Alumnus Jose Garzon ’77 is a scholar-practitioner of democratic governance and conflict resolution with three decades of foreign affairs experience. He is back at Whittier College to teach the JanTerm political science course Emerging Democracies in the Developing World.
“As a practitioner I got to enrich my scholarly analysis for real world applications by working on democratic assistance in 10 countries around world,” Garzon said. “So it’s a momentous occasion that I can come back and tell my colleagues and students about what I have been doing.”
“I started my [JanTerm] class actually talking about events that happened during my first week as a freshman,” Garzon said. “My class begins with the 1973 Chilean coup that violently overthrew its democracy, an event which happened during my first week at Whittier. I have been observing how and why democracies fail or succeed throughout my professional life, so to come back here and retell this part of history through my own experience is very rewarding.”
Garzon is a retired Foreign Service Officer who managed democracy assistance for several countries in Asia, Latin America, and East Europe, including Afghanistan and Kosovo. He later served as deputy director of the Office of Conflict Management and Mitigation for the US Agency of International Development (USAID) in Washington, D.C. He continues to serve part-time as a Senior Advisor for the U.S. Agency for International Development, in the Bureau of Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance.
During his tenure at USAID, Garzon was responsible for carrying out conflict assessments and evaluations in Bosnia and Kosovo. “I helped successfully open the path for USAID to work with Kosovo Serb leaders in the north who were previously hostile to the U.S. and Kosovo governments,” Garzon said. “As Kosovo is a newly independent state, the United States is very active there, and even set up and trained an entire ministry of foreign affairs in Kosovo. So it’s a very big step in helping support and developing a new democratic state.”
Garzon’s JanTerm course takes an interdisciplinary approach to the topic of developing third wave democracies and the importance of international engagement and conflict resolution. Integrating other disciplines such as economics, political sociology, psychology, anthropology and moral philosophy, Garzon hopes to help students understand why democracies succeed in some countries and not in others by using group work simulations, where students are required to quickly produce analyses using real-world scenarios.
The Pico Rivera, Calif. native shared the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to conflict resolution through his own experiences. “As you see the whole world through many different angles and cultures, you encounter many different kinds of problems, but also similarities,” Garzon said. “It is clear to me that some countries succeed because of good leadership, cultural traditions that encourage tolerance, and international support. Those countries that fail politically do so because circumstances do not allow time to negotiate the transition. To negotiate, all sides need to practice empathy. You cannot move a country forward if you are not willing to listen to the other side, and understand its concerns, fears, and beliefs.”
His Whittier College professors Fred Bergerson, Mike McBride, and John Neu who he considers his friends, mentors, and role models inspired him to pursue a career in political science. “I have a great deal of affection for Whittier College as it has been a very important part in shaping my professional career and personal values,” he said.
Garzon is a fellow at the George Mason School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, and an adjunct professor at American University, where he teaches conflict and development.
While at Whittier, Garzon received his bachelor’s in political science and went on to earn his doctorate from University of California Berkeley where he studied political science and international development.
