WIDA Programs
Custom
Diplomacy
Programs
Practical diplomacy training designed around your organization’s people, priorities and international challenges.
Overview
Build the Capabilities
Your Organization Needs
Organizations face different international challenges. A foreign ministry may need to strengthen the professional skills of newly appointed diplomats. A local government may want to attract investment and build international partnerships. A business or nonprofit may need its executives to understand foreign governments, advocate for institutional priorities or manage operations across cultures.
WIDA will design a program around your organization’s objectives, participants and operating environment. Our career ambassadors combine instruction with case studies, simulations and practical exercises drawn from diplomatic practice. Programs can be delivered online or in person — at our premises in Washington, D.C., at your headquarters or elsewhere.
PROGRAMS FOR GOVERNMENTS
We design programs for foreign ministries, diplomatic academies, other government agencies and local authorities seeking to strengthen institutional capacity and improve professional performance. Training can be tailored to different levels of seniority and to specific functions, including political and economic tradecraft, public diplomacy, consular affairs, negotiation, crisis management and diplomatic leadership.
PROGRAMS FOR BUSINESSES AND NONPROFITS
We help organizations understand how governments operate and how to engage them more effectively. Programs can prepare executives to navigate diplomatic and regulatory systems, analyze political and economic developments, advocate for institutional priorities, negotiate across cultures and manage international crises.
Curriculum
How We Create
Your Program
Define the Need
We discuss your organization’s objectives, challenges and intended participants.
Design the Curriculum
We propose the subjects, case studies, exercises and instructors most relevant to your needs.
Choose the Format
Programs can range from focused workshops to multi-week courses — in person or online.
Deliver the Training
Our instructors lead a practical, collaborative and intensive learning experience.
Assess the Results
We use participant feedback, instructor assessments and other relevant evaluation methods.
Areas of
Training
This is not an exhaustive list. We welcome your ideas and suggestions.
- Embassy Management & Diplomatic Protocol
- Political Tradecraft
- Official Diplomatic Communication
- Economic Tradecraft & Commercial Diplomacy
- Public Diplomacy
- Advocacy, Influence and Power Projection
- Negotiation & Crisis Management
- Consular Affairs
- Science, Health and Cyber Diplomacy
- Technology and Artificial Intelligence
Our Faculty
The Right
Diplomatic
Expertise
WIDA draws from a faculty of career ambassadors with experience across regions and diplomatic specialties. We will assemble an instructional team suited to your organization’s objectives. Here are some of our instructors.
AmbassadorWilliam Burns
YEARS OF SERVICE: 33
SENIOR POSITIONS:
● Deputy Secretary of State
● Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs
● Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs
● Ambassador to Russia
AmbassadorKate Byrnes
YEARS OF SERVICE: 32
SENIOR POSITIONS:
● Ambassador to North Macedonia
● Deputy Chief of Mission in Greece
● Civilian Deputy and Foreign Policy Adviser to U.S. European Command
AmbassadorJanice Jacobs
YEARS OF SERVICE: 34
SENIOR POSITIONS:
● Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs
● Ambassador to Senegal and Guinea-Bissau
● Deputy Chief of Mission in the Dominican Republic
AmbassadorCharles Ray
YEARS OF SERVICE: 30
SENIOR POSITIONS:
● Ambassador to Zimbabwe
● Ambassador to Cambodia
● Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense