Max M. Kampelman

Max M. Kampelman, a lawyer, diplomat and educator.  From 1980 to 1983 he served as Ambassador to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe; from 1985 to 1989 Ambassador and Head of the United States Delegation to the Negotiations with the Soviet Union on Nuclear and Space Arms in Geneva; and from 1987 to 1989 Counselor of the Department of State, before rejoining the law firm of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, which he first joined in 1955 and where he is now "Of Counsel."  He serves as Chairman Emeritus of the American Academy of Diplomacy, Georgetown University's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, and Freedom House.  He also serves as Counselor of the American Bar Association Committee on Law and National Security and ABA’s Special Committee on the Central and Eastern European Law Initiative, designed to provide assistance to the emerging democracies of Europe.  His book, Entering New Worlds: The Memoirs of a Private Man in Public Life, was published in 1991 by HarperCollins. An earlier book, The Communist Party vs. The C.I.O: A Study in Power Politics, was published in 1957 by Praeger Press.

On August 11, 1999, President Clinton awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award in the nation.  On January 18, 1989, President Reagan awarded him the Presidential Citizens Medal, which recognizes "citizens of the United States who have performed exemplary deeds of service for their country or their fellow citizens."  He has also been the recipient of the Knight Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany.  In April 2000, he was among those receiving the first Library of Congress “Living Legend” award.

He was appointed by President Carter and reappointed by President Reagan to serve as Ambassador and Head of the U.S. Delegation to the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), which met in Madrid from l980 to l983.  He subsequently served as Ambassador and Head of the U.S. Delegation to the CSCE Copenhagen Conference on the Human Dimension in June 1990, the CSCE Geneva Conference on National Minorities in July 1991, and the CSCE Moscow Conference on the Human Dimension in September 1991.  He previously was a Senior Advisor to the U.S. Delegation to the United Nations and from 1949 to 1955 served as Legislative Counsel to U.S. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey.  He served as Vice Chairman of the United States Institute of Peace by Presidential appointment from 1992 to 2001.  From 1989 to 1993, he was Chairman of the Board of Governors of the United Nations Association; and is now Honorary Chairman of the Jerusalem Foundation and Honorary Governor of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. 

An educator, he received his J.D. from New York University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Minnesota, where he taught from l946 to l948.  He has also served on the faculties of Bennington College, Claremont College, the University of Wisconsin, and Howard University.  He lectures frequently here and abroad and has written extensively in scholarly and public affairs journals.  He served on the governing boards of a number of universities and has received thirteen honorary Doctorate degrees.  He now serves on a number of corporate and non-profit boards.

Ambassador Kampelman was a founder and moderator of the public affairs program on public television, "Washington Week in Review."  He was chairman of the Washington public broadcasting radio and television stations from l963 to l970.  From 1958 to 1960, he was the founding Chairman of the Friends of the National Zoo.  He and his wife, Marjorie, live in Washington, DC and have five children and five grandchildren.

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF DIPLOMACY
1200 18th Street, NW, Suite 902
Washington, DC 20036
Tel: 202/331-3721
Fax: 202/833-4555
academy@academyofdiplomacy.org