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Gareth Evans to serve as IU School of Global and International Studies' first Diplomat in Residence

Former foreign minister of Australia was named a Top 100 Global Thinker by Foreign Affairs

• Feb. 3, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Gareth Evans, one of the longest-serving federal cabinet ministers in Australia and the country's foreign minister from 1988 to 1996, will be the first Distinguished Diplomat in Residence at Indiana University's School of Global and International Studies.

A champion for reducing the roles and risks of nuclear weapons and for protection from mass atrocity crimes, Evans led the International Crisis Group in Brussels, the global conflict prevention and resolution organization, from 2000 to 2009. 

Named one of Foreign Policy magazine's Top 100 Global Thinkers in 2011, Evans has been chancellor of Australian National University since 2010. He was a cabinet minister in the Hawke and Keating Labor Governments from 1983 to 1996, also serving as attorney general, minister for resources and energy, and minister for transport and communications.

During 21 years in Australian politics, Evans also was leader of the government in the Senate and deputy leader of the opposition in the House of Representatives.

One of the leading international voices for a more just and secure world, Evans also is author or editor of 11 books, including "Nuclear Weapons: The State of Play" (2015) and "The Responsibility to Protect: Ending Mass Atrocity Crimes Once and for All" (2008).

"I am extremely pleased that our students and scholars will have the opportunity to study and work with Gareth Evans, who is truly one of the most important voices in foreign policy today,” IU President Michael A. McRobbie said. 

“Through his work in the areas of government service, academia and civil society, he has made major contributions to the dialogue and debate over some of the most critical issues facing today’s international society. I have no doubt students at our new School of Global and International Studies will greatly benefit from his unique perspective and experiences.” 

”I am delighted to have this opportunity to pass on some of my experience to the next generation of international policymakers,” Evans said. “This new school under Lee Feinstein’s leadership is an exciting and cutting-edge place to be, and I feel privileged to be part of the action.”

While at the School of Global and International Studies from May 11 to 24, Evans will teach an intensive, advanced-level seminar on diplomacy; participate in an international conference on campus on the Responsibility to Protect; and meet with students and faculty. 

"I've had the privilege of working with Minister Evans over the years, both in and outside of government," said former Ambassador Lee Feinstein, inaugural dean of the School of Global and International Studies. "On issues ranging from civilian protection to nuclear arms reductions, Gareth Evans has been a principled advocate, on the cutting edge of policy and research. We are privileged to host him on campus."

Evans co-chaired the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty, which pioneered the concept of the responsibility to protect populations against mass atrocities. Former U.S. Rep. Lee H. Hamilton, a distinguished scholar and professor of practice in the School of Global and International Affairs and director of the IU Center on Congress, served on this groundbreaking commission.

Evans co-chaired the Commission on Nuclear Non-Proliferation and Disarmament from 2008 to 2010 and currently co-chairs the international advisory board of the New-York based Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect.

Among the many honors he has received is the Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute's Four Freedoms Award for Freedom From Fear in 2010, for his pioneering work on the Responsibility to Protect concept and his contributions to conflict prevention and resolution, arms control and disarmament.

Related Links

• IU School of Global and International Studies
• Gareth Evans' Official Site