These essays examine questions arising from the Obama administration's efforts to revive American diplomacy and its response to the ways in which diplomacy itself is being transformed. The essays examine these questions from a variety of theoretical and practical perspectives provided by scholars and diplomats from around the world and within the United States.

A common focus of the collection is on how diplomacy's contribution to the effectiveness of foreign policy has been undervalued in the United States by governments, the foreign policy community, and academics. Together, the essays seek to raise awareness of American diplomacy conducted at all levels of government and society. They consider its future prospects in the context of America's economic difficulties and the anticipated further erosion of its international position. And they ask how American diplomacy may be strengthened in the interests of international peace and security, whether under a second term Obama administration or the leadership of a new president.