AFSA’s Award for Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy honors those who have made extraordinary contributions to diplomacy and the diplomatic profession over many years. The American Foreign Service Association established its award for Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy in 1995. By giving this high-profile award, AFSA also seeks to bring greater recognition to its other awards, including its unique annual awards for constructive dissent.
Originally, there were no criteria beyond those implied by the award’s name. First in 2009, and later in 2016, the AFSA Governing Board refined the criteria guidelines to be as follows:
- The nominee should have at least a decade of service to diplomacy and foreign policy development, and have made an enduring, positive impact on the diplomatic profession itself, including but not limited to promoting the Foreign Service’s primary role in foreign policy within the executive and legislative branches and strengthening the institution of the Foreign Service.
- The nominees may be retired career diplomats but could include other individuals in exceptional circumstances. When looking at an individual who was not a career member of the Foreign Service, one must consider the effect that the individual has had on promoting the role of the Foreign Service and championing diplomacy.
- The nominees are considered for their accomplishments during both active duty and in retirement. The enduring impact of their work on diplomacy, the profession, and diplomatic institutions and practices is particularly important.
- Nominees must be able to attend the awards ceremony in person.
The presentation takes place during AFSA’s annual Awards Ceremony, typically in October. Click here for a complete list of previous recipients.
For information on these awards, please contact awards@afsa.org.
AFSA is pleased to announce that Ambassador William J. “Bill” Burns has been selected as the winner of its 32nd annual Lifetime Contributions to American Diplomacy Award. Amb. Burns was chosen for his contributions to American foreign policy over his three-decade career and dedication to strengthening the Foreign Service.
Amb. Burns is widely regarded by his colleagues as the finest Foreign Service officer of his generation; Secretary of State John Kerry once called him “a statesman cut from the same cloth, caliber, and contribution as George F. Kennan and Chip Bohlen.”
Amb. Burns joined the Foreign Service in 1982, and his remarkable 33-year career included service as under secretary of State for political affairs, executive secretary of the State Department, special assistant to the president and senior director for Near East and South Asian affairs on the National Security Council, ambassador to Jordan, and ambassador to Russia. His final Foreign Service position was as Deputy Secretary of State from 2011 to 2014; he was only the second serving career officer in history to hold that role.
Amb. Burns played a key role in some of the most important foreign policy issues of the last four decades. These included the end of the Cold War, the reunification of Germany, the quest for peace in the Middle East, the post-9/11 Global War on Terrorism, the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, dealing with Russia under Vladimir Putin, and secret nuclear talks with Iran.
His lifetime contributions to American diplomacy were recognized by the Department of State with his promotion to the rank of career ambassador, the highest rank in the Foreign Service, in 2008. In 2021, he became the first career diplomat ever to be appointed director of the CIA. He is the recipient of numerous U.S. government awards--such as three Presidential Distinguished Service Awards and three Secretary’s Distinguished Service Awards-- foreign decorations, and honorary degrees. He was one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2024, and on TIME’s list of Forty Most Promising Global Leaders Under Forty in 1994.
Upon initially retiring from government service in 2014, Burns went on to lead the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the oldest international affairs think tank in the United States. From that prestigious position, he spoke out regularly and eloquently against threats to the career Foreign Service during the first Trump administration.
His contributions to strengthening the career Foreign Service and the diplomatic profession include his career-long efforts to mentor hundreds of younger officers. During his six years as the highest-ranking FSO, while serving as under secretary of State for political affairs and then as Deputy Secretary of State, he met readily with AFSA presidents to discuss issues impacting the Foreign Service career. Most recently, he continued his advocacy with AFSA as spokesperson for its “Service Disrupted” campaign.
Amb. Burns currently serves as senior adviser for global affairs at Evercore. He earned a BA from LaSalle University and both an MA and a PhD from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar. He speaks Russian, Arabic, and French. Burns is the author of multiple books, including bestseller, The Back Channel: A Memoir of American Diplomacy and the Case for its Renewal.
He is married to Ambassador Lisa Carty and is the proud father of two grown daughters.