Marshall Green was one of America’s most distinguished diplomats. His adventurous diplomatic career began as private secretary to Ambassador Joseph Grew in Tokyo 1939-41. During World War II he trained as a US Navy Japanese language officer. His career included service as Special Assistant to Secretary of State John Foster Dulles; Charge d’Affaires in Seoul during the 1960 uprising against President Sygman Rhee; and Ambassador in Indonesia during the 1965 overthrow of Sukarno. He was Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian Affairs during the Nixon Administration, a historic and tumultuous time that included the Vietnam War, the opening to China, and the reversion of Okinawa to Japan.
Marshall Green was one of the founders of Japan-America Society of Washington DC in 1957; in fact, it is his signature on the Society’s Articles of Incorporation. In 1983, he became the Society’s President and later its Chairman, leading its transformation from an all-volunteer to a professional organization. He was a passionate believer in educational outreach to local schools. He and his wife Lispenard endowed the Society’s educational fund, which over the past three decades has introduced new generations of Americans to Japan and the world.
The Board of Trustees of the Japan-America Society of Washington DC established the Marshall Green Award in 2011 in recognition of Green’s significant contribution to the organization.