The years following the end of the Cold War generated profound questions about the nature of the international system and America’s role in it.  Finding answers to these fundamental questions have taken on a new urgency in the wake of the September 11th attacks and the ongoing conflict in Iraq.  The terrorist attacks – and the social, economic, and political forces that gave rise to them – underscore the need for new ideas and fresh thinking about the challenges that America and the world will face, and the institutions in place to confront them.

The institutions created by the United States and its partners in the middle of the last century have in many cases been found wanting.  Domestically, U.S. intelligence agencies, cabinet departments, the military, the White House, and Congress have all been criticized for their inability to craft effective, timely policies. Instead of trying to shape the world to advance U.S. interests, foreign policy making has appeared reactive and focused on the short-term.  Furthermore, many Americans have lost confidence in the multilateral and international institutions created in the years following the Second World War.  Despite efforts to make these institutions more timely and relevant, there is a growing sense that many of these venerable organizations, from the United Nations to the Bretton Woods institutions to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), are not up to meeting the complex challenges the United States and the world face in an age of globalization. 

The United States finds itself at a crossroads in its international relations. The continuing sharp and partisan disagreements over the new global environment highlight the need for reflective, thoughtful, civil debate about U.S. foreign policy and the international system in the 21st century.   Where will the new ideas come from?

The complexity and importance of these issues demand new perspectives. The Assembly believes that the next generation of American leaders who will inherit and have to work with U.S. and international institutions should be fully included in any assessment of future U.S. global policy needs and frameworks.  With this in mind, The American Assembly hopes to inspire fresh ideas from unexpected sources. First, The Next Generation Project will seek geographic diversity, both among its fellows and its co-sponsors.  In the past thirty years, the United States has been undergoing an economic and demographic shift, which has resulted in the political center of gravity moving away from the traditional corridors of power in the Northeast towards the rest of the country.  The American Assembly will partner with organizations beyond the Northeast corridor to gather ideas from different regions of the country.  Second, The American Assembly will identify and engage the next generation of talent, the successful women and men in their thirties and forties who will be responsible for ensuring the security and prosperity of the United States and the world in the years to come. The participants in The Next Generation Project will be drawn from professional and demographic sectors that have traditionally been underrepresented in foreign policy discussions.

Richard W. Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, conceived the idea for the Next Generation project while he served as chairman of The Assembly. It will be one of The Assembly’s most ambitious undertakings since Dwight D. Eisenhower, The Assembly’s founder, commissioned "Goals for Americans," directed by William Bundy, which became his blueprint for the nation. The Assembly has created a Senior Advisory Council and a Steering Committee for the Next Generation Project. With the assistance of those two committees, The Assembly identified a project director, Francis J. Gavin, a professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin and the Director of Studies at the newly created Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law. 

This ambitious plan is grounded in The Assembly’s unique conference technique, convening power, and collaborative relationships. The Assembly has a well-earned reputation for encouraging creative long-term answers to complex policy questions through its thoughtful, nonpartisan process.   In over 100 meetings, thousands of public opinion leaders and decision-makers have gathered from throughout the country, drawn from a wide spectrum of social, political, economic, and vocational interests to fulfill Eisenhower’s vision to develop responsible public policy by reconciling divergent views and interests.