It is fitting that we recognize George Foster as 2017 Leadership Dialogue Honouree in this our 25th anniversary year.
Australia’s connections with Stanford University date back to 1860 when Thomas Welton Stanford, younger brother of Stanford University founder Leland Stanford, settled in Melbourne and resided there for 58 years.
The long and varied history between Australia and Stanford has been extended and enriched by George Foster, who has been a highly successful Australian ambassador to Stanford and vice versa. George’s active engagement embodies the Leadership Dialogue philosophy of leadership as “creating new space in the service of others”.
He has done so across a wide spectrum of human endeavor—from the highest levels of scholarship through to sports management.
The Leadership Dialogue has been particularly fortunate to have George play a co-founding role in the West Coast Leadership Dialogue, which is now in its 12th year. George collaborated with Phil Scanlan, Julie Singer Scanlan, former US Ambassador Bill Lane, 2007 Leadership Dialogue Scholar David M Kennedy, and Dean of the Stanford Graduate School of Business Bob Joss when we agreed to establish the West Coast Leadership Dialogue—to bring to deliberations a Pacific North West US geopolitical and geo-economic perspective, a better understanding of the demography of Australia’s number one strategic and economic partner, and identification of the planks of platforms for sustained high community performance through 2050 and beyond. George’s contributions to the Leadership Dialogue span his stellar work in entrepreneurial eco-systems, his thought leadership as panelist and participant in hard working organizing committees of our annual Stanford meeting of the West Coast Leadership Dialogue.
George exemplifies sustained commitment to building relationships, and understands the intergenerational imperative driving our mission for the next 25 years. George Foster adds luster to our list of outstanding Leadership Dialogue Honorees:
- Robert Hormats
- Richard Woolcott
- Robert Zoellick
- Kim Beazley
- Larry Irving
- John Streicker
- Hugh Morgan
- Cynthia and Tom Schneider
