Ambassador Cynthia P. Schneider, Ph.D.
Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy
Director, Life Science and Society Initiative
Georgetown University
Washington D.C. 20057
Mailing address : Box 571444
3300 Whitehaven Street, N.W., Suite 5000
Washington, DC 20057-1485
Tel. 202 687 0703
Fax 301 924 8715
Email: schneidc@georgetown.edu
Dr. Cynthia P. Schneider is Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy and Pfizer Medical Humanities Initiative Scholar-in-Residence at Georgetown University. In addition she has been awarded a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation for the project “Ethics Meets the Marketplace: Towards a Model Framework Harnessing the Potential of the Life Sciences to Improve Agriculture and Animal Agriculture in the Developing World”.
A tenured member of the Georgetown University faculty, Prof. Schneider taught art history for twenty years before changing direction to initiate a Life Science policy center, and to write and research on cultural diplomacy. These interests arose from Dr. Schneider’s tenure as U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands (1998-2001). In that capacity she led initiatives in the fields of biotechnology, cyber security, military affairs, education and public diplomacy, and culture. Under her direction, the U.S. Embassy in The Hague organized and hosted a two day conference “Biotechnology: the Science and the Impact” (January 2000, 500 attendees, 80 press and media), which is credited with fostering a positive climate for biotechnology in The Netherlands, frequently rated the most receptive country in Europe to the life sciences. In April 2001 in The Hague, Dr. Schneider co-hosted with Royal Dutch Shell and the Rand Corporation a conference on cyber security that brought together U.S. and EU officials and private sector experts to examine their respective roles and responsibilities in addressing this problem
Dr. Schneider has led the Life Sciences and Society Initiative (LSSI), whichpools and strengthens Georgetown’s resources in the science and medicine, ethics, policy, law, and international dimensions of the life sciences to address the challenges of the integration of the life sciences into daily life. The Initiative organized the International Life Sciences Summit , held in October 2003, which attracted speakers such as Sen. Orrin Hatch, FDA Commissioner Mark McClellan, and Dr. Craig Venter (see www.lifesciencesummit.org), as well as three conferences on biosecurity topics, with a fourth to be held on Capitol Hill in spring 2005, “Preparing for the Inevitable: Bioterrorism and Emerging Infectious Diseases”, featuring Senator Hillary Rodham and Dr. Tara O’Toole. Currently, Dr. Schneider is the Principle Investigator on a project funded by the Rockefeller Foundation to research and defines “Best Practices” in public-private partnerships for agricultural biotechnology in the development world. She is also working with the State Department on two projects: 1) to improve the science and technology training for Foreign Service officers; 2) to organize an ongoing series of transatlantic conference on cutting edge issues in science and technology.
Business Experience:
Corporate Board Experience:
Since December 2001, Dr. Schneider has served on Supervisory Board of the third largest food retailer in the world, Royal Ahold. In 2003-2004, when the company underwent a crisis, Dr. Schneider and the other six members of the Board oversaw the securing of multi-billion dollar financing, the firing of the CEO and CFO and the hiring of their replacements, the dispersal of multiple assets all over the world, and the strategic re-direction of the company. During this time every aspect of the company was subjected to a rigorous examination in compliance with requests from the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Justice and the Dutch Prosecutor. In its settlement with Ahold ( October 13 th, 2004) the SEC took the unprecedented step of not fining the company, because of “ the company's extensive cooperation with the Commission's investigation.” Dr. Schneider serves on two committees: Remuneration, and Selections and Appointments (with oversight for corporate governance), and is currently engaged in a search for four new Board members. Dr. Schneider also serves on the Advisory Board of StrawberryFrog, Inc., an international public relations and marketing firm, and on multiple not-for profit boards, including the Board of Directors, Council of American Ambassadors, Institute for the Study of Europe, Columbia University; Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Berlin, Germany; Anne Frank House, American Board of Advisors.
Active as an advocate for American business during her tenure as Ambassador, Dr. Schneider concentrated in the following sectors: biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, food and grain, oil and gas, defense acquisitions, and IT. She also worked in transportation and finance. Multi-lingual with extensive European experience, Ambassador Schneider specialized in building bridges between American and European representatives of different industries and between the public and private sectors. Industry Advocacy:Credited by PHrMA for helping to open the door in the Dutch Ministry of Health for innovative U.S. biotech pharmaceuticals.
Speeches and Publications:
Dr. Schneider is invited to speak on a wide range of topics including various aspects of the life sciences, U.S. and European regulatory policies, U.S. European relations, American foreign policy, public diplomacy, cultural diplomacy, women in the workplace, effective management strategies, and sustainable development and environmental issues. She has spoken at BioVision in Lyons, France and Alexandria, Egypt, as well as other national and international conferences, and at universities, think tanks, and associations. As Ambassador she spoke on the above topics plus the global economy, Dutch- American relations, the glass ceiling, politics and culture in America, and traditions of freedom and democracy in America (see www.usemb.nl/schneide.htm). She was the first American to be invited to give the keynote address on the annual Dutch commemoration of the liberation from the Nazis ( May 5, 2000, “Freedom Must be Passed On”) and the first non-Dutch speaker to deliver the annual William of Orange lecture ( June 5, 2001, “Culture, Society, and Government”). Link to Speeches and Presentations
Recent publications: “The ‘King of Terrors’ Revisited: the Smallpox Vaccination Campaign and its Lessons for Future Biopreparedness”, Journal for Law, Ethics, and Medicine, winter 2003, vol.31, no.4, pp. 580-589 (with Dr. Michael D. McDonald); “Culture Communicates: US Diplomacy that Works”, Discussion Papers in Diplomacy, Netherlands Institute of International Relations, Clingendael, no.94, September 2004; “The Science is Not Enough”, Journal of BioLaw and Business, forthcoming. Previous publications include books and articles on Rembrandt and seventeenth century Dutch art, plus an exhibition catalogue (National Gallery of Art), Rembrandt’s Landscape Print and Drawings.
- International Policy Experience:
Environment and Climate Change: hosted US delegation of over 100 to the COP-6 Climate Change Conference in The Hague in November 2000.
Anti-corruption: hosted US delegation, led by Attorney General John Ashcroft, to the Global Anti-Corruption Conference in The Hague in May 2001.
International Justice:
As Ambassador was responsible for US cooperation with and assistance to the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY.
Top U.S. official in the Netherlands responsible for the Lockerbie trial of the two Libyans accused of bombing Pan Am 103. Coordinated arrangements with the Dutch and British governments and the US Department of Justice for this unprecedented international trial (2000-2001).
Political/Military: Liaison between the Dutch and American military in coordinating with the Dutch before and during the Kosovo war. Awarded the Office of the Secretary of Defense Exceptional Public Service Order, the highest civilian award given by the Department of Defense.
Honors and Awards:
Office of the Secretary of Defense Exceptional Public Service Order, 2001 (highest civilian award given by the Department of Defense)
Not-for-Profit Boards:
Institute for the Study of Europe, Columbia University; Institute for Cultural Diplomacy, Berlin, Germany; Anne Frank House, American Board of Advisors
BACKGROUND:
Born in Pennsylvania on August 16, 1953, Ambassador Schneider earned a BA Magna cum Laude and a Ph.D. in Fine Arts from Harvard University. In 1984 she was appointed to the faculty at Georgetown University, where she taught art history until June 2004. Prior to teaching at Georgetown, she was Assistant Curator of European Paintings at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. In addition, Ambassador Schneider was named Vice-Chair of the President's Committee on the Arts and Humanities by President Clinton. Ambassador Schneider speaks French (fluent), Dutch, Italian, and some German. She is married and has two children.
