Along with the hazards though come experiences that Garcia said makes it all worthwhile, such as a driving trip through southern Colombia that took him from tropical, pristine communities up into the Andes. “I’m very lucky to see communities that don’t have modern conveniences. It gives you perspective on what the world was like 100 years ago,” he noted. But the less-beautiful parts of his travels also give him perspective. For instance, Garcia said that seeing Iraqi refugees who were once successful professionals before the war stripped them of their livelihoods and homes made him realize that everything you have can instantly be taken away, helping him appreciate the creature comforts many of us take for granted. Such experiences have even trickled down to his everyday life in Washington, impacting even mundane tasks like grocery shopping. “It makes you re-think what’s necessary and not,” he said. “So I try to find ways to not waste things and take any unused stuff to shelters. When I have a nice dinner out, I appreciate it more and think about people who don’t have that opportunity.” From Des Moines to Darfur Krista Riddley’s career has taken her far from her Iowa roots. While studying in Côte d’Ivoire as a Rotary Foundation scholar in her early 20s, Riddley fell in love with Africa. Inspired to help Africans by changing U.S. policies, Riddley became fluent in French, earned a master’s in international affairs, and returned to work in Congress to pursue her work on behalf French-speaking, or francophone, African nations. “What personally motivated me was the idea of helping those less fortunate,” she said. “But I also was fascinated by the culture and history of Africa and wanted to learn more, particularly given my heritage as an African American.” Riddley spent 10 years with Catholic Relief Services, working in five African nations on issues such as HIV/AIDS programming in Zimbabwe and micro-finance programs in Niger. But it wasn’t all policy and programs. Time in Africa armed her with ample stories to share around the campfire, which she punctuates alternately with robust laughter and sad commentary. “We were driving around one country, meeting with people who were being harassed and shaken down at government checkpoints,” she recalled. “There was a drunk soldier with a gun at one checkpoint who tried to get in our car. Fortunately, our driver was a village chief and handled the situation very calmly. But it was an unpredictable situation and an example of the randomness of violence and fear in those countries which people live with every day.” She also recounted educating other aid workers who were unfamiliar with a particularly disturbing African parasite. “I told them to iron their clothing because they get into your clothes when you’re drying them…. One colleague said, ‘I’m going to go iron my underwear right now!’” And while it may no longer be, as James Brown sang, “a man’s world,” it still is in many parts of the world, as Riddley illustrated with the story of being stopped in West Africa by local police for not having the right car tags. “They wanted to talk to the man in the car, not me,” she said, laughing at the memory. “But as the boss of the local office, I was the one who had to pay the fine! You just have to adjust to stuff like men not wanting to shake your hand, to be respectful but at the same time get the job done.” After 10 years in the field, Riddley returned to the United States to work for Amnesty International, where she served as spokeswoman in the Washington policy community on such issues as Darfur. “It was time to come home and move in another direction,” she explained. “Toward helping improve the lives of people in developing countries from the macro end of things — meaning influencing the U.S. government to adopt the right policies and provide the right kind of aid when and where it was needed.” Uphill Battle Back Home Riddley currently serves as director of humanitarian policy for Oxfam America, where she advocates for changes in government policy to assist countries ravaged by conflict and natural disaster. Reached shortly before a Capitol Hill visit to do just that, Riddley spoke of a recent trip to the strife-torn Democratic Republic of Congo. “More people have died there than in any other conflict since World War II — 5.4 million people,” she said. “The fact that it is so off the radar of the general public and policymakers is very frustrating. As is often the case with African conflicts, it takes fighting and bloodshed that is over top to get the world to pay attention — as in the recent events this fall in Congo. We have to keep highlighting this to get the media, governments and U.N. Security Council to pay attention. It’s rewarding when you get people to do that.” Riddley also called her previous work in Liberia “saddening” but said she is hopeful about the country’s future now that the continent’s first elected female president is firmly in charge. “I was there during the war for two years. I went back 10 years later as an Amnesty USA staffer and interviewed former girl child soldiers and rape victims,” she said. “It was extremely hard and painful and it brought back the sad memories of the war. At the same time, work in conflict-emergency situations is rewarding because you can meet people’s real-time needs, as opposed to development, which is more long term.” Riddley acknowledged that while situations like the Congo are frustrating, she is motivated by “knowing that I live in the most powerful country in the world and [that] it has enormous resources available to help make a difference — and I can contribute to them making the best use of those resources. “It doesn’t always go my way, but reading the stories and meeting the people who are in need keeps me at it. I am infinitely aware of the efforts of people in developing countries to make a better life for themselves and their families, but we have a role in helping them do that.” Principled Stand Like Garcia, Riddley stresses that the United States should do more to directly engage in humanitarian crises. She said more American diplomats are clearly needed around the world, citing reports that there are more U.S. servicemen and women in military bands than there are Foreign Service officers. And even if money isn’t available for more personnel, diplomats can still be better deployed. “Principles cost money,” she said. “We’re 60 years from the Geneva Conventions and people are violating those principles. Our new national security policy should be protecting civilians from war, because not just citizens are being killed, but also aid workers.” Compared to her previous expatriate life, Riddley is more of a homebody now. She travels only about six times a year, and usually no more than two weeks at a time, splitting visits between Africa and Brussels and New York, “so it isn’t too challenging.” Like Garcia, Riddley’s life back home has been profoundly changed by her firsthand glimpse into the Third World. “I’m a more patient person now,” she said, noting the slower pace of life in developing nations. “I also think more about all the things we have and waste, the excess here in the U.S.,” she added, noting that she can no longer go to buffets because of the wasted food. “A poor person in Africa will use every last bit of something with lots of creativity and ingenuity — nothing goes to waste. They even re-use cardboard boxes.” Conversely, Riddley’s experiences have also made her more patriotic in a way. “I feel more American now,” she said. “I have affinity and linkages to my ancestors, but I appreciate America for what it is and what positive things it could do in the world if our leaders are creative and compassionate and take timely action…. That’s a blessing.” Mark Hilpert is a contributing writer for The Washington Diplomat.

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