The Distinguished Fellows

The Graduate Institute is honoured and pleased that prominent personalities who have played and still play an important role in the international arena have accepted the status of Distinguished Fellows. In that quality, they will participate in our intellectual life, help us with their advice and network, and contribute to our outreach.

Peter Maurer

Peter Maurer

Senior Distinguished Fellow
As President of the International Committee of the Red Cross since 2012, Mr Maurer has a unique exposure to humanitarian and legal concerns in today's main armed conflicts. Mr Maurer has a long diplomatic career including to serve as Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in Switzerland and as the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations in New York.

 

MICHAEL MØLLER

Moller_square

Senior Distinguished Fellow
Mr Møller is a former Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. He is currently Senior Adviser to Macro Advisory Partners and Member of the Board for a number of foundations, including the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Anticipator (GESDA), the Kofi Annan Foundation and One Young World. He is also President of the Jury of the Geneva Challenge.

Mr Møller spent over 40 years as an international civil servant in the United Nations. He began his career in 1979 with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and worked for the United Nations in different capacities in New York, Mexico, Iran, Haiti, Cyprus and Geneva. In his last position, Mr Møller served as Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva, as well as Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Disarmament, and Personal Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General to the Conference of Disarmament from September 2013 to July 2019. Prior to that, Mr Møller served as Executive Director of the Kofi Annan Foundation from 2008 to 2011.

IRENE KHAN

DreifussI. Khan 2013

Senior Distinguished Fellow
Irene Khan is UN Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression since 1 August 2020 and Research Associate, Albert Hirschman Centre on Democracy.

An internationally recognized advocate for human rights, gender equality and social justice, Ms. Khan was Secretary General of Amnesty International from 2001 - 2009 and Director-General of the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) from 2012 - 2019. She was Visiting Professor at the State University of New York Law School in 2011 and Chancellor of Salford University (UK) from 2009 - 2015. She began her professional career with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, working for 21 years at headquarters and in country operations.

Ms. Khan collaborates with University of Columbia Global Freedom of Expression program, and serves on the Boards of Overseas Development Institute (UK), BRAC (Bangladesh) and Barefoot Law (Uganda). She was a member of the World Bank Gender Advisory Council, UNAIDS High Level Panel on HIV Prevention and Human Rights, and UN Global Compact Advisory Council.

She was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize in 2006 for her work to stop violence against women.

 

Ruth DREIFUSS

Dreifuss

After a long trade union career, Ruth Dreifuss was Federal Councilor and then the first woman President of the Swiss Confederation. Now, Ruth Dreifuss is active in several organisations, notably the Global Commission on Drug Policy and the International Commission against the Death Penalty.

 

FRANCIS GURRY

Gurry

Francis Gurry is Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization. He chairs the UN High-Level Committee on Management, which reports to the UN Chief Executives Board, and is responsible for ensuring coordination in administrative and management areas across the UN System.

 

JAKOB KELLENBERGER

Kellenberger

After having served as Secretary of State at the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, Jakob Kellenberger was elected President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, a position that he held until 2012. He is currently a visiting professor at the Graduate Institute, Geneva.

 

pascal lamy

Lamy

Pascal Lamy served for two consecutive terms, from 2005 to 2013, as General Director of the World Trade Organization (WTO). He was Chief of Staff for the President of the European Commission, Jacques Delors, from 1985 to 1994, and European Trade Commissioner from 1999-2004. In between, he was CEO of Credit Lyonnais.

 

jenö staehelin

Staehelin

Jenö Staehelin was Ambassador of Switzerland in many countries, notably in Japan, before being nominated Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the United Nations in New York.  He served as a member of the International Committee of the Red Cross and is currently a member of the board of the Kofi Annan Foundation.