America & the world: challenges for the new president.

• Author: Lateef, Noel V.
• Position: INTRODUCTION - Brief article - Column

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Wisdom, Socrates observed, begins in wonder--in the willingness to listen and to learn. In recent years, I have been struck by how many world leaders speaking at various Foreign Policy Association events have encouraged Americans to listen to the world--President Michelle Bachelet of Chile, for example, urged the United States "to hear the voices of other countries."

As a continental nation, the United States often has to muster the effort to keep abreast of world affairs. Today, however, we need to learn about other countries because the world of the 21st century is so completely interconnected, and in a democracy, a well-informed public is a prerequisite for a sustainable foreign policy.

The advent of every new administration presents America with the opportunity to press the "reset button" for foreign policy--if it were only that simple! America's foreign policy, no matter who sits in the Oval Office, is always affected by decisions made by the previous administration, and all those that came before.

The Foreign Policy Association is a...