Orna Blum is a recently retired Foreign Service Officer and strategic communications leader with expertise in public diplomacy, media relations, democracy building, and crisis management. She's a creative with #policycred, and she's here to share her own public service story, her thoughts on the ingredients required for a healthy democracy, and her advice on prioritizing and protecting your mental health - especially in public service careers. Listen up if you're mid existential crisis. I promise you'll feel inspired and seen.
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40:06
On Risks and Resiliencies with D. Wes Rist
D. Wes Rist is a kid from rural Pennsylvania who thought he'd be a doctor, but instead, decided to build a career and a life focused on atrocity prevention. He's worked everywhere from the American Society of International Law, to the Department of State, to the USC Shoah Foundation, and though his work may have taken him far from home, his public service journey has always been rooted in his family, his community, and his upbringing. The world is currently experiencing the highest levels of armed conflict witnessed since the end of WWII, so we're lucky to have Wes here to tell us a bit about the factors that increase the risk of atrocities, and the resiliencies that prevent them. If you're into the idea of averting catastrophe, listen in.
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50:18
On Growth and Defining Moments with Ned Price
Ned Price served most recently as Deputy to the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and before that as State Department Spokesperson. He has also been the Director of Policy and Comms at National Security Action, a Special Assistant to President Obama, a CIA Senior Analyst and Spokesperson, and an NBC News Analyst and Contributor. That's not even his entire professional history, but you get the gist: Ned has lived a life of service, and he's built an incredible career navigating and talking about tough issues. In this episode, Ned reflects on being raised to seek adventure, being shaped by the experience of witnessing 9/11 unfold from his college dorm, and navigating his way from the CIA to Spokesperson - from Spook to SPOX. He encourages us to embrace imperfection as a feature of our democracy, as we endeavor to form a more perfect union, and he shares his optimism about the next generation of public servants.
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On Language and Learning with Alexis Ludwig
Alexis is a retired Foreign Service Officer who is reflecting on his 30-year career, which took him to Posts throughout Europe, East Asia, and Latin America. In this episode, Alexis shares his thoughts on the beauty of language, the role of strategic empathy, and the essentiality of thoughtful questions in the work of diplomacy.
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On Research and Writing with Zev Karlin-Neumann
Zev is an empathy jedi and speechwriter extraordinaire. He's also the founder of Just Write Communications, building on a decade and a half helping leaders tell their stories and advance their agendas, from the C-suite to Capitol Hill and from the campaign trail to the White House. In this episode, Zev takes us back to where it all began, and then gets into the science of speechwriting, despite my best attempts to pretend it's all just art. He drops some nuggets of wisdom (like, if you're giving someone a shout out, make sure they're in the room!) and ponders the future of speechwriting in the era of AI.
This is a really hard time to be an American public servant. This is the place where we get to know who they are, what experiences shaped them, why they chose a path of service, and how they're continuously reimagining their lives and careers. We want to know them on a deeper level, and maybe learn a thing or two about ourselves.
France