In this era of “great power competition,” economic statecraft and the power of private enterprise have never been more important to our future. Military strength is important, but so many of America’s essential partnerships are driven at least as much by shared economic interests. In terms of our relationships with developing countries, we have much more to offer than authoritarian powers. We want to help countries go from being aid recipients to partners to fellow donors. We want to advance self-reliance and economic freedom, while authoritarians seek to promote dependency and state control.

Our vision for the future will only succeed, however, if our political and diplomatic leaders tap into the power of private enterprise and economic collaboration. We need to work harder to close the gap between the public and private sectors. We need to do more to model our market-based principles and foster economic opportunities in our friends, allies and partners.

Please join us for a conversation on the importance of enterprise diplomacy and public-private collaboration in the global arena, featuring Gildenhorn Fellow Senator Roy Blunt and former President of the World Bank Group, David Malpass, followed by a panel discussion.

The Joseph B. Gildenhorn Fellowship for Enterprise Diplomacy

The Wilson Center recently launched a new, cross-cutting line of research on the topic of enterprise diplomacy. Our goal is to help shape conversations and inspire meaningful action on strengthening the technological, economic, and policy-focused underpinnings of economic statecraft and diplomacy. The Joseph B. Gildenhorn Fellowship for Enterprise Diplomacy will be key to advancing this mission. The Gildenhorn Fellowship embodies the key values and attributes of Ambassador Gildenhorn, demonstrating a commitment to education, diplomacy and entrepreneurial spirit, and will help provide offer opportunities for a diverse array of top experts from the private sector, academia, journalists, and former government officials to amplify the Wilson Center's work and continue Ambassador Gildenhorn's legacy.