Former Trustee of The Asia Foundation

Co-Chair, The Henry Luce Foundation



Terry Adamson is a former Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Asia Foundation (1995-1999) and joined the Board in 1984. Along with fellow Trustee Debra Knopman, he became co-chair of the Board of Directors of the Henry Luce Foundation in June 2022. Both were Henry Luce Scholars and have been frequent selectors of Luce Scholars. Adamson retired as vice president of Global Law Affairs of the Boeing Company and general counsel of Boeing International in October, 2020. He previously served as executive vice president of the National Geographic Society from 1998 to 2015. He functioned as the chief legal officer, secretary of the Board of Trustees, senior advisor to the president and CEO, and head of International Publishing. He was a member of the Board of the National Geographic Education Foundation, as well as a member of the Board of National Geographic Ventures, the Society’s taxable subsidiary, since early 1996.

He is a member of the Board of Trustees and the Executive Committee of the Carter Center, since its inception. He has served as personal attorney of President and Mrs. Jimmy Carter since 1981. He represented the Carters on the U.S. Archivist’s Presidential Library Advisory Board for many years. By appointments of two U.S. Presidents (George H.W. Bush and William J. Clinton), and Senate confirmation, he served on the Board of Directors of the State Justice Institute from 1990-2010. Prior to joining National Geographic, he was a partner with prominent law firms in Atlanta and Washington for many years. He was a senior official of the U.S. Department of Justice from 1977 to 1979, including service as chief spokesman from 1978 to 1979. He was a law clerk to U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Griffin B. Bell on the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals from 1973 to 1975. He was a staff reporter for The Atlanta Constitution for two years from 1969 to 1971. He completed his bachelor’s degree in History in 1968 and his juris doctoral degree (with honors) in 1973 from Emory University. On the occasion of Emory’s 175th year, he was named one of Emory’s 175 history makers. He is married to Ede Holiday, and has three children.