The Honorary Committee

Through its diversity of actors – governments, international organizations, non-governmental organizations, academic and private sectors – and the central role it has played for over a century, International Geneva has become a recognized hub for multilateral governance at the heart of an increasingly fragmented world facing multiple challenges.

Among these diverse actors, the Diplomatic Club of Geneva constitutes an important platform for bringing together local and International Geneva and exchanging ideas on how to further shape collective and innovative solutions. The Diplomatic Club contributes to supporting and strengthening International Geneva’s values – peace, rights and well-being – as well as the development of tomorrow’s multilateralism.

On behalf of my colleagues working for the United Nations family in Geneva, I extend my sincere thanks to the Diplomatic Club for the work it has accomplished over the past 40 years and I look forward to continuing this fruitful collaboration.

Tatiana Valovaya

The Swiss Mission ascribes particular importance to the activities of the Diplomatic Club of Geneva, as it considers that its action in favor of the diplomatic community contributes positively to the influence of Geneva as a centre for international governance.

By generating debates between the local communities and visiting personalities, the Diplomatic Club is an important actor on the scene of International Geneva. The Diplomatic Club draws its stimulating quality from its members who, by their regular participation in its activities, demonstrate its utility and dynamism.

As the representative of Swiss authorities in Geneva, I am glad to support the Diplomatic Club of Geneva.

Thomas Gürber
Ambassador

Closely linked to our history and our identity, International Geneva gives our Canton an aura that is out of all proportion to its size. This privileged status also entails a responsibility: that of providing the best possible support to the international actors who we welcome in Geneva as they work to achieve their public service missions.

In fulfilling this responsibility, we count on the valuable role of the Diplomatic Club of Geneva. Through the many events and activities it offers, the Club provides food for thought and discussion, thereby promoting a feeling of belonging and a spirit of community within this unique environment. The Club also contributes to forging links between International Geneva and local Geneva, thus making it possible to better highlight our common interests.

I would like, on behalf of the State Council, to thank the Diplomatic Club for its constructive engagement

Nathalie Fontanet

We are living through a turning point. Several crises have followed one another: health, social, geopolitical, climate-related, and perhaps even a crisis of human connection.

Anxiety, anger, loneliness, withdrawal into oneself, and forms of resentment are palpable. The polarization of our societies, amplified by social media, must give us pause. Social cohesion is being undermined by Manichean worldviews that can lead to violence.

We must remember that the word “crisis”, from the Greek krisis, etymologically refers to judgment, the ability to choose, and the action that presupposes that decisive moment when profound change takes place.

And what better compass than the common good? What better remedy than strengthening social ties?

It is imperative that we reaffirm our commitment to a shared destiny, to a world city — Geneva — that embodies the values of peace, equality, and social justice.

In this regard, the Diplomatic Club, a place of encounter and exchange par excellence, where many of International Geneva’s decision-makers come together, plays an essential role in fostering dialogue and is a privileged space in which to respond to the successive crises we are currently experiencing. It is by coming together and engaging in dialogue that we can develop innovative and shared solutions.

On behalf of the authorities of the City of Geneva, I would like to commend the indispensable role that the Diplomatic Club has played over the past 50 years in supporting multilateralism.

Christina Kitsos

As a meeting place for Ambassadors, heads of agencies, businessmen, academics and leading local figures, the Diplomatic Club plays an essential role in strengthening ties between the various stakeholders in international Geneva and building bridges with the local community.

Led by its chairman, former Ambassador of Switzerland Raymond Loretan, and its dynamic committee which has representatives of the Swiss Confederation and the Canton and City of Geneva, it offers a rich and varied programme of activities each year, including conferences on international current affairs and excursions to discover Geneva and Switzerland.

The Fondation pour Genève, which celebrates its 45th anniversary in 2021, shares the Diplomatic Club’s objectives of promoting International Geneva. Thanks to its institutional and private patrons, it carries out its own activities while supporting those of other key players dedicated to strengthening Geneva’s reach and reputation. The Fondation pour Genève is proud and honoured to have supported the activities of the Diplomatic Club of Geneva for more than 10 years.

Marc Pictet