2008 Awards Luncheon
US State Department
December 3, 2008
The American Academy of Diplomacy and William J. Burns, Under Secretary for Political Affairs, hosted its nineteenth annual awards luncheon on Wednesday, December 3, 2008 in the Benjamin Franklin Room of the U.S. Department of State. The Academy highlighted its ground-breaking "Foreign Affairs Budget of the Future" report, which finds that the State Department, USAID, and related organizations lack the tools to meet today's complex diplomatic challenges. It provides a budget blueprint for the incoming administration to properly fund and staff the State Department. It calls for 50% more diplomats to rebuild America's foreign affairs capability. The Academy will undertake a prolonged outreach effort throughout 2009 to promote the report's findings within Congress, the transition team, and key districts across the U.S.
This year we had the pleasure of presenting the Douglas Dillon Award for a book of distinction on the practice of American diplomacy to Ambassador James Dobbins for his book, After the Taliban: Nation-Building in Afghanistan. Ambassador Dobbins delivered the keynote speech and spoke of his experiences and time in Afghanistan, and about America's role as nation-builder.
The Academy also announced the winner of this year's Annenberg Award for Excellence in Diplomacy to Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker. Amb. Ronald Neumann, president of the Academy, accepted the award on behalf of Amb. Crocker.
Ambassador Robert Hunter presented the Arthur Ross Award for Distinguished Reporting & Analysis of Foreign Affairs to Mohamad Bazzi of The Nation, and Dexter Filkins of The New York Times.
Every year, the Academy of Diplomacy grants these prestigious awards to recognize major contributions to the field of diplomacy, and
to stimulate further interest in and public understanding of the need
for excellence in the practice of American diplomacy.
> Read the press release
> View photos taken at the luncheon
> Read Ambassador Ryan Crocker's remarks
> Listen to the introductory remarks by Amb. Neumann and Under Secretary Burns [mp3]
> Listen to speech by Amb. James Dobbins [mp3]
> Listen to the presentation of the Annenberg Award by Amb. Thomas Pickering and Amb. Neuman's remarks [mp3]
