Sen. Lugar speaking at USGLC event in 2007

Every year since 2003, the Center for Global Development and The FP Group have reviewed the changing foreign policy landscape and recognized a person or organization making a unique contribution to the future of global development. This year, CGD and FP honor Senator Richard Lugar with the Commitment to Development “Ideas in Action” Award for his commitment to development throughout his 35-year tenure in the Senate.

“For four decades Senator Lugar has deployed his remarkable statesmanship to overcome partisan divides and enact smart US policies that support widely shared global prosperity,” said CGD president Nancy Birdsall.

Senator Lugar, a champion of the International Affairs Budget, fought for bipartisan consensus on development legislation as chairman, and later, ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. In 2003, he helped usher the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) through the Senate with a broad, bipartisan majority. In 2004, Senator Lugar helped establish another essential component of American foreign assistance in the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

Susan Glasser, editor-in-chief of Foreign Policy said: “We are recognizing Senator Lugar for his unfailing dedication to international development, a dedication not only to improving U.S. foreign assistance programs but ultimately to the lives of people these programs serve.”

Last month, Senator Lugar agreed to join the USGLC’s National Advisory Council, signaling his continuing commitment to the legacy he leaves in the Senate after serving six terms. On January 29^th, CGD and FP will host a public reception to honor Richard Lugar and present him with the “Ideas in Action” award.