Giving Compass' Take:

• Rafiq Dossani and Sohaela Amiri discuss the benefits of city diplomacy handling an increased amount of international relations.

• What are the pros and cons of city diplomacy? How can funders support city diplomats?

• Learn why cities need to be a big part of climate change action.

The gridlock in Washington can be disheartening at times, but action-oriented pragmatic mayors, who are not as constrained by party politics, can offer a glimmer of hope.

Cities form networks, engage in dialogue with counterparts, facilitate public diplomacy, share best practices, and encourage collaboration between international private and public entities. The Department of State could tap into this power to further enhance American diplomacy, global image and influence.

The U.S. Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, created by Congress decades ago, calls for policymakers to pay special attention to the growing global influence of cities, a notion that is broadly referred to as city diplomacy. City diplomacy is a particularly good match for the numerous programs and initiatives of the State Department to enhance national security and prosperity of U.S. citizens through non-coercive methods of statecraft, such as public diplomacy.

Three U.S. cities—Los Angeles, Atlanta and New York—have created a Mayor's Office of International Affairs to conduct city diplomacy, demonstrating that the intent is there. Beyond these three, more U.S. cities such as Charlotte, N.C., and San Antonio have shown interest in conducting city diplomacy by hiring officials who understand and plan for the city's global affairs and by participating in national events such as the U.S. City Diplomacy Summit at the University of Southern California. Still, federal policies have not kept pace.

Embracing and enhancing city diplomacy does not mean undermining diplomacy by the federal government and through the State Department. Quite to the contrary, this could be the beginning of strategic delegation of diplomatic tasks and responsibilities to local governments to competently conduct international affairs in a globalized, fast-paced, and hyperconnected world.

Read the full article about city diplomacy on the rise by Rafiq Dossani and Sohaela Amiri at RAND Corporation.