What’s next for bout de papier?
IT GIVES ME GREAT PLEASURE to see the latest issue of bout de papier finally come out. It has been a bit of a struggle on multiple fronts, but I am hoping that the way forward will be both smoother and quicker.…
Are Crisis Operations the New Normal?
DURING THE LAST TWO YEARS ALONE, destabilizing events have come at us fast and furious: a global pandemic, the triumphant re-emergence of the Taliban in Afghanistan, and the brutal invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Each, on their own, could be described as…
The Foreign Service in a VUCA World
THE ACRONYM VUCA — volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous — was coined by the US military to describe the world after the end of the Cold War. Three decades and two pandemic years later, the concept resonates with professionals in most fields.…
A Foreign Service for the 21st Century
FIRST OF ALL, my deepest appreciation and warm thanks for the many kind and encouraging words sent my way after the publication of the last issue of bout de papier. They gave me a sense of what readers would like to see…
Murder in the Family
“I THINK THAT MY FATHER murdered my mother.” The first line of Jeff Blackstock’s true crime memoir, Murder in the Family: How the Search for My Mother’s Killer Led to My Father, reads like something out of a thriller novel. In a…
Looking Back and Looking Ahead
I don’t know quite how it happened that I have come to be the Editor-in-Chief of bout de papier replacing my friend Dan Livermore. But I have and I am and now I have to get on with it.
The Light at the End of the Tunnel
WE’VE BEEN DEALING WITH the COVID-19 pandemic for more than a year, and much of the world is in the middle of a third wave. At the same time, vaccine administration is finally ramping up, and even Bill Gates predicts that the…
The Post-COVID Environment
THE WORST OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC is now hopefully behind us, at least for those of us who reside in Canada. The Canadian foreign service has risen to the challenge during these trying times, demonstrating the importance of a vital, dynamic, adaptable…
Farewell to a Raconteur
FOREIGN SERVICE FRIENDS OF ANDREW SHORE were shocked to learn of his sudden passing on 14 December 2020 in Ottawa.
Welcome to the RROC
THE TASK WAS HUGE, and like so much that has happened in the past 12 months, unprecedented. As Migration Offices around the world began evacuating staff early last year IRCC needed to figure out a way to keep processing urgent visa applications…
