Hear Tharoor’s keynote and view a recap of The Fletcher Forum panel discussion
The Honorable Shashi Tharoor, F76, F77, FG79, delivered an inspirational keynote address sharing his wisdom with graduates at The Fletcher School’s 2026 Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 17, 2026. At the ceremony, Dean Kelly Sims Gallagher awarded him The Dean’s Medal in recognition of his significant achievement in global leadership.
The day prior, during Alumni Weekend, Tharoor participated in a panel discussion on “Interdependence Without Trust: What Diplomatic History—and Fletcher’s Legacy—Can Teach Us" in celebration of The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs’ 50th anniversary—a student journal that he founded and was its first editor.
Tharoor has spent his life shaping the course of international relations, championing diplomacy, and advancing critical conversations on the world stage. He is a fourth-term Member of Parliament, representing the parliamentary constituency of Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, in the Lok Sabha, India. He is also a member of the Indian National Congress (INC), and the chairperson of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs. Before joining Indian politics, Tharoor had an accomplished 29-year career as a diplomat in the United Nations. He is also an award-winning, internationally bestselling author of over 25 books, of both fiction and non-fiction.
Keynote Address
During his keynote address at Fletcher’s 2026 commencement, Tharoor said, “The Fletcher School is today, in my view, more necessary than ever. It’s a place that insists on looking outward, on engaging with difference rather than retreating from it, on understanding that complexity is not an obstacle to be avoided, but a reality to be navigated. It brings together people from different countries, disciplines, and perspectives, and asks them not merely to learn but also to learn from one another. That is no small thing. In a world easily tempted by simple answers and narrower horizons, an education that teaches you to think globally, listen carefully, and act with a sense of responsibility beyond yourself is not just valuable, its indispensable. And that, to my mind, is why Fletcher matters.”
View the full remarks.
The Fletcher Forum 50th Anniversary Panel Discussion
As part of the 50th anniversary of The Fletcher Forum of World Affairs, Tharoor joined Emeritus Professor Alan Henrikson, Professor Elisabeth Leake, and current Fletcher Forum editor Armaan Mathur for a panel discussion on “Interdependence Without Trust: What Diplomatic History—and Fletcher’s Legacy—Can Teach Us."
View the panel discussion.