Jean-Marie Guéhenno (; born 30 October 1949 in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...
) is a former
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
diplomat.
Guéhenno served as the
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...
'
Under-Secretary-General
An under-secretary-general of the United Nations (USG) is a senior official within the United Nations System, normally appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the secretary-general for a renewable term of four years. Unde ...
for
Peacekeeping Operations from 2000 to August 2008.
He was elected Chairman of the Henri Dunant
Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) board at the end of 2010. From March to July 2012, he temporarily stood down from the board to serve as Deputy Joint Special Envoy of the United Nations and the League of Arab States on Syria. He resumed his role as a Member and Chairman of the HD Centre Board in November 2012.
In 2012-13, Guéhenno headed President François Hollande's review of French defense and security policies.
He was director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution at
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
's
School of International and Public Affairs. He also served as associate director of the
Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies
The Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies (SIWPS) is a research center that is part of Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in New York. It was founded in 1951 by President of Columbia Dwight D. Eisenho ...
at SIPA and directed the School's International Conflict Resolution specialization.
He was named president and CEO of
International Crisis Group in August 2014, succeeding
Louise Arbour.
In 2021, Guehenno returned to
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manha ...
as the inaugural Kent Visiting Professor of Conflict Resolution. He is also a non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.
Biography
Guéhenno is the son of the French teacher, editor and writer
Jean Guéhenno
Jean Guéhenno born Marcel-Jules-Marie Guéhenno (25 March 1890 – 22 September 1978) was a French essayist, writer and literary critic.
Life and career
Jean Guéhenno, writer and educator, was a prominent contributor to the NRF. He was edito ...
, author of the Occupation memoir ''Journal des Années Noires'' and a biography of
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revol ...
, among other works. His mother,
Annie Guéhenno, was a member of the Resistance during the Second World War and a writer.
Guéhenno attended the
École Normale Supérieure
École may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education
Secondary education or post-primary education covers two phases on the International Standard Classification of Education sca ...
, before going to the
École Nationale d'Administration
The École nationale d'administration (generally referred to as ENA, en, National School of Administration) was a French ''grande école'', created in 1945 by President Charles de Gaulle and principal author of the 1958 Constitution Michel Deb ...
. He was then a member of the
Cour des Comptes in Paris. He has also worked in international relations and diplomacy, directing the French
Policy Planning Staff from 1989 to 1993, chairing the
Institut des hautes études de défense nationale
The ''Institut des hautes études de défense nationale'' (IHEDN) (Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defence) is a French public academic institution for research, education and promotion of expertise and sensitization towards defence matte ...
from 1998 to 2000 and working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in France before he joined the UN.
Guéhenno served as United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations from 2000 to 2008. He led the largest expansion of peacekeeping in the history of the UN, overseeing approximately 130,000 staff, on 18 missions.
Guéhenno is an officer of the ''
Légion d'honneur
The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon B ...
'' and a commander of the ''
Bundesverdienstkreuz''. .
He is married and has one daughter.
Other activities
*
Carnegie Corporation of New York, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2020)
*
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in e ...
, Distinguished Fellow
*
European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), Member
*
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
(WEF), Member of the Global Future Council on the Future of International Security
*
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
(WEF), Member of the Europe Policy Group (since 2017)
Europe Policy Group
World Economic Forum
The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...
.
Publications
Guéhenno has published articles in many newspapers and magazines, including "The Impact of Globalisation on Strategy" in the International Institute for Strategic Studies' Survival, and "Globalisation and the International System" in the Journal of Democracy, as well as articles or chapters in Internationale Politik, Prospect, Paradoxes of European Foreign Policy, and Strategic Analysis. He is the author of The End of Democracy (1993, in French) and The Fog of Peace (2015).
Bibliography
* ''La fin de la démocratie'' Paris, Flammarion, 1993 ; re-edited by ''Champs'' in 1999, ; published in English as
The End of the Nation-State
', Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 2000, 160 pages,
* ''L'avenir de la liberté - La démocratie dans la mondialisation'' ("The Future of Freedom - Democracy in Globalisation"), Paris, Flammarion, 1999, 222 pages,
* Jocelyn Coulon, Jean-Marie Guéhenno, Lucien Manokou, Catherine Délice, ''Guide du maintien de la paix'', Paris, Athéna éditions, 2006, 294 pages,
*
The Fog of Peace
' New York, Brookings, 2015, 331 pages,
References
External links
"Crisis Group Announces Next President"
web site of International Crisis Group
Jean-Marie Guéhenno: "An International Force Can Never Impose Peace"
Interview by Philippe Bolopion in ''Le Monde
''Le Monde'' (; ) is a French daily afternoon newspaper. It is the main publication of Le Monde Group and reported an average circulation of 323,039 copies per issue in 2009, about 40,000 of which were sold abroad. It has had its own website si ...
'', translated into English and hosted by the Global Policy Forum.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guehenno, Jean Marie
Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Living people
1949 births
École nationale d'administration alumni
Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
French diplomats
Columbia School of International and Public Affairs faculty
Center on International Cooperation
Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs