U.S. Department of State

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with Sultan of Oman Qaboos bin Said Al Said in Muscat, Oman, on May 21, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is greeted by Omani Foreign Minister Yussef bin Alawi bin Abdullah upon arriving Muscat, Oman, on May 21, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry boards his plane at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland, en route to Oman on May 20, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Suzan Johnson Cook present the 2012 International Religious Freedom Report at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC on May 20, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/05/209678.htm and http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/rm/2013/209699.htm

The Road to an Effective Innovation Diplomacy

Americans understand that one of our great national strengths is innovation. Great innovators — Benjamin Franklin, Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and others — are household names.

The social and economic impact of innovative American researchers, companies, and workers over the course of U.S. history have been enormous. Innovation has dramatically improved the quality of life in this country since the time of Benjamin Franklin, by many accounts America’s most illustrious innovator. More recently, statistics show that innovation is responsible for nearly three-quarters of U.S. post-World War II economic growth. Knowledge-based companies exported more than $1 trillion — approximately 74 percent of total U.S. exports — in 2011. MORE

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry meets with New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on May 20, 2013. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks at an Overseas Security Seminar at the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center in Arlington, Virginia on May 20, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/05/209671.htm

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks with Foreign Minister of New Zealand Murray McCully at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC on May 20, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/05/209675.htm

Upholding Religious Freedom

During my travels on behalf of the Department of State, people sometimes ask, “Why does the Department of State expend so much effort to chronicle the status of religious freedom around the world?” Because religious freedom matters. In a world where 84 percent of the population claim a religion, it matters that people be free to make personal choices regarding their faith: to believe or not to believe, as well as to change one’s religion without fear. Religious freedom matters not only because it is a universal human right, but also because it is essential for peaceful and thriving societies.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks with Foreign Minister of Brazil Antonio de Aguiar Patriota at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC on May 20, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/05/209664.htm