WCAPS Podcast

The biggest mistake Americans make about diplomacy is thinking it is background noise. Former State Department official Karl Stoltz explains why embassies shape everything from your safety overseas to the price of the products you buy—and why gutting this work creates problems long before the headlines catch up.

Deborah Fisher spent 25 years inside the State Department shaping nuclear policy, inspecting Russian reactors, and helping write the reports that keep America informed about weapons of mass destruction. Her story is a rare inside look at how public servants quietly reduce risk, build trust, and prevent misunderstandings that could change the world.

When foreign policy ignores women, conflict gets harder to prevent, recovery gets harder to sustain, and entire systems get weaker. Bonnie Jenkins sits down with Tazreen Hussain, the former Women, Peace and Security Advisor at USAID, for a candid conversation about what the work actually looks like - and why losing it matters far beyond Washington.

Tazreen shares how a childhood shaped by Bangladesh, Dallas, Florida, and 9/11 led her into public service, international development, and a career focused on gender equality, women's empowerment, and conflict prevention.

Diplomacy is not soft power fluff - it is how countries win without fighting, and this conversation shows exactly what happens when that expertise disappears. Bonnie Jenkins talks with Jimmy Wang, a former military officer and State Department foreign affairs specialist about multilateralism, the South China Sea, ASEAN, and why losing seasoned public servants creates real-world consequences for America. He explains how he moved from the Navy to diplomacy after realizing preventing wars is cheaper and smarter than fighting them, and why international institutions like ASEAN, NATO, the EU, and the UN give smaller countries a voice while exposing bullying from larger powers.

What happens when the State Department’s expertise is pushed out the door? Dan Murphy shares the inside story of being RIFed from public service, why that loss matters far beyond Washington, and how the ripple effects show up in everything from debt negotiations to U.S. credibility abroad.

Foreign policy fails when it forgets its basic, and that mistake has real consequences at home. Former State Department official Amanda Van Dort reveals how women's security, migration, fentanyl, democracy, and U.S global influence are all connected, and why the American talks about foreign policy may be part of the problem.

Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins sits down with Matthew Sharp, a physicist turned diplomat who spent about 16 years in the State Department navigating some of the toughest nuclear and nonproliferation issues in government. From graduate school physics at the University of Chicago to the Belfer Center, from AAAS fellowships to Vienna, Washington, and the NSC, Matthew traces the path that took him from the lab into the rooms where U.S. policy gets made and defended.

Ferdaouis Bagga, a former foreign affairs officer for the State Department walks through her journey at State and why addressing internal trust issues is crucial for restoring effective public service after RIFs.

Meet Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins—a trailblazer who turned skipping philosophy class into a career-defining moment. A New Yorker with South Carolina roots, she was raised by parents who valued education above all. From loving Head Start so much she asked to repeat it, to thriving in the Junior Sea Cadets and the Reserves, public service was always her north star. With a resume that spans the NYC Law Department, a law degree, the DoD, and arms control diplomacy, Ambassador Jenkins proves that “boring days” can lead to brilliant detours. Tune in for treaties, Yankee fandom, and how she built a system of her own—mic drop included.

Meet Apprecia Faulkner, whose journey began the day she walked onto a community college campus and never looked back. From the windy streets of Chicago to the halls of GW and CSU, she’s studied PoliSci, International Relations, and History—not just to understand the past, but to help write the future. Inspired by Peter Jennings and powered by justice (yes, the “J” in DEIJ), Apprecia has danced through the event circus and come out wiser, bolder, and funnier. Buckle up for a ride through identity, influence, and intentionality—with a Chicago flair and sisterly love as her tailwind.