Profile: Karen Foss

Kandahar provincial reconstruction team

Karen Foss was seduced by Afghanistan, because she feels that real change is possible.

Canadian-led Provincial Reconstruction Team in Kandahar

While the Canadian-led Provincial Reconstruction Team (KPRT) in Kandahar is one of 25 such teams throughout Afghanistan, its location makes it unique. The former heartland of the Taliban, Kandahar remains one of the least stable areas in the country, but also one of the most in need of active support. True to its name, the KPRT—and the 330-person team of military, police, development and diplomatic officials—is making great strides toward rebuilding communities, training Afghan police and officials, and helping the new democratic Government of Afghanistan extend its influence and authority at the regional and local level.

In this context there is no such thing as a “typical day” in the life of Karen Foss, Deputy Political Director at the KPRT.  Any given day will see Karen participating in a shura—or village council—with Afghan community leaders, surveying checkpoints on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border with the military and RCMP in full protective gear. She also monitors Canadian-funded aid projects with her CIDA colleagues. The list goes on and on.

Beginning of Karen’s foreign service

Foss began her foreign service career six years ago as a policy officer at the Afghanistan/Pakistan desk in Ottawa. She first came to Afghanistan on a temporary assignment in the run-up to the reopening of Canada’s embassy in Kabul in 2003. “Afghanistan got under my skin; it’s the kind of moment in a country where you feel that real change is possible, and there was such a sense of hope and optimism and opportunity to make a contribution. And I wanted to come back.” 

And come back she did, but not before going on posting in Indonesia, where she was working when the tsunami hit in 2004. Foss was deployed (“with a backpack and a cell phone,” as she put it) to set up a small office in Aceh for a week—a week that turned into a year-and-a-half as her office’s role evolved from immediate emergency response and administering humanitarian contributions to longer-term reconstruction, development and peace-building efforts.

Passion and commitment

While the pace can be grueling, she and the rest of the team at the KPRT are passionate about their work and are driven by a profound sense of commitment: “Out here we’re at the front line of Canadian foreign policy, at a time where our contribution has significant ramifications,” says Foss. “We have at this moment in Canadian history a greater opportunity to make a difference than we’ve had singularly as a nation in any other part of the world.”

In a mere six years, Foss is already one of Canada’s most seasoned diplomats. She understands the dual nature of a diplomat’s work in a region like Kandahar and in a country like Afghanistan. She works directly with a traumatized local population and Afghan officials at all levels of government to carry out Canada’s important commitment to the country. 

Anything undertaken at the KPRT is necessarily directed by Afghans themselves.  Development projects are decided at shuras, where Canada has a consultative and supporting role. Shuras play a similar role in meeting political and governance objectives, which are aimed at helping Afghans establish their own capacity. This model is working and the changes will last. The most rewarding thing about Foss’ job is that she can see change happening in real time: “The mission is making a difference; there’s an incredible amount of good being done on a daily basis.”

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