Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright will help kick off GIA’s 4th International Gemological Symposium when she presents the lead keynote address on Sunday, Aug. 27, 2006 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego.

Secretary Albright became the United States’ first woman secretary of state in 1997, at the time the highest ranking woman in the history of the U.S. government.  Immediately preceding her appointment, from 1993 to 1997, she served as the U.S. permanent representative to the United Nations and was a member of the President’s Cabinet. In 1995, she led the U.S. delegation to the U.N.’s Fourth World Conference on Women, in Beijing.

Currently head of The Albright Group LLC, a global strategy firm that she founded, Secretary Albright is also chairman of the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs, co-chair of the Pew Global Attitudes Project, and president of the Truman Scholarship Foundation. In addition, she serves on the Board of Directors of the Council on Foreign Relations and on the Board of Trustees for the Aspen Institute.

Secretary Albright is a jewelry enthusiast, noted for her eclectic collection of fine and costume brooches. She is working on a book about her collection, which will be published in 2008. The book, which will be illustrated, will discuss the historical and personal significance of the collection and her use of brooches as a tool of diplomacy. Her autobiography, Madam Secretary: A Memoir, was a New York Times bestseller in 2003. Her next book, The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God and World Affairs, will be published in May 2006.

GIA President William E. Boyajian said Dr. Albright’s address should strike a chord with the multinational Symposium audience. “In keeping with our Symposium theme of ‘Navigating the Challenges Ahead,’” said Boyajian, “Secretary Albright’s significant experience in U.S. international strategy and policy perfectly position her to address the important business and geopolitical issues facing the world today. We are delighted and appreciative that Madeleine Albright will be our lead keynote speaker for Symposium.”

Secretary Albright received her B.A. from Wellesley College, and her master's and doctorate from Columbia University’s Department of Public Law and Government. She was born in Prague, Czechoslovakia, and immigrated to the United States with her family in 1948. She has three daughters and six grandchildren.

Symposium will bring together upwards of 1,500 participants from around the globe to gain firsthand knowledge from gem and jewelry experts representing every aspect of the international trade: diamonds, colored stones, pearls, gemology, jewelry design, manufacturing, marketing, branding, and retail. A variety of powerful formats will provide a dynamic experience for attendees, including presentations by industry leaders and distinguished business figures from inside and outside the trade, plus panel sessions, provocative “war rooms,” and spectacular social events.

The opening session of Symposium is co-sponsored by ABN AMRO Bank and The VNU Jewelry Group. For further details on the 4^th International Gemological Symposium, to be held Aug. 27–29, 2006, and the pre-Symposium Gemological Research Conference (Aug. 26–27), including registration, click here.