Madeleine M. Kunin

Madeleine M. Kunin

"She serves as President of the board of the Institute for Sustainable Communities (ISC) a non-governmental organization that she founded in 1991. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She is also a regular commentator on Vermont Public Radio. Previously Kunin was the Bicentennial Fellow-in-Residence at Middlebury College in Middlebury, Vermont, where she lectured on a variety of subjects, including her recent experience as U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland (1996-99) as well as on education, politics, the environment, leadership and women's issues. She was a Fellow of The Institute of Politics, Kennedy School, Harvard University and a Fellow at Harvard's Bunting Institute.

"During her tenure as U.S. Ambassador to Switzerland, she dealt with the question of Jewish World War II assets and Nazi-looted gold. She helped to prod Switzerland to confront its past and take action. At the same time she worked to maintain a positive relationship between Switzerland and the United States, two countries that have a long-standing friendship. Her knowledge of languages and government, and her familiarity with Switzerland, the country of her birth, enabled her to be an effective ambassador. Prior to her appointment as ambassador, she served for three and a half years as U.S. deputy secretary of education in the Clinton Administration. As chief operating officer of the department, Kunin served on the president's management council, which dealt with "reinventing government." " more