North American Group

The first North American Chairman was Gerard C. Smith (1973-77), former head of the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and chief U.S. negotiator of SALT I, who served as Trilateral Chairman until he entered the Carter admistration as Ambassador-at-large in charge of Non-Proliferation Issues. The next North American Chairman was David Rockefeller (1977-91), who had played a central role in the formation of the Trilateral Commission and continues to be recognized as Founder and Honorary Chairman. He was succeeded by Paul A. Volcker (1991-2001), former Chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board, who now serves as Honorary North American Chairman. Thomas S. Foley, former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (1989-95) and former U.S. Ambassador to Japan (1997-2001), served as North American Chairman from 2001 to 2008. He was succeeded by Joseph S. Nye, Jr., University Distinguished Service Professor and former dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, as well as former U.S. assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs and former chairman of the National Intelligence Council. The North American Deputy Chairmen are the heads of the Canadian and Mexican groups. On the Canadian side, Jean-Luc Pepin was succeeded in 1977 by Mitchell Sharp, former Foreign Minister, when Mr. Sharp left government service and Mr. Pepin returned to government service. J.H. (Jake) Warren, former Ambassador to the United States and Coordinator for Multilateral Trade Negotiations, served from 1986 to 1990. He was succeeded by Allan Gotlieb, former Ambassador to the United States. Lorenzo Zambrano, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Cemex, became Deputy Chairman in 2000 when the North American group widened to include Mexican members.

In the case of the U.S. group, a rotation system generally brings 5-10 openings in the membership each year under the ceiling of 87. A major portion of the summer annual meeting of North American Executive Committee members is devoted to consideration of U.S. membership invitees, based on a list of candidates many times larger than the number of openings. If a member is elected or appointed to a position in the Executive Branch of the U.S. government, he or she steps down as member, given the Commission’s unofficial character.

The Canadian and Mexican groups are separately organized for membership choices and for raising and expending the funds which cover participation of their members, a contribution to program, and hosting costs for events in Canada or Mexico (such as the 1996 annual meeting in Vancouver of the overall Commission).

A grant from the Ford Foundation was the most important part of the financial base for the Trilateral Commission in the first triennium (1973-76). Fundraising has been decentralized since that time. In the United States, an increasing portion of the needed financial support has come from a wide range of corporations. Foundation support remains important, particularly for some project work, as does the support of some individuals.

The North American group holds occasional dinner or luncheon events organized around a particular speaker. The presentations of these speakers are often transcribed for broader circulation.