Hoover Institution (Stanford, CA) – The Hoover Institution has announced a new senior fellowship dedicated to fortifying the relationship between the United States and the Republic of India, made possible by the generosity of the Harold W. McGraw, III Foundation.
The senior fellow, to be named, will help direct the institution’s Strengthening US-India Relations Program. The new fellow will lead research and build the program’s profile to broaden and enhance strategic policy engagement between the world’s oldest ongoing democracy, the United States, and its largest, India.
The senior fellow will help frame efforts to examine key issues, including Indo-Pacific security, economic collaboration, energy and environmental development, human resource development, and India’s political economy.
This announcement follows a February 2023 visit to New Delhi by a delegation of Hoover fellows, led by the 66th US secretary of state and the institution’s director, Condoleezza Rice. In partnership with Indian conglomerate Tata Sons, the Hoover Institution hosted policy discussions with senior Indian and US government officials, as well as scholars and business and civil society leaders. The New Delhi forum covered timely issues: building strategic alliances; expanding access to critical technologies, minerals, and clean energy resources; boosting security cooperation, especially in space; and enhancing the resilience of global supply chains.
“The Harold McGraw, III Foundation is delighted to support the creation of a new senior fellow to lead the Hoover Institution’s Program on Strengthening US-India Relations,” said Harold McGraw, III, the former chairman, president, and CEO of the McGraw-Hill Companies. “The US- India relationship has never been more important given our shared values and the shifting economic and strategic dynamics globally. I’m honored to be part of Hoover’s commitment to take the level of scholarship and engagement on this vital relationship to a new level.”
McGraw has a long history of involvement with India. He served as chairman of the U.S.-India Business Council, and under his leadership the McGraw-Hill Companies established a broad footprint in education, financial information, and business publishing throughout India.
“This new senior fellowship will aim to identify opportunities in which our two great democracies, the US and India, can broaden engagement for a mutually prosperous future while working together to achieve greater global stability,” said Secretary Rice.
With its more than 1.4 billion people, India is the world’s fifth-largest economy and the ninth-largest trading partner with the United States. Skilled young professionals, which make up a rapidly growing proportion of its demographics, have contributed to the expansion of India’s manufacturing and technology sectors. Over the last decade, the country’s economy has boasted consistent annual growth rates above 6 percent.
Moreover, India’s large population and industrial capacity enable it to project the second-largest and third-best-funded military in the world. Through its robust military power, economic strength, and burgeoning diplomatic influence, India will likely bolster its leadership role in the Indo-Pacific region and in international affairs over the next decade.
The Hoover Institution has a well-established record for multidisciplinary research collaboration across its fellowship, Stanford University, and other academic research centers, bolstering its ability to study and address the future US-India relationship. Its research is deeply valued and respected in the foreign policy community. The institution regularly hosts elected officials, diplomats, military officers, business leaders, and other policy stakeholders for workshops, conferences, and other programming. Hoover forums foster innovative policy solutions at national and international levels of governance.
Since becoming director in September 2020, Secretary Rice has made building a program for US-India relations a priority for the Hoover Institution. Chaired by distinguished visiting fellow and former US ambassador to India David C. Mulford since 2021, the Strengthening US-India Relations Program has held monthly policy discussions, including a daylong symposium in May 2022 copresented by Tata Sons. The series of events also included a public component, in which Secretary Rice interviewed Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran about India’s potential in the next decade as a pivotal actor in advancing security and prosperity.
For coverage opportunities, contact Jeffrey Marschner, 202-760-3187, jmarsch@stanford.edu.
