Career diplomat to direct Institute of the Americas

By Diane Lindquist UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER May 2, 2003

Jeffrey Davidow, former U.S. ambassador to Mexico, has been selected to lead the Institute of the Americas, an independent institution at UCSD that promotes relations among the United States, Canada and Latin America.

The selection was confirmed yesterday by institute founder and board member Theodore E. Gildred.

"He's going to take the institute to a new level," Gildred said. "He wants to bring some new programs that will broaden the scope. He's going to bring a fresh overview."

Davidow, who will become the institute's president in June, succeeds Paul H. Boeker, a former ambassador to Jordan and Bolivia who directed the institute for 14 years. Boeker had announced his retirement before his unexpected death in late March of a brain tumor.

Davidow often visited San Diego when he was ambassador to Mexico and has already met many of the cross-border region's leaders.

"He's an incredible choice," said James Clark, director of the Mexico Business Center at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. "I think he sees San Diego as the gateway or linchpin to all of Latin America. I can't imagine that they could have chosen anyone better qualified."

Davidow, one of only three people designated as "career ambassadors," will leave the Foreign Service after 35 years in international diplomacy.

He currently is a visiting fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government and the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard. He served as U.S. ambassador to Mexico for four years under former President Bill Clinton and 11/2 years under President George W. Bush before leaving in September 2002.

Davidow also was assistant secretary of state for inter-American affairs and U.S. ambassador to Zambia and Venezuela. Over the course of his career, he was posted to South Africa, Zimbabwe, Guatemala and Chile.

"I hope to bring to the institute 35 years of experience in government, most of that dedicated to improving relations between the United States and Latin America," Davidow said yesterday by telephone from Harvard.

He said looks forward to continuing that effort as president of the Institute of the Americas and to promoting greater ties and a synergy with the University of California San Diego and its Latin American studies programs.

"Obviously, quality of life in San Diego was an important factor, too," he said.

The Chamber's Clark predicted Davidow will be a major figure on the scene, especially since his duties include fund raising.

The nonprofit institute serves as a catalyst for promoting development and cooperation, especially through the private sector, to improve the economic and social well-being of the people of the Americas.

It has a modest endowment of $7 million, Gildred said, mostly supplied by such corporate members as BP International, Grupo Inversión, McKinsey & Co. and Sempra Energy International.

Gastón Luken Sr. of GE Capital Mexico, the Institute of the Americas' board chairman, predicted that Davidow's familiarity with current events and political and business leaders in the Americas will prove invaluable to the organization.

"The situation in Latin America right now is going through a transition, and Latin America will come back on scene very soon," Luken said. "(Davidow) has a very valuable background, but more importantly, he has a vision of the future."

Diane Lindquist: (619) 293-1812; diane.lindquist@uniontrib.com