Reno Leon Harnish III (born 1949)
Reno Leon Harnish III (1949–)
/ref> is an American who was the director of the Center for Environment and National Security (CENS) at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) is the center for oceanography and Earth science at the University of California, San Diego. Its main campus is located in La Jolla, with additional facilities in Point Loma.
Founded in 1903 and incorpo ...
from 2009 to 2017. He was a career member of the U.S. Foreign Service (American diplomat) and formerly served as principal deputy assistant secretary of state for Oceans, Environment and Science.
Life
Harnish received a bachelor's degree in Political Science, Economics from San Diego State University
San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...
, a Master's in International Studies from American University
The American University (AU or American) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Its main campus spans 90-acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, in the Spri ...
, and a Master's in Economics in 1975.
Before entering the Foreign Service, Mr. Harnish worked as a research assistant at the American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right think tank based in Washington, D.C., that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare ...
, an international economist at the U.S. Department of Treasury
The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States. It is one of 15 current U.S. government departments.
The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and ...
, and as a clerk for Congressman Dave Martin of Nebraska
Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
.
Foreign service career
Later, he served as the environment, science and technology counselor at the U.S. Embassy in Rome, as economic and commercial counselor at the U.S. Embassy to the German Democratic Republic, in the Office of Developed Country Trade at the Department of State, as an economic officer at the U.S. Embassy in Vienna, Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
, a political officer in the Status Liaison Office in Saipan
Saipan () is the largest island and capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, an unincorporated Territories of the United States, territory of the United States in the western Pacific Ocean. According to 2020 estimates by the United States Cens ...
, and an economic commercial officer at the U.S. Embassy in Lagos, Nigeria
Lagos ( ; ), or Lagos City, is a large metropolitan city in southwestern Nigeria. With an upper population estimated above 21 million dwellers, it is the largest city in Nigeria, the most populous urban area on the African continent, and on ...
.
From 1992–1995 Harnish led U.S. policy on Central Asian politics and scientific cooperation with the New Independent States in the Department of State.
In 1995 to 1996 he attended Seminar XXI
''MIT Seminar XXI'' is an educational program for national security professionals run by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Originally for military leaders when begun in 1986, leaders from various government, non-government, and p ...
, at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...
.
Harnish served as the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm and engaged in Baltic Sea cooperation.
Later, he served as deputy chief of mission in Cairo, Egypt
Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
, where he was responsible for the operations of a $2 billion plus, 2,400 employee Mission.
He took up his post as chief of mission at the U.S. Office in Pristina
Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district.
In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...
, on August 30, 2002.
On August 12, 2003, Harnish was sworn in as ambassador to Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
. He completed his tour of duty in Baku in April 2006 immediately prior to taking his current position as principal deputy assistant secretary of state, .
Mr. Harnish speaks German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
, Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
, Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
, and some Azerbaijani. He was honored for Presidential Meritorious Service, received Senior performance pay twice, and has been awarded a Meritorious and two Superior Honor Awards.
References
Sources
Azerbaijan relations at U.S. State Dept.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harnish, Reno Leon
1949 births
Living people
American University School of International Service alumni
Ambassadors of the United States to Azerbaijan
San Diego State University alumni
United States Foreign Service personnel
21st-century American diplomats