About the Young Leaders Program

The Young Leaders program is the flagship program of the French-American Foundation and continues to be central to the Foundation’s success in deepening understanding between France and the United States.

The program was created in 1981 in 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 trans-Atlantic counterparts. From its inception, the program has taken small groups of carefully selected up-and-coming leaders in government, business, media, military and the non-profit sector. The program has provided them with the opportunity to spend five days together discussing issues of common concern and, more importantly, getting to know each other. The relaxed atmosphere and the off-the-record nature of the conferences have fostered trenchant and open discussions of policy and social issues and have been very successful in facilitating the development of a new network of trans-Atlantic leaders. The 22 meetings that have been held since 1981 have been attended by over 250 influential men and women, many of whom have gone on to positions of significant responsibility.

Young Leaders include such prominent Americans as President Clinton, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Senators Evan Bayh and Bill Bradley, General Wesley Clark, former White House Chief of Staff Joshua Bolten, World Bank President Robert Zoellick, and business leaders Frank Herringer (Transamerica Corporation) and John Thain (CIT Group). Past French participants include several business leaders, including Henri de Castries (AXA), Anne Lauvergeon (AREVA), and Michel Bon (formerly with France Télécom), in addition to a number of political leaders, such as former Prime Minister Alain Juppé, Minister for Higher Education and Research Valérie Pécresse, former Minister of European Affairs Pierre Moscovici, former Minister of Defense Alain Richard and former Minister of Justice Jacques Toubon. Please click here to consult a more extensive list of prominent Young Leaders (pdf document).

Past and current participants form the Young Leaders Circle, which offers a framework for informal gatherings as well as plenary reunions to debate contemporary issues. For instance, in light of the crisis over Iraq, the theme of the November 2003 conference was Getting Back on Track in the French-American relationship. The most recent Young Leaders symposium, held in November 2007, examined the new challenges facing leaders in the 21st century and the role that Young Leader alumni can continue to play in strengthening the trans-Atlantic relationship.

Young Leaders are selected by committees in France and the United States in a process coordinated by the Foundation’s offices. Candidates are identified in several ways: through recommendations from past participants, from board members and committee members of the French-American Foundation as well as from other interested observers and from media reports about rising young personalities. The candidates are between 30 and 40 years of age and are considered to have the potential to rise to the highest levels of their profession. Selected Young Leaders are invited to participate in two annual meetings, which alternate each year between France and the United States. The 2009 Young Leaders meeting took place in Chicago in September. Please click here to read a summary of this meeting (pdf document). For the 2010 program, Young Leaders will meet in the fall in France.

Roundtable sessions held during the meeting cover issues in politics, economics, media, social policy and world affairs. Roundtables are moderated by past participants with relevant expertise. An emphasis is always placed on promoting informal, frank dialogue, and the discussions are strictly off-the-record. The group stays together throughout the duration of the conference, with meals, free time and group activities providing further opportunities to develop personal relationships and networks and promote cross-cultural understanding.

If you have any questions about the program, please contact Chrissa LaPorte, Director, Leadership & Exchange Programs.