Justin Pierre Albert Vaïsse (born 26 June 1973) is a French historian and intellectual. Since March 2019, he is the director general of the
Paris Peace Forum organization, an independent NGO he founded in 2018 under the impetus of French president
Emmanuel Macron
Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France and Co-Prince of Andorra since 2017. He was Ministry of Economy and Finance (France), Minister of Economics, Industr ...
. The Paris Peace Forum is an annual event that aims at promoting new rules and solutions to address the global challenges of our time. Prior to this role, he was director of
policy planning at the
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2019.
Education
A graduate student from
École normale supérieure de Saint-Cloud
École or Ecole may refer to:
* an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée)
* École (river), a tributary of the Seine flowing in région Île-de-France
* Éco ...
and
Sciences Po
Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...
, Vaïsse earned his PhD in history in 2005 and his
''habilitation à diriger des recherches'' in 2011.
Career
Vaïsse was a teaching assistant at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
in 1996–1997, and an adjunct professor at
Sciences Po
Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...
from 1999 to 2007 and at the
School of Advances International Studies (SAIS,
Paul H. Nitze School of Advances International Studies, Washington) at
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
from 2007 to 2013.
His areas of expertise include American foreign policy, transatlantic and French-American relations, and Islam in France. Vaïsse is the author or co-author of numerous books on the United States, including ''
Neoconservatism
Neoconservatism (colloquially neocon) is a political movement which began in the United States during the 1960s among liberal hawks who became disenchanted with the increasingly pacifist Democratic Party along with the growing New Left and ...
– The Biograph of a Movement'',
[Justin Vaïsse](_blank)
, Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...
(Harvard University Press, 2010), a book deemed “essential reading for anyone wishing to understand the contours of our recent political past” by the ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''.
In 2006, he co-authored ''Integrating Islam: Political and Religious Challenges in Contemporary France'' (Brookings Press) with Professor
Jonathan Laurence, a book named “2007 Outstanding Academic Title” by the
American Library Association
The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world.
History 19th century ...
and subsequently translated into French.
From 2007 to 2013, Vaïsse was director of research for the Center on the United States and Europe and a senior fellow in foreign policy at the
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...
, where he initiated several projects, including the Brookings Eurozone Survey and the European Foreign Policy Scorecard with the
European Council on Foreign Relations
The European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) is a pan-European think tank with offices in seven European capitals. Launched in October 2007, it conducts research on European foreign and security policy and provides a meeting space for decis ...
(ECFR) – an annual evaluation of Europe's performance on the world stage.
In March 2013, Vaïsse was chosen by
Laurent Fabius
Laurent Fabius (; born 20 August 1946) is a French politician. A member of the Socialist Party (France), Socialist Party, he previously served as Prime Minister of France from 17 July 1984 to 20 March 1986. Fabius was 37 years old when he was a ...
, the French minister of foreign affairs, to helm the ministry's Policy Planning center (''
Centre d'analyse, de prévision et de stratégie'', CAPS). The CAPS in an internal think tank, similar to the American
Policy Planning Staff in that it provides independent policy analysis and strategic advice, with a specific focus on anticipation. As director of policy planning, Vaïsse became an expert on all major foreign policy topics, advised the minister on his strategic decisions, provided background analysis and forecasts on international affairs, managed a network of policy planners, and supervised a team of high-level strategic analysts.
His biography of former national security adviser
Zbigniew Brzezinksi was published in France in 2016 and in the US in 2018 under the title ''Zbigniew Brzezinski – America's Grand Strategist'' (Harvard University Press) to critical acclaim. Translations in Chinese and Polish are due to published in 2020.
In 2017, President
Emmanuel Macron
Emmanuel Jean-Michel Frédéric Macron (; born 21 December 1977) is a French politician who has served as President of France and Co-Prince of Andorra since 2017. He was Ministry of Economy and Finance (France), Minister of Economics, Industr ...
tasked Vaïsse with outlining the contours of an annual event that would respond to the growing woes of multilateralism by convening all actors of global governance once a year around major initiatives and concrete projects. The
Paris Peace Forum was born the following year and its first edition coincided with the centenary of the armistice of World War I on 11 November 2018. It convened 65 Heads of State and government, 10 heads of international organization, and about 6,000 participants from civil society NGOs, the corporate world, trade unions, foundations, and think tanks.
The organization was founded as an independent NGO (''association under French loi 1901'') by six organizations (
Sciences Po
Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...
,
Institut français des relations internationales
The Institut français des relations internationales (Ifri; English ''French Institute of International Relations'') is a think tank dedicated to International relations, international affairs, based in Paris, France.
Overview
Ifri was establi ...
(Ifri),
Institut Montaigne,
French Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Körber Foundation
The Körber Foundation (German: ''Körber-Stiftung'') is a nonprofit organization, established in 1959 by German businessman Kurt A. Körber. Its operational work is organised into seven subject areas: ‘Age and Demography’, ‘Education’, ...
,
Mo Ibrahim Foundation
The Mo Ibrahim Foundation is an African non-grant foundation founded in 2006 by businessman Mo Ibrahim. Headquartered in London and Dakar, Senegal, it works to strengthen governance and leadership in Africa through its key initiatives:
* Ibra ...
) and Justin Vaïsse was its first president. In early 2019,
Pascal Lamy
Pascal Lamy (born 8 April 1947) is a French political consultant and businessman. He was the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) from 1 September 2005 to 1 September 2013 for 8 years. In April 2009, WTO members reappointed Lamy ...
took over as president and Justin Vaïsse became director general.
Other activities
*
European Council on Foreign Relations
The European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) is a pan-European think tank with offices in seven European capitals. Launched in October 2007, it conducts research on European foreign and security policy and provides a meeting space for decis ...
(ECFR), Member
*
French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), Member of the Strategic Advisory Board
Strategic Advisory Board
French Institute of International Relations (IFRI).
Personal life
His father is prominent historian Maurice Vaïsse.
Career overview
* 2007 – 2013: Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy Studies, and Director of Research, Center on the US and Europe, Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as Brookings, is an American think tank that conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics (and tax policy), metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, global econo ...
* 2013 – 2019: Director of the Policy Planning staff of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs
* 2019 – present: Director General of the Paris Peace Forum
Published works
As author or co-author – in English
* ''Zbigniew Brzezinksi – America's Grand Strategist'' (translated by Catherine Porter), Harvard University Press, 2018
* ''Neoconservatism: The Biography of a Movement'' (translated by Arthur Goldhammer), Cambridge (MA), The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2010, 376 p.
* ''La présidence impériale : de Franklin D. Roosevelt à George W. Bush'', avec Denis Lacorne (dir.), Paris, Odile Jacob, 2007, 220 p.
* ''Integrating Islam: Political and Religious Challenges in Contemporary France'', with Jonathan Laurence, Washington DC, The Brookings Institution Press, 2006, 342 p.
References
External links
Official website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaisse, Justin
21st-century French historians
Living people
French male non-fiction writers
1973 births