James Irvin Gadsden is an American diplomat and former U.S. Ambassador to Iceland

United States Ambassador to Iceland

Until 1874, Iceland was a dependency of Denmark rather than an independent nation. In 1874, Denmark granted Iceland home rule, which again was expanded in 1904. In 1918, The Act of Union, an agreement between Denmark, recognized Iceland as a fully sovereign state united with Denmark under a common...

. He was born on March 12, 1948 in Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...

. He is of African-American ethnicity.

Gadsden graduated from Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

 (1970, cum laude) with a B.A. in Economics, MA in East Asian Studies, from Stanford University

Stanford University

The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...

 (1972), and Princeton University

Princeton University

Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....

 (1984) with a Scholar in Economics.

He entereted the Foreign Service in 1972 and is now a career member of the Senior Foreign Service. He served many posts as following:

Posts

• Ambassador to Iceland
  Iceland
  Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
  
   (2002–05)
• Special Negotiator for Agricultural Biotechnology (2001–02)
• Deputy Assistant Secretary for European Affairs (1997–2001)
• Deputy Chief of Mission, Budapest, Hungary
  Hungary
  Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
  
   (1994–97)
• Counselor for Economic Affairs, Paris, France
  France
  The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
  
   (1989–93)
• Economic/Political Officer, US Mission to the EU (1985–89)
• European Communities Desk Officer (1981–84)
• Staff Assistant to Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs (1980–81)
• Commercial Officer, Budapest, Hungary (1977–79)
• Market Research Officer, US Trade Center, Taipei, Taiwan
  Taiwan
  Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
  
  (1974–76)
• Political Officer, Office of East Asian Regional Affairs (1972–74)