Claudia McBride
Claudia McBride was elected president of the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia in June, 2006.
Ms. McBride has been with the Council since 1987 and is responsible for the conceptualization and oversight of approximately 50 events a year, including national conferences. Recent programs have featured the following guest speakers: President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Madeleine Albright, George Soros, Newt Gingrich, Donald Rumsfeld, and Colin Powell, among many others. Under her direction, program revenues have increased by almost fifty percent.
The organization’s largest programs have taken place under Ms. McBride’s stewardship. In addition to bringing international political leaders to the Council’s podium, she has also broadened the Council’s menu of programs to include the world’s top business leaders (e.g., Jack Welch), pop culture icons (Bono), top-selling authors (Tom Clancy) and numerous opinion leaders, journalists and scholars. During the past decade, the Council’s annual conferences and special events have received wide acclaim.
Ms. McBride has led several international trips to Southeast Asia, Europe, and Cuba. She has also served on national delegations to the headquarters of the European Union, NATO, and Japan. She currently serves as a director of the national system of World Affairs Councils, which collectively has a membership of almost one half million individuals and thousands of corporations. She was elected a member of the five-person executive committee in January, 2007.
From 1988-1990, Ms. McBride produced the Council’s daily radio show, WorldViews, broadcast on WFLN FM. Since that time, she has maintained strong links to the Philadelphia media. In establishing the Council in Philadelphia as a premier showcase for America’s most sought-after speakers, Ms. McBride has also created a solid partnership with the public relations and publishing industries.
Claudia McBride came to the Council after spending several years in Europe, where she worked as associate director of international marketing and advertising for the international division of the Timberland company. In that capacity, Ms. McBride traveled widely, coordinating marketing distribution networks and assisting with the development and implementation of Timberland’s advertising and public relations campaigns throughout Europe and Asia.
Ms. McBride is a graduate of the University of California at Los Angeles. She is married and has two children.