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French-American Foundation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The French-American Foundation is a privately funded, non-governmental organization established to promote bilateral relations between France and the United States on topics of importance to the two countries, with a focus on contact between upcoming leaders from each country. It employs a variety of initiatives that include multi-year policy programs, conferences on issues of French-American interest, and leadership and professional exchanges of decision-makers from France and the United States.[1]

Founded in 1976, the Foundation is an operating organization that relies on outside financial support to carry out its mission and does not provide grants. It is an independent, non-partisan, nonprofit organization.[2][3][4]

History

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The idea was born in 1973 between Ambassador James G. Lowenstein, James Chace, editor-in-chief of Foreign Affairs, both members of the Council on Foreign Relations, an independent think tank, and Nicholas Wahl, a specialist of post-war France at Princeton University.[5] In order to counter an anti-French sentiment within the State Department, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations and the press, as well as anti-Americanism among the French elite, the three men grew the desire to create a structure dedicated to friendship between the US and its oldest ally, and outside government control, unlike the existing exchange programs led by the State Department since 1941.[6]

Young Leaders

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The Young Leaders program is the flagship program of the French-American Foundation.[7] The program was created in 1981, under the sponsorship of Princeton French-American economist Ezra Suleiman who remained its president until 2000.[8] It was initially intended as a response to observations that the close working relationships between French and American leaders in the post-war period were waning as new, younger leaders rose with little exposure to their transatlantic counterparts. 38 years later, it still plays a key role in the creation of transatlantic bonds, with more than 500 leaders in government, business, media, military, culture and the non-profit sector having taken part.[7]

Every year, juries in France and the United States select a small group (around twenty) of French and Americans between 30 and 40, that are destined to hold a leadership position in their field and to play an important role in a globalized world.[8] The selected Young Leaders then participate in two five-day seminars, alternatively in the U.S. and France, with the opportunity to discuss issues of common concern and, more importantly, get to know each other and create durable bonds.[9][10][11]

Notable alumni

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Young Leaders alumni include prominent Americans such as:[12][13][14]

French honorees include:[12]

Annual Gala

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The Annual Gala is the principal fundraising event of the French-American Foundation. Each year at the Gala, the Foundation presents its Benjamin Franklin Award to two individuals who have made significant contributions to the French-American relationship. The Comte de Vergennes Award is presented to longtime supporters of the French-American Foundation.

Past honorees include: Anne Lauvergeon, Patricia Russo, Ambassador Anne Cox Chambers, Henri de Castries, John A. Thain, Hon. C. Douglas Dillon, Hon. Walter J. P. Curley, Médecins Sans Frontières, Bernard Arnault, Michel David-Weill, the Forbes family, Maurice Lévy, and Frederick W. Smith.

The Translation Prize

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The FAF awards annually the French-American Foundation and Florence Gould Foundation Translation Prize.[16] The prize has been awarded since 1986. Since 2003, there have been two awards, one fiction, and one nonfiction. The prizes are not limited to contemporary works; Lydia Davis won in 2004 for her translation of Marcel Proust's Swann's Way. Arthur Goldhammer won in 2005 for his translation of Alexis de Tocqueville's Democracy in America.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Parker, Kevin (2023-07-07). "French-American Foundation Names Edward Wallace as its Chair". citybiz. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  2. ^ Mohr, Alexander (2010), The German Political Foundations As Actors in Democracy Assistance, Political Science, Boca Raton, Florida: Universal-Publishers, p. 145
  3. ^ Huot-Marchand, Amalia (2025-06-24). "French-American Foundation unveils 2025 'Young Leaders'". The Hill. Archived from the original on 2025-09-09. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  4. ^ Yash Roy, Eden Teshome (2024-06-27). "French-American Foundation announces 2024 'Young Leaders'". The Hill. Archived from the original on 2024-06-28. Retrieved 2026-01-28.
  5. ^ "Mission". French-American Foundation. Archived from the original on 2019-01-05. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  6. ^ "Young Leaders, l'enfance des chefs". Charles (in French). No. 12. January 2014. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
  7. ^ a b c "Young Leaders". French-American Foundation. Archived from the original on 2019-01-04. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  8. ^ a b de Ravinel, Sophie (10 October 2014). "Le petit club de l'élite transatlantique" [The small club of the transatlantic elite]. Le Figaro (in French). Archived from the original on 2015-11-19. Retrieved 2015-10-29.
  9. ^ a b "L'oncle Sam : un ami très influent" [Uncle Sam, a very influential friend]. France Inter (in French). 9 October 2015. Archived from the original on 2015-10-10. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
  10. ^ "Young Leaders" (in French). French-American Foundation. Archived from the original on 2015-10-31. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
  11. ^ Mali, Meghashyam (2018-06-19). "French-American Foundation announces 2018 'Young Leaders'". The Hill. Archived from the original on 2019-01-05. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  12. ^ a b c "The Program". French-American Foundation. Archived from the original on 2019-01-04. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  13. ^ Lejeune, Tristan (2017-06-27). "French-American Foundation announces 2017 'Young Leaders'". The Hill. Archived from the original on 2019-01-05. Retrieved 2019-01-04.
  14. ^ "French-American Foundation unveils 2025 'Young Leaders'". The Hill. June 24, 2025.
  15. ^ "Earlier Classes - 2019". French-American Foundation. Retrieved January 20, 2026.
  16. ^ "Translation Prize". French-American Foundation. 5 November 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
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