America's responses to African political crises often fail to make a major positive impact. From Rwanda to Darfur to Kenya and Zimbabwe, the US has done little more than issue strong statements while societies come undone.

As we think our way through to a new US foreign policy, more suitable for the changing global environment, I would urge the creation of a high-profile diplomatic emergency response team for crisis situations abroad.

Intervening diplomatically is in our interest for moral reasons (we may help prevent bloodshed), economic reasons (festering crises in countries like Nigeria disrupt our supply of oil, for example), and strategic reasons (we have resorted to military action in Somalia and Afghanistan after ignoring crises there for years). Undoubtedly the State Department already conducts diplomatic activities behind the scenes that I am unaware of. But judging from the results, these efforts have achieved limited success.

Moreover, the lack of involvement from high-profile American figures sends a strong message to the rest of the world: we don't care very much. When we hear about State Department bigwigs tackling international problems, it's far more likely to be Sean McCormack or John Negroponte issuing statements condemning Carter's meetings with Hamas, or Pakistan's talks with the Taliban, than it is to be one of these officials getting their hands dirty by negotiating day after day with Raila Odinga and Mwai Kibaki (that was Kofi Annan). And if we do hear about real involvement, it's again more likely to be Secretary Rice doing one of her patented "surprise visits" to Iraq (a technique I deplore for the condescension it implies), than it is to be direct participation in talks between intractable rivals. Case in point, Annapolis and the ongoing "negotiations" in Israel/Palestine, where the administration invested in the showy aspects of talks but not the real meat of brokering solutions to problems.

What the US needs, in my opinion, is an organization along the lines of The Elders, a collective of former heads of state and other world leaders. They include Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan, and Desmond Tutu. Their goals are the following:

1. Offering a catalyst for the peaceful resolution of conflict.

2. Seeking new approaches to seemingly intractable global issues.

3. Sharing wisdom: reaching out to grassroots Elders and to the next generation of leaders. Listening and helping to amplify voices for good all over the world.

Mandela has pointed out that their status as independent figures no longer tied to governments gives them a certain flexibility that would be unavailable to a more formal organization. Nevertheless, I think the US could learn from this model. A team of public figures organized by the US Department could travel swiftly to the sites of major crises and demonstrate active US involvement from the early stages of a problem. With the right support, they could probably defuse some problems before they explode. And even if they fail, they would communicate a positive image of American global engagement. It would be useful and appropriate to have such a team in the public eye.

Certainly such an organization could be misused, and their angle of approach might vary under constraints from whatever administration was in power. But if their mission were well-defined as being mediators plain and simple (and not, for example, writing reports that would give a pretext for military action against uncooperative regimes), I think the potential for exploitation would be far less than the potential for real, worldwide benefits.

If a Democrat wins in the fall, that will only be the beginning of reshaping our relationship with the world. We need the nuts and bolts of a new foreign policy and a new approach, free of the shackles of the Cold War mentality (to say nothing of the dubious and counterproductive assumptions of the War on Terror). I hope the next administration will show not only resolve and courage, but also imagination. Whether you like the idea I've outlined in this piece or not, we're going to need something like it if we want to remain relevant and effective in the world.