Tuesday, April 21, 2026

Special Speaker Event: Ambassador (ret.) Nicholas Burns


Please join us in the State Library reading room on Wednesday, May 6th, 2026 at 12:00 pm for a conversation with former Ambassador Nicholas Burns! In lieu of a specific book, he will be presenting on the topic: Lessons From the Front Lines of the US-China Relationship.

Nicholas Burns grew up in Wellesley, MA. After graduating from Wellesley High School (class of ‘74) he attended Boston College (class of ‘78) and studied abroad at Paris-Sorbonne (‘77), where he earned his practical French Language certificate and met his future wife, Elizabeth Baylies. He went on to earn his MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University (class of ‘80) before embarking on a nearly three-decades-long career in Foreign Service under Presidents George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush. His work has taken him to various countries throughout Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.

©Grace DuVal/Harvard University

Although he transitioned from Foreign to Private Service in 2008, he has served on the boards of numerous non-profit organizations such as the Boston Committee on Foreign Relations and Special Olympics International. He has received many prestigious awards and distinctions which include: the Presidential Distinguished Service Award; the Secretary of State’s Distinguished Service Award; the Ignatian Award from Boston College; New Englander of the Year (2016) from the New England Council; the Boston College Alumni Achievement Award; the Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award from Tufts University. In 2021, President Biden nominated and Congress approved Burns as the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China. He served as US Ambassador to China from 2021 to 2025.

Future world leaders can benefit from his wealth of knowledge and experience at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government where he has taught since 2008. At Harvard, Professor Burns is the Roy and Barbara Goodman Family Professor of the Practice of Diplomacy and International Relations.

The State Library is excited to welcome Ambassador (ret.) Nicholas Burns to the State House and is grateful that he has made the time to speak with us. As with all our Author Talks, this lecture is free and open to all. Assisted listening devices will be made available upon request. This is an in-person and virtual event, and the livestream will be available on our YouTube channel courtesy of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Broadcast Services. If you are able to join us in person for this talk, attendees will be able to participate in a question-and-answer session with Ambassador Burns.

Be sure to sign up for our Author Talks newsletter and follow our social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, and X) for the latest information on our visiting authors. If you are unable to attend, the recording will be posted to our YouTube channel to watch anytime - view all past recordings here!

Any questions or concerns, please email us at AuthorTalks.StateLibrary@mass.gov. For more information on the State Library Author Talks series, please visit our site.


Maryellen Larkin
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