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Dr. Fiona Hill on the value of cross-generational leadership

Dr. Fiona Hill is a former presidential advisor, acclaimed foreign policy expert on Russian and European geopolitics, and, evident to anyone who speaks to her, a deeply committed learner.

Before she shared a wealth of knowledge on current events in Russia and Europe during the Ninth Lloyd N. Cutler Lecture on the Rule of Law on November 9, 2022, we had the opportunity to speak with Fiona about learning and leadership and why she values having leaders from across generations.

The following excerpt was edited for length and clarity.

What gives you hope about the next generation of leaders?

"I think if we look around Europe, especially the Scandinavian countries, where it seems that the average age of leadership is around 30, certainly under 45, you can see a lot of hope from the fact that people have strong views that are very well thought-out. There’s a whole different perspective on what’s important in the future. I mean, it’s clear from listening to the younger generation of European leaders that many are very concerned about the loss of a peaceful Europe. They’re not willing, therefore, to capitulate on principles and on issues that have shaped Europe since WWII, for example territorial integrity and sovereignty. They’ve been very outspoken, maybe even more outspoken than the older generation of leaders in their larger countries. 

The other thing is they’ve identified quite accurately the existential challenges and problems that are facing us at large… in terms of climate change and the environment. We’ve seen perhaps the youngest of all the leaders, Greta Thunberg, putting herself out there for several years now but [also] many other leaders looking for different ways of tackling that challenge and of not compromising between their goals to address the climate crisis – because of course that is a crisis for them and the future generation – or on the security front … We see a lot of activism and willingness to work across parties and political borders and boundaries to find solutions. It’s not just necessarily playing a political game, and I find that very heartening.

I have yet to see some of that here in the United States. Well, let’s see once we get passed the midterms. From my travels around the United States, I have an awful lot of hope in the younger generation. I just came back from Pittsburgh and Erie, Pennsylvania, meeting with students and young activists, and activists are looking to improve the well-being of their communities. 

[They’re] not activists in a political party sense, but people who see their regions being left behind by the previous wave of deindustrialization and risk being left behind again as the global economy makes further shifts. They want to be part of not just future action when it comes to economic development but also discourse. People are finding different ways of not just taking collective action but banding together to amplify their voices."

How should the older generation of leaders be uplifting younger leaders?

"We should have cross-generational coalitions like we have across other barriers like gender, race and national boundaries. Obviously, that’s something Salzburg and other institutions like yours can play an important role in.  

I think it’s important for younger leaders to “mentor up,” not just be “mentored down,” because the older generation, myself included, have a lot to learn… When I first started my career, I sought out the opportunity to work with people with more experience to learn from them, but I also came to realize that they were learning things from me that they wouldn’t have otherwise.

One thing is the younger generation needs to be a bit kinder to the older generation and realize that it’s not that they’re out of touch, but often they don’t know the new terminology or they’re not as adept at the uses of new technology. You know, it takes a while to catch up.

Looking back on my own grandparents, [whom] I spent a lot of time with as a child... some were born in the 19th century! My grandfather on my father’s side fought all the way through WWI, and I learned an enormous amount from talking to him. He was in the royal field artillery in WWI, a rough rider on the gun carriages pulled by horses. Today he would probably oversee Himars or some sort of sophisticated battle equipment…and I just think about what a dramatic way that his life had unfolded.

Often, kids don’t think they’ve got something to learn from the older [generation], and vice versa. We need to understand that we must exchange views and explain to each other our perspectives because we have a lot to benefit from that in terms of coming up with ideas to deal with challenges."

Who is a leader that inspires you?

"I’ll be honest, Greta Thunberg really inspires me because I start to think ‘what an amazing thing for a young person to do’ to really get people's attention and get herself out there. [By] starting with a very simple protest - leaving school and standing in a public place to get attention to the issues - she’s inspired a whole movement.

Malala Yousafzai, as well, from wanting to have an education and sticking at it no matter how many horrible things happened. I think an awful lot of younger people have stepped forward in very difficult situations and have had to deal with a lot of opprobrium and criticism from older people.

The kids who’ve been involved in [or] victims of mass shootings here in the United States inspire me as well, because they’re trying to get out there to deal with an issue that’s affected them deeply. But again, they can’t do it without other people helping them."

Fiona grew up in Durham, in Northeast England. Following the Euromissile crisis of 1983, she began studying Russia. She is now a senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution and was recently appointed Chancellor of Durham University. She served as deputy assistant to the president and senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council from 2017 to 2019 and from 2006 to 2009, she served as national intelligence officer for Russia and Eurasia at The National Intelligence Council. She is the author of “There Is Nothing for You Here: Finding Opportunity in the 21st Century” and co-author of “Mr. Putin: Operative in the Kremlin” (Brookings Institution Press, 2015).