J. Raymond Trainor Award

The Trainor Award is presented annually to an outstanding American or foreigner for distinction in the conduct of diplomacy. The award is named for the late J. Raymond Trainor, the much admired former registrar of the Walsh School of Foreign Service. The Trainor Trust Fund in his honor is overseen by Allison Hiltz Kropp. Read more about J. Raymond Trainor.

 

Past Recipients

  • 2023 – Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Director General of the U.S. Foreign Service, and U.S. Ambassador to Liberia (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield.
  • 2022 – Ambassador William J. Burns, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency; Former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, U.S. Ambassador to Russia, and Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Burns.
  • 2020 – Ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch, Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, and U.S. Ambassador to Kyrgyzstan (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Yovanovitch.
  • 2019 – Ambassador Thomas A. Shannon, Jr., Former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Counselor of the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Ambassador to Brazil, and Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Shannon.
  • 2018 – The Honorable Madeleine K. Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations (full speech). Read more about Secretary Albright.
  • 2017 – Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights; Former Permanent Representative of Jordan to the United Nations, and Ambassador of Jordan to the United States (full speech). Read more about Prince Al Hussein.
  • 2016 – Dr. Ernest Moniz, U.S. Secretary of Energy, former Under Secretary of Energy for Energy and the Environment (full speech). Read more about Secretary Moniz.
  • 2014 – Ambassador Wendy Sherman, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State; Former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Counselor of the U.S. Department of State, and Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Sherman.
  • 2012 – Ernesto Zedillo, President of Mexico; Former Mexican Secretary of Public Education, and Secretary of Programming and Budget. Read more about President Zedillo.
  • 2011 – Francis M. Deng, former South Sudanese Ambassador to the United Nations, UN Special Advisor to the Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, and UN Special Representative on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Deng.
  • 2009 – Louise Arbour, former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Puisne Justice of the Supreme Court of Canada, and Chief Prosecutor for the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia (full speech). Read more about Louise Arbour.
  • 2007 – R. Nicholas Burns, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs; Former U.S. Ambassador to NATO, and U.S. Ambassador to Greece (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Burns.
  • 2006 – Mohamed El Baradei, Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Association. Read more about Mohamed El Baradei.
  • 2005 – John D. Negroponte, U.S. Director of National Intelligence; Former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, and Deputy National Security Advisor. Read more about Ambassador Negroponte.
  • 2004 – John C. Danforth, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Former U.S. Senator from Missouri, and Missouri Attorney General. Read more about Ambassador Danforth.
  • 2003 – James D. Wolfensohn on behalf of The World Bank Group, President of the World Bank. Read more about Sir James Wolfensohn and the World Bank.
  • 2002 – Lakhdar Brahimi, UN Special Envoy for Afghanistan, former Algerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, and chair of the United Nations Panel on United Nations Peace Operations. Read more about Lakhdar Bahimi.
  • 2001 – Wesley K. Clark, Supreme Allied Commander Europe. Read more about General Clark.
  • 2000 – Dennis B. Ross, Special Middle East Coordinator; Former Director of Policy Planning, U.S. Department of State (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Ross.
  • 1999 – Michel Camdessus, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund; Former governor of the Banque de France (full speech). Read more about Michel Camdessus.
  • 1998 – Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General; Former UN and Arab League envoy to Syria, and Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations (full speech). Read more about Secretary-General Annan.
  • 1997 – Amr Moussa, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Egypt; Former Egyptian Ambassador to the U.S. (full speech). Read more about Minister Moussa.
  • 1996 – Walter F. Mondale, Former Vice President of the United States and U.S. Ambassador to Japan; Former U.S. Senator from Minnesota, and Minnesota Attorney General (full speech). Read more about Vice President Mondale.
  • 1995 – Thomas Graham, Jr. and Jayantha Cudah Bandara Dhanapala, Special Representative for Arms Control, Non-Proliferation, and Disarmament; Sri Lankan Ambassador to the U.S. (full speech). Read more about Thomas Graham Jr. and Ambassador Dhanapala.
  • 1992 – Thomas R. Pickering, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel, Ambassador to El Salvador, Ambassador to Nigeria, Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, and Ambassador to Jordan. Read more about Ambassador Pickering.
  • 1991 – Rinaldo Petrignani, Italian Ambassador to the U.S.; Former Deputy Secretary-General of NATO, and Permanent Representative of Italy to the United Nations. Read more about Ambassador Petrignani.
  • 1990 – David D. Newsom, Former Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, Ambassador to Indonesia, and Ambassador to Libya (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Newsom.
  • 1989 – Anatoly Fedorovich Dobrynin, Head of the International Department of the Soviet Central Committee; Former Soviet Ambassador to the United States, and member of the Soviet Secretariat. Read more about Ambassador Dobrynin.
  • 1988 – Max M. Kampelman and Mike Mansfield, Counselor to the US Department of State; United States Ambassador to Japan, former U.S. Senator from Montana and Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Montana’s 1st District. Read more about Max Kampelman and Senator Mansfield.
  • 1987 – Tommy T. B. Koh, President of the Third UN Conference on the Law of the Sea; Former Permanent Representative of Singapore to the United Nations. Read more about Ambassador Koh.
  • 1986 – Arthur A. Hartman, U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union; Former U.S. Ambassador to France. Read more about Ambassador Hartman.
  • 1984 – Lord Carrington, Sixth Secretary-General of NATO; Former UK Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs. Read more about Lord Carrington.
  • 1983 – Deane Hinton, U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan; Former U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador, and Ambassador to Zaire (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Hinton.
  • 1982 – Antonio Carrillo Flores, Mexican Ambassador to the US and the Soviet Union; Former Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs, and Secretary of Finance and Public Credit. Read more about Secretary Flores.
  • 1981 – William Bowdler, Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs; Former U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador, Ambassador to South Africa, and Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, U.S. Department of State (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Bowdler.
  • 1980 – Phillip C. Habib and U. Alexis Johnson, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, former Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; US Delegate to the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs. Read more about Ambassador Habib and Ambassador Johnson.
  • 1979 – David K. E. Bruce (Posthumously) and Berndt von Staden, U.S. Ambassador to NATO, former Ambassador to France, the United Kingdom, and West Germany; West German Ambassador to the United States. Read more about Ambassador Bruce and Ambassador von Staden.
  • 1978 – Ellsworth Bunker, Advisor to President Carter on the Torrijos-Carter Treaties; Former U.S. Ambassador to Argentina, Italy, India, Nepal, South Vietnam, and the Organization of American States (full speech). Read more about Ambassador Bunker.