Global Retrospective on 2013
Distinguished speaker Sir Eldon Griffiths. Born in England, educated at Cambridge and Yale, Sir Eldon Griffiths was elected Member of Parliament for Bury St. Edmunds in 1964. He chaired the House of Commons’ Foreign Affairs Polish, German, and Iranian sub-committees and led parliamentary delegations to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and New Zealand.
After assisting two Prime Ministers in preparing their speeches, Griffiths was Under Secretary of State for the world’s first Department of the Environment. He helped set up the UN’s environmental agency and pioneered legislation on water engineering and transport. Early in Margaret Thatcher’s government, Griffiths was the Conservative Party’s spokesman on European and NATO issues. He was knighted by the Queen in 1988.
His books include Peaceful Change, a two volume autobiography, TransAtlantic Man and Global Citizen, and the latest, Iranian Imbroglio, which will be available for purchase.
In the Great Hall, International House UCSD.