core business model.

Take Microsoft for instance: it remains to be heavily attacked (ie vulnerability in its products exploited) in spite of their rather strong overall security (they have been investing a lot in their own improvements), since they are the dominant market players. Yet each major exploitation of their vulnerabilities brings in question trust in digital world: WannaCry and notPetya were very important examples of this, when critical Microsoft vulnerabilities were exploited. Since, they have become one of the main backers of various global cybersecurity initiatives: Digital Geneva Convention proposal, Paris Call, Cyber Peace Initiative... (we will discuss this more later in the course)

It is similar with Google and others - though not at the same level yet.

Governments, on the other hand, also have interest in exploiting the vulnerabilities besides being protected. Thus, even when cybersecurity get on the political agenda (increasingly so), it is met with different interests

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

Augmented Reality at the office --- reflection of someone in the office space while working from home, sitting in the office space, drinking coffee, sharing notes, meeting colleagues but in reality at home

Source author: Shabanah Mustapha shabanah.mustapha@igovtt.tt

Older population --- while the majority of population with internet access benefited from the ease of online transactions, a great percentage of the elderly have struggled to grasp the changes. One can argue the the drastic shift caused by Covid-19 did not provide enough training and support to the elderly, however, online helpers for certain services may still be beneficial. I can see a large percentage of the elderly at least where I am from (Caribbean) returning to regular face to face transactions with tellers and customer representatives.

Source author: Shabanah Mustapha shabanah.mustapha@igovtt.tt

Aletered carbon --- It is a very interesting series where minds are carried in a kind of chip inserted in the back of the head and it allows the owner to shift bodies in case of severe injuries without losing memory.

Highly recommended

Source author: Diego Alberto Estrada Ramos destrada@sre.gob.mx

Is it a win? --- Vlad, the first win that everyone can have in the battle for cybersecurity is being aware of the risks, usually common users are either unaware of the threats or the preventive measures. I think education and information are our best weapons to fight it.

Source author: Diego Alberto Estrada Ramos destrada@sre.gob.mx

Good point, --- Bentom. It is precisely because these issues need a framework that the Open Ended Working Group on Cybersecurity holds the best potential for coming up with a codified international framework. Whether it does so or not will depend on the positions articulated by UN member-states and stakeholders, since the OEWG has encouraged multiple stakeholder participation so far. I believe this is a major opportunity for the international community which should be seized, and all stakeholders must convince their governments to begin the process of discussing/negotiating an international convention.

Source author: Asoke Mukerji asokem@diplomacy.edu

How to use hacktivists for our own benefit? --- How can states and institutions use hacktivists´ knowledge for their own benefits? E.g. It is known that Apple hired few of the hackers that used to crack the early versions of iOS. In this way they improved the security of the same in matter of years.

What would an institution need to offer the hacktivists in order to recruit them and get their help?

Source author: Diego Alberto Estrada Ramos destrada@sre.gob.mx

When does an individual security issue becomes a national security risk? --- Hi Vlad, I think an interesting point to discuss here would be the following: When does an individual security issue becomes a national security risk? Who defines this and how is it done? How can states assure that privacy is not being invaded and how much freedom should individuals have?

Source author: Diego Alberto Estrada Ramos destrada@sre.gob.mx

Internet Shutdowns --- This approach has already allowed states to enforce network shutdowns in the name of 'national security'. Kashmir in India, Rakhine and Chin in Myanmar are regions where network shutdowns have been imposed for longer than a year (still continuing to some degree in Kashmir, and completely in parts of Myanmar) because the governments in charge claim that the internet could destabilise peace in the region.

Source author: Pavitra Ramanujam pavitra.ramanujam@gmail.com

Not just individual, also collective risk --- There is not just individual risk, but also collective risk that comes with being part of a hyper-connected world. There is a threat to communities and democracies from both corporations and governments who are and can use the internet to control and manipulate groups of people for their own ends. In recent years, this has already happened for instance with election interference in the US and UK elections but in a limited capacity. Taken to its extreme in a much more connected, future world, with fully developed cyber-weapons, it could mean endless war, death of states, colonisation of land and resources globally by a few, complete fascism and loss of all individual and collective liberty.

Source author: Pavitra Ramanujam pavitra.ramanujam@gmail.com

Security of governments and the individuals? --- Eduardo, would that also mean that public policies and strategies should try to address both system/state/collective/national security, and individual security and safety?

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

Cybersec framing --- Ivan, what we meant by 'system' in this context was rather the political system that provides collective security (apologies if it was not entirely clear).

But, your point on 'tracking the data' is a very important one: many of cybersecurity aspects can be observed through the flow of data and the protection of data - and how this influences a system or the individuals.

Source author: Vladimir Radunovic vladar@diplomacy.edu

The pandemic forced offline work to go online! --- To add to this discussion, it is not only that people are finding it efficient to do things online in general, it is also that governments and companies and individuals were forced to make things work digitally even in areas where they did not previously. Education and health services are two examples I can think of, and while some may argue (and I would agree) that it's not necessarily better to have schools and doctor visits on the internet, it has provided everyone with an option that previously didn't exist and might be the more convenient choice for many.

Source author: Pavitra Ramanujam pavitra.ramanujam@gmail.com

Ransomware --- @Alan. As a Computer techy, you would be aware that the bad actors actually use ransomware as a Service (RaaS); how can users and corporations be "protected" or shielded by these actors? should they pay? should Interpol, FBI etc work with law enforcement collaboratively to take these guys out of business? or we simply go along as see this as a by-product of cyberspace? lets call it co-lateral damage..

Source author: Bennette Thomas thomasb@dominica.gov.dm

securing the state and online freedom --- @Alan. Very interesting perspective. Information is power! Would you agree that the issue of "online freedom" is subject to the political philosophy of the State Government towards what is deemed state secret or security and freedom to express one's views? We may consider our right to express our opinion on any matter which may or may not affect us personally as a way to create an online debate or discussion yet this expression may be considered or seen as undermining the security of the state as the state apparatus may view such online expression as subversion. where is the line drawn? hence it would seem that state security and online freedom are inextricably linked.

Source author: Bennette Thomas thomasb@dominica.gov.dm

The interests of stakeholders --- @Asoke. Well said. However, there seems to be a paradox - if we agree that regulation of cyberspace is both multi-stakeholder and multi-lateral, why haven't these "unified and harmonized" regulations find themselves codified into international law (possibly national laws too) and implemented as the standard for the common good?

Source author: Bennette Thomas thomasb@dominica.gov.dm

Languague differences --- I think that the richness or not of a language make a big difference. In Spanish we have more than 20 tenses (1). Mexicans could play much more with it. For that it might be important to produce examples in different languages,

(1) 10 verb tenses in the indicative more, 9 in the subjunctive (which is really where nuances play a big role), 1 imperative, and 3 others: The infinitive , the “gerundio” (for on going situations basically ) and the participative.

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx

Elevator Pitch --- Thanks Marwa and JM. I just add that one of the reasons why our weekly sessions start at ten minutes past the hour is to provide the introductory time Marwa mentions.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Language for all --- Very good Mario and Marwa. It's absolutely essential that the language used should be immediately intelligible, especially for the people who need the message most. Our old friend the stakeholder analysis should help you with this, but generally speaking acronyms should only be used with great care.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

The power of emotions --- Thanks Mario. When the IFRC HD policy was evolved our discussions with stakeholders helped the writers understand the importance of the words "at all times" in the definition. This was designed to aim at the fundamental humanitarian principles being front and centre for decision makers at all times, and not just when decision making. The FHPs would, in the best of circumstances, become part of their personalities.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Alliances and negative impact --- Thanks Mario, and Yes. One of the important functions of an alliance is working out who should have the primary responsibility for determining who says what to whom, and how this information should give any necessary credit to other alliance partners.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Local languages --- Thanks Samban. It's a good point and the best answers will usually come from the local people themselves, not necessarily people at headquarters.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Centralising basic contact information --- Thanks Maria and Marwa. To Marwa's main point - an obstacle I often saw raised when discussing these issues in and around IFRC was the reluctance of people to disclose their contact info, even within their organisation. This wasn't usually for good privacy reasons but often because people wanted to keep good sources to themselves. Establishing a good database on contacts is a fraught process, sometimes requiring a high level direction from the top.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Credibility checklist --- Thanks Sheebah. I don't see this checklist as compulsory in its entirety but it provides a helpful guide to what you would need to know if you were to do your work well. You can also apply this checklist0s general principles to the due diligence you need to apply to your prospective partners.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Risk of inaction --- Thanks Murdoch and Maria. In recent times in my work with and for Myanmar I've found it necessary to point out to some people in government that their reluctance to make statements or take other action is not simply doing nothing. It will be interpreted by one of the parties to the conflict as a decision not to state a position and hence as a position at one with the status quo. It is possible to do this, but if it is a coherent position it will require a statement explaining why nothing is being said or done. It's difficult, but often necessary.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Preparation is critical --- Thanks Maria. That's another clear point about the vital importance of stakeholder analysis.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Interfaith dialogue --- Thanks Gerard, Virginia and Mario. I agree, but add my voice to the note that it's not a new idea. I had a general responsibility for IFRC's relations with major religious groups in the world in my time with the organisation and it was not just a great experience but it built the possibility of all sorts or practical relationships of benefit to NS as well as to the faiths themselves. It was, however, not something easy to publicise at the time - as you'll easily understand.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Civil Society at conferences. --- Sometimes host governments of these summits take a special interest in advocating for the outcomes, and the conferences on Disaster Risk Reduction (Sendai, especially) have seen Japan quite hard at work. It's a big pity that the WHS hasn't had the same outcome.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Civil Society presence at international conferences --- Thanks John. This is a good point, but traditions have led to it being differently addressed in different organisations. UNHCR has a quite good process for integrating the views and research of NGOs into decisions. So does the International Telecommunications Union, ILO, WHO and even the World Intellectual Property Organisations. Summits, on the other hand, are notorious for their dedication to the heads of government and their interests.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Mistrust --- Thanks for raising this important subject, John. Thanks too to Ivy for her analysis and to Catherine. Social media has played a large part in spreading mistrust from what would otherwise have been disparate and disconnected communities, and mainstream media has brought that mistrust to the headline pages because it sells copy. Many governments are now active in seeking solutions but in too many cases it's about restricting the flow of information than helping penetrate the communities concerned with truth.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Local partners and relationships --- Thanks Ivy, and I certainly recognise your point. To Gerard, I'd say that it should be possible for a National Society, functioning in a crisis with the support of IFRC and ICRC, to handle these partnerships even when faced by an overwhelming crisis. The Sri Lanka Red Cross more or less managed this after the Tsunamis there, and so did the Myanmar RC after Cyclone Nargis. It depends a bit on the nature of the disaster.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Staff movement --- Thanks Ivy. I've seen a lot of cases in my time with government of staff being moved when bosses deem that they are suffering from what is sometimes termed "localitis" - being so close to the issues that they only see the local perspective and don't understand a bigger picture which more often than not is dictated by government policy. This isn't a product of normal administrative routine, and it is something of which HDiplomats have to be well aware.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Outspoken international NGOs --- Thanks Shane. Although you've noted MSF, this isn't of course an issue unique to it. I've been asked quite a few times by international NGOs working in Myanmar to help them out of holes they've dug for themselves by being "outspoken" at the international HQ level, disregarding the advice of their local officers at the national level in the country concerned. It was not an issue of principle, but of methods chosen.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

The large leap --- Thanks John. Very interesting. A point, made too by Marwa, is the importance of coalitions or alliances of NGOs to help all of them navigate the issues raised by a large leap such as that faced by the humanitarian community in South Sudan after independence. Capacity-building for the NGOs as well as for their community, is essential but it can be very difficult to get agreement on priorities.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

People at the centre --- Thanks Maria and Murdoch. You show well how advocacy is an element in HD but not at all the whole action.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Public advocacy action --- Another example I see at work in some countries is the way higher education institutions work to establish ground rules for independence in terms of education - not as a feeding ground for government policy but as a place where independent research produces real policy and operational results. It can be difficult, but it is a field which many donors expect to see progressed as part of the evolution of education policy.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Partners and relationships --- One example of relationships with academics I've seen working well is in the field of IHL and the inclusion of academics in national IHL committees.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Community input --- Thanks for raising this, Joe. Didi makes a good point, showing that "involvement" needs to mean a lot more than "inclusion". It needs to mean engagement in the decision-making process. I've seen plenty of examples of inclusion without a real involvement in the search for and discussion of solutions.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Mission creep and leadership 2 --- Marwa touches on this point well, and it's important to address it by understanding that there can be different leaders at different stages and all need to get due recognition, but HD should provide a central team which manages the generality of the project in its entirety.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Mission creep and leadership 1 --- Thanks for starting such a good discussion, Joe. A significant issue in any project can be that responsibility for action shifts as the project itself evolves. Digging a well and bringing the water to the village are different issues, probably often with different leaders, all of whom will want to claim credit at one stage or another.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Community engagement and ownership --- Thanks Didi. It continues to surprise me that so many governments and even humanitarian organisations fail to understand this.

Source author: Christopher Lamb christopher.lamb17@gmail.com

Internal Support --- All levels within that organization has to speak the same language, understanding the basis of the advocacy action.

Source author: Sheebah Mirisa orgdevmgr@redcross.org.sb

compromise --- I think mostly compromise on principles. For example, assistance or services may be provided not within a strict definition of impartiality but more motivated by avoiding a potential backlash or security incident. So while aid may still go to vulnerable communities but they may not be the most vulnerable. Or organisations might turn a blind eye to confiscation of assistance if there is a risk to life or security associated with taking a strong stance on such conduct (being the usual stance taken in non-hostile environment)

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

Community stand against corruption --- Communities are expecting humanitarians and NGO to account for their action. the misfortune on AmCross incident in 2010 resulted in communities campaigning against the NS not receiving funds https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/haiti-quake-revives-anger-over-aid-response-past-disasters-2021-08-16/

Source author: Didi Monnakgotla didintle.monnakgotla@ifrc.org

Nigeria ban Twitter --- a classic example is in Nigeria where twitter has been banned to silence communities https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/09/10/nigeria-twitter-ban-buhari-authoritarian/

Source author: Didi Monnakgotla didintle.monnakgotla@ifrc.org

Voice for the Voiceless --- What is happening in Australia is rather refreshing- with the youth bulge in Africa and with over 70% youth unemployment rate in South Africa, we noted that we can not carry on with business as usual- generally youth would be included in participating in finding solutions for the youth. As a cluster we have assigned a youth to lead on solution finding engagements to address this "youth unemployment" crisis

Source author: Didi Monnakgotla didintle.monnakgotla@ifrc.org

Community Participation --- There is power in numbers- public advocacy can be instrumental in influencing any campaign. This was evident in the Zambian election, youth heeded the call for the need in changing the leadership and through their participation the longstanding leadership was overthrown

Source author: Didi Monnakgotla didintle.monnakgotla@ifrc.org

CEA --- by community owning the project will ensure that the project is sustainable even post intervention. it is very necessary for community to be in the forefront when solutions are being developed

Source author: Didi Monnakgotla didintle.monnakgotla@ifrc.org

Inability to operate as an advocacy argument --- Maybe the comment is not much aligned, but reading yours, I have recalled how in certain contexts we used the inability or failure to operate due to access obstacles as an advocacy argument. In this sense, we try to show how this lack of access has an important impact on the delivery of aid to the beneficiaires and vulnerable people trying event to show data of time without support/aid to these affected populations and what this impact means.

Source author: María Romero Pardo sohi1z1@hotmail.com

Elevator Pitch --- Very pertinent remark Marwa, and we could add that the same applies to many cultures in Asia/Far East as well

Source author: Jean-Michel Monod jmmonod@yahoo.com

Not appropriate for many contexts --- In many cultures, this approach is deemed rude, so it is important that you consider the relevance of the approach to the context you work in. In many MENA countries you are expected to have tea and talk about many non-specific matters before approaching the issue and when you do it should also be in a layered and methodological approach and not a 30 second pitch.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

on language for all -1 --- I have also witnessed, especially in the ICRC, the English-French writing, where something makes sense in French so it was written in similar way in English but it doesn't actually work in English so the message ends up being very confusing. I think messages should always be written by specialised people with strong language skills in the language the message is written because a minor slip could alter the entire meaning or sometimes even insult the target audience.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

Test and refine --- If an advocacy framework has been used for a long time it might need to be refines och changed, which in itself requires an analysis of what did ot work with the previous framework/strategy

Source author: Anna Beijmo advocacy@forumongi-rdc.org

INGO Forum --- The INGO Fora around the world as well as the consortia gathering such fora are good examples on how this can be done.

Source author: Anna Beijmo advocacy@forumongi-rdc.org

Action plan --- Linked to the strategy there should also be a more specific action plan, that outlines the main activities and measurable direct outputs.

Source author: Anna Beijmo advocacy@forumongi-rdc.org

Compromise --- Marwa, I am not sure I get your drift. Faced by security problems, you are going to take more precautions, you will be extra careful, but what are you going to compromise over? Your modalities of action? Please expand.

Source author: Jean-Michel Monod jmmonod@yahoo.com

Give good no --- But this could be a good thing because your idea have moved with your old contact to a new department which you otherwise would not have access to as you work on the new contact to "turn" him/her.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

competition for funding makes this hard --- In the hunger games of NGO funding, everyone wants to be right, left and centre of a campaign even if they are not the best positioned for the job. Unfortunately, as long as there is competition for funding this will always be an issue. Theory and practice are very different things.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

compromising credability --- I think when there is threat to life or security there is always more compromises made than in normal non-hostile situations. Whether that is justified or not is different question.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

centralisation & systemisation --- One of the simplest methods to ensure some continuation is the centralisation of the interlocutor's contact information and a short bio. It's amazing that in our current digital age, this is still not done and often the contacts are in someone's who who leaves and takes the info with them, thus leaving the new person to start from scratch. We all find systems to be tiresome but they serve an important purpose.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

requires specialists --- Many organisations don't have the skills, knowledge or resources to gather independent and objective evidence. Thus evident gathered are often prone to research bias amongst other issues. This problem needs to be recognised globally then addressed with at least some basic tools for evidence gathering.

Source author: Marwa Shabbar marwashabbar@yahoo.com.au

not only building --- It seems to me that diplomatic language can be use not only to build relationships, but as well to end - in a convenient manner- ill or unfruitful ones. This is also a very valuable skill in order to end a relationship without having an enemy

Source author: Blanca Jimenez bjimenez@sre.gob.mx