November Fellows Luncheon with Ambassador Mark Gitenstein

*This event is only open to our 2025-2026 Fellows 

The World Affairs Council Fellows Program offers a unique professional development opportunity to a small group of greater Seattle's business and community leaders. The Fellows convene monthly for breakfast discussions with carefully selected high-caliber international experts who offer unparalleled insight into current global issues, in addition to meeting throughout the year for additional Council events and dedicated networking opportunities.

About Our Speaker

Mark Gitenstein was the U.S. Ambassador to the European Union from 2022-2025. Previously, he was at Mayer Brown LLP, where he served most of the last 30 years as partner and counsel. Gitenstein also served as U.S. Ambassador to Romania (2009- 2012) and began his career with 17 years of service in the U.S. Senate on the Judiciary and Intelligence committees. He worked for then-Senator Biden for 13 of those 17 years, co-chairing the then-Senator’s transition to the vice presidency in 2008 and helping set up his transition to the presidency in 2020.

Over the last two decades, he has worked extensively in Central and Eastern Europe, focused on preserving and fortifying democracy by ensuring transparency in equity markets, fighting corruption, strengthening the rule of law, defending free and independent media, and protecting journalists.

As U.S. Ambassador to the EU he focused primarily on supporting the allied response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine including extensive work on export controls, sanctions and developing innovative ways in which the US/EU could finance the war.  He resolved vexing trade disputes on privacy and climate tech and worked in three successful summits to develop common approaches not only on the war and trade but on countering the People’s Republic of China and forging a common US/EU approach to the Gaza war.

He earned a BA from Duke University and JD from Georgetown Law School. He was awarded the Star of Romania, the nation’s highest civilian honor, by the president of Romania in 2012. In 1993, he was also awarded the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel award for his book Matters of Principle about his role as chief counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee during its consideration of Robert Bork to be an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.