By Gail Hairston
(April 10, 2015) — The University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences hosts its annual Alumni Speaker Series to coincide with one of the speaker’s induction into the UK Alumni Association’s Hall of Distinguished Alumni, April 17.
The college’s honored guests will be the U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in France from 1997-2001, Amy L. Bondurant, and her husband David E. Dunn, an international advisor to the sultan of Oman and a partner at Patton Boggs LLP since 1980.
Addressing a range of topics about their careers, Bondurant and Dunn will speak at 10 a.m. Friday, April 17, in the UK Athletics Association Auditorium in the William T. Young Library. A reception will follow in the gallery, next to the auditorium.
The UK Alumni Association will induct Bondurant as an honored university alumna later that evening.
Following a theme of international careers, Bondurant and Dunn will discuss such topics as:
· The political climate in France post-Charlie Hebdo
· The future of trade agreements
· The current political climate in the Middle East
· U.S. foreign policy with an eye toward the 2016 presidential election
· The role of an ambassador
· The value of internships and how to identify opportunities
· Practical advice for those interested in an international career
Bondurant graduated from UK in 1973 with a bachelor's in telecommunications from the College of Communication and Information. Much of the current UK College of Communication and Information’s curriculum, including journalism and telecommunications, were taught within the College of Arts and Sciences at the time of her graduation. She served as the U.S. ambassador to the OECD following a professional career spanning more than 30 years in government and private legal practice. As an attorney, she has counseled a diverse clientele of multinational corporations and has been a frequent speaker and commentator.
Her tenure as the first female U.S. ambassador to the OECD spanned the Clinton and Bush administrations. She gained expertise in analyzing the sector-wide impact of governmental policy changes on specific sectors, such as e-commerce and biotechnology, and her diplomatic and policy skills enabled her to champion successfully the first set of international corporate governance principles adopted by the organization.
Bondurant also served for 12 years as senior counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and to its Consumer Subcommittee under Senators Wendell H. Ford (D-KY) and Al Gore (D-TN). She has written and spoken on topics such as the importance of governmental structures in developing economies and the impacts of globalization. Bondurant also serves on the Council of Foreign Relations and the Council of American Ambassadors.
Dunn has been a partner at Patton Boggs LLP since 1980. From 1980 to 1998, he advised the sultan of Oman on negotiation of military access agreements with the U.S. government and on border disputes and hydrocarbon rights with Saudi Arabia and Yemen. He also advised Oman Oil Company on the reorganization, recapitalization and financing of the CPC pipeline project with Russia and Kazakhstan. He advised the United Arab Emirates government on early structuring and tax planning for the Arab Monetary Fund and ADIA. In Qatar, he advised the emir of Qatar, establishing U.S. access rights to the al Udaid Air Base. He has advised the Libya Transitional National Council and newly organized successor government in Libya on diplomatic recognition and unfreezing U.S. Treasury seizures.
In 2009, Dunn joined former NATO Commander Gen. Wesley Clark and Ying Wang to found Enverra Partners LLC, an investment banking, investment management, and strategic advisory firm that supports innovative business models in the advanced and sustainable energy, natural resource and infrastructure sectors. He has received numerous awards and honors for public service, teaching, and nonprofit leadership in the U.S., U.K. and Europe.