The Ambassador

HE DR. WOLFGANG A. WALDNER

Ambassador Wolfgang Waldner was born and raised in Villach, Austria. He started his career in the Federal Ministry for European & International Affairs in 1981. Previous to his appointment as Austrian Ambassador to the U.S., he served as State Secretary (Deputy Minister) for European & International Affairs in the Foreign Ministry from 2011-2012, as Minister in the state government of Carinthia, and as Director of the MuseumsQuartier in Vienna from 1999-2011. He also served two postings in the U.S. as Director of the Austrian Cultural Fora in Washington, D.C. and New York. Most recently, Ambassador Waldner served as Director General for Cultural Policy at the Foreign Ministry in Vienna.

Ambassador Waldner is married and the father of two daughters. He holds a Doctorate in Law and Languages of the University of Vienna and Post Graduate Diplomas from the Johns Hopkins University, School for Advanced International Studies and the Université des Sciences Sociales in Grenoble, France.

He took up his duties as Head of Mission in Washington, D.C. on January 11, 2016.

Follow Wolfgang Waldner on Twitter: @WaldnerWolfgang

Find out more about him, in the EU Ambassador Spotlight interview, conducted by the Delegation of the European Union in the United States

Curriculum Vitae:

Professional Career:

since 1981
Austrian Federal Ministry for Foreign Affairs

1983 – 1986
Cultural Attache, Embassy of Austria, Washington, D.C., USA

1987 – 1988
Special Assistant to Foreign Minister Alois Mock, Vienna

1988 – 1999
Director, Austrian Cultural Institute, New York, NY, USA

1999 – 2011
Director, MuseumsQuartier Wien, Vienna

2011 – 2012
State Secretary (Deputy Minister), Federal Ministry for European & International Affairs, Vienna               

2012- 2014
Minister for Art & Culture, Economy, Tourism, Agriculture & Forestry, Community Affairs, Government of the State of Carinthia, Klagenfurt, Austria

2014 - 2015
Head of Mission, Embassy of Austria, Budapest, Hungary

2015 – 2016
Director General for Cultural Policy, Federal Ministry for  Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs, Vienna                                              

2016 -
Head of Mission, Embassy of Austria, Washington, D.C., USA

Education: 

1973 – 1979
Studies of Law and Languages (Italian, French), University of Vienna

1978 – 1980
Post Graduate Courses and Diploma in "International Studies", University of Vienna

1979/80
Post Graduate Studies in "European Integration", Université des Sciences Sociales, Grenoble, France                                          

1980/81
Post Graduate Studies & Diploma in "International Relations",  Johns Hopkins University, School for Advanced International Studies, Bologna Center, Bologna, Italy