The D’Alemberte & Palmer Lecture in International Human Rights is made possible by Patsy Palmer, Esq., and was established to educate the community about the critical field of international human rights, inspire FSU Law students, and contribute to the global discussion on human rights issues.
2026 Speaker
Mark F. Brzezinski, Retired United States Ambassador (Sweden '11-'15 and Poland '21-'24), President and CEO of Brzezinski Global Strategies, LLC
"U.S. Embassies as 'Force Multipliers' for Democracy and Human Rights: The Case of Poland 2021-25"
Thursday, March 12, 2026, at 3:30 p.m.
Florida State University College of Law
This event is free and open to the public. Approved for 1.0 CLE general credit by the Florida Bar.
Bio
Ambassador Mark Brzezinski has a distinguished career in public service and the private sector. He is currently the President and CEO of Brzezinski Global Strategies, a boutique strategic consulting firm.
Brzezinski served as U.S. Ambassador to Poland from 2021-2024. During the Obama Administration, Brzezinski served as the United States Ambassador to Sweden from 2011 to 2015. In the private sector, Brzezinski was a Managing Director of Makena Capital Management, where he spearheaded the firm’s sustainability efforts and assisted in responding to the growing demand for environmentally and socially responsible investment portfolios.
Before joining the Obama Administration, Brzezinski was a partner in Washington, D.C. at McGuireWoods LLP, where he helped build the law firm's international compliance practice. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), where he has served on the board of advisors of CFR's Corporate Program. Brzezinski was a Fulbright Scholar in Poland from 1991 to 1993. In 2010, President Obama named him to the U.S. State Department's Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, which oversees the Fulbright and other U.S. government exchange programs. In January 2018, Brzezinski served as an adjunct professor at the University of Virginia, co-teaching the “World of Investing” course at the McIntire School of Commerce.
Brzezinski received his BA from Dartmouth College, his JD from the University of Virginia, and a Doctorate in Political Science from Oxford University.
Lecture Synopsis
Ambassador Brzezinski argues that U.S. embassies are the most effective—and underappreciated—tools for defending democracy and human rights. Drawing on his experience as Ambassador to Poland, he demonstrates how embassies function as "force multipliers" by converting American interests into effective diplomacy through precise leverage, local knowledge, and side-by-side partnerships with civil society. From blocking anti-democratic legislation in Warsaw to supporting election integrity in Guatemala and Brazil, embassies advance American interests not despite their focus on democracy and human rights, but because the rule of law, judicial independence, and press freedom form the institutional infrastructure that enables reliable partnerships. As the liberal international order fragments and U.S. policy shifts, Brzezinski calls on the next generation to preserve this operational knowledge and reimagine democracy support for a more complex world—one that demands less prescription from distant capitals and more grounded, tactical collaboration on the frontlines where rights are actually won or lost.
Featured Articles
2025 Speaker
“The Rule of Law in International Human Rights," Former Ireland President Mary Robinson
Wednesday, February 12, 2025
Florida State University College of Law, Auditorium 101
Purchase her book, Climate Justice.
News Articles
Mary Robinson is widely regarded as a pioneering leader and one of the world’s most influential advocates for human rights, climate justice, and the rule of law. Serving as President of Ireland from 1990 to 1997, she became the country’s first female head of state and reshaped the role of the presidency during a period of profound social, economic, and political change. As United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997 to 2002, Robinson led efforts to bring global attention to the rights of marginalized populations and worked to strengthen human rights frameworks worldwide. She continues to be a powerful force for justice as former Chair of The Elders, a group of independent global leaders founded by Nelson Mandela, and as a tireless advocate for climate action, gender equality, and sustainable development.
The lecture explored the impact of these declines on justice systems and human rights, focusing on diminishing civic participation, freedom of assembly, and freedom of expression, all of which have fallen at an alarming rate globally. She shared her insights on what has contributed to this erosion of the rule of law and proposed solutions for restoring justice, accountability, and respect for human rights both nationally and globally. Drawing on her vast experience as a former head of state, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and advocate for climate justice, Robinson discussed the vital role of leaders in strengthening governance systems that promote peace, sustainability, and human rights.
A graduate of Trinity College Dublin and Harvard Law School, Robinson is a former Chancellor of the University of Dublin (Trinity College) and has taught at both Trinity College and Columbia University. She holds honorary doctorates from over 40 prestigious universities and has received numerous accolades, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama, who praised her as “an advocate for the forgotten and the ignored.”
2024 Lecture
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“The Future of International Criminal Justice,” presented by Ambassador David Scheffer
Thursday, February 29, 2024
Read a university article about the lecture to learn more
Ambassador David Scheffer will examine the current performance of international criminal tribunals, including the International Criminal Court, international investigative mechanisms, and national courts, as well as the character of crimes being investigated and, when possible, prosecuted against perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and aggression. He will address the Russia/Ukraine War as well as other contemporary conflicts. Ambassador Scheffer will identify and analyze gaps in international criminal justice, including in the United States, and he will discuss judicial structures that are needed for future enforcement of international criminal law.
Ambassador Scheffer was the first U.S. ambassador-at-large for war crimes issues (1997-2001) and was instrumental in the creation of five international or hybrid criminal tribunals, including leading the U.S. delegation to the U.N. talks, creating the International Criminal Court. His award-winning book, "All the Missing Souls: A Personal History of the War Crimes Tribunals" (Princeton University Press 2012), recounts his tribunal-building efforts during the 1990s. From 2006 to 2020, Ambassador Scheffer held an endowed professorship of law at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law in Chicago, and he was director of the law school's Center for International Human Rights from 2006 to 2019. He served as the U.N. secretary-general's special expert on U.N. assistance to the Khmer Rouge Trials (2012-2018)and as vice president of the American Society of International Law. Ambassador Scheffer is a professor of practice in the School of Politics and Global Studies at Arizona State University (Washington, D.C.) and is a senior fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, where he covers international law and human rights. Ambassador Scheffer also authored “The Sit Room: In the Theater of War and Peace” (Oxford University Press 2019), which is about decision-making in the situation room of the White House during the Balkans conflict of the early 1990s when he served on the Deputies Committee of the National Security Council and as senior adviser and counsel to Dr. Madeleine Albright during her service as U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations.
2023 Lecture
The inaugural lecture in 2023 featured Former General Counsel of the U.S. Navy Alberto J. Mora and coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. His remarks are available on our website in printed form. You can also watch a recording of the lecture.