The U.S. Global Leade rship Coalition and USC s p on so re d , “Put ting Sm art Power to Work in SC” at Drayton Hall on the USC–Columbia campus January 29, 2010.

The U.S. Global Leadership Coalition is a national ne t work of b us i ness es ; non–governmental organizations (NGOs); national security and foreign policy experts; faith–based, a ca demic and other community leaders who support a “smart power” approach to global issues. The USGLC works in our nation’s capital and across the country to educate and inspire support from the American public and policymakers of America’s civilian led tools of development and diplomacy and the International Affairs Budget.

Richard Haass, president of the Council on Foreign Rela tions and keynote s p ea ker, exp l ain ed tha t “smart power” realizes that the United States must work with other actors in the international arena including individu als , b us i ness es, a nd non–governmental organizations to address the changes that have occurred in international affairs as a result of the process of globalization.

Haass identified that the 21st century presents new issues that affect humanity on a global scale and, therefore, must often be met by coalitions of global actors.

Some of these issues are pandemic diseases (such as H1N1), climate change, the control of nuclear materials, international terrorism, illegal drug trafficking, and the genera l movement of people across national boundaries. He stressed that the United States “ca nnot act alone to fight global problems”

The program continu with a panel discussion facilitated by Richard Haass. Ambassador David Wilkins, former speaker of the SC House of Representatives and American ambassador to Canada (2005–2009); Derreck Kay on go, s enior adv oca cy field coordinator for CARE, a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty; and Otis Rawl, president and CEO, SC Chamber of Comm participated.

The panel fielded questions from the audience on sub jects such as deforestation, improvements in literacy and educational opportunities for women, sustainabili ty of aid to other nations, relationships among faith groups, and human trafficking.

“The world outside of the United States can seem very far away, but we live in an int er c on n ecte d worl d ,”said Ambassad or Wilkins, “We must invest in a ‘smart power’ approach to foreig n policy where we can use our tools of development and diplomacy, along with a strong defense, to respond to the challenges we face abroad.”

A new bi–partisan “Putting Smart Power to Work in South Carolina” State Advisory Committee has been formed under the leadership of former governor and U.S. Education Secretary Richard Riley and Ambassador David Wilkins. This committee will work to educate South Carolinians about the importance of a “smart power” foreign policy approach to SC’s security and prosperity. The committee is comprised of over 70 state and local leaders from the city and state governments, higher educational institutions, businesses, non–profit organizations, political groups, and faith based organizations.

This program was brought to Columbia with the help of the Columbia World Affairs Council.