Suzanne (Suzy) Puanani Vares-Lum took office as President of the East-West Center in January 2022. She launched a new strategic plan that advances the Center’s Congressionally-mandated mission to promote understanding and relationships among people and nations of the United States, Asia, and Pacific through cooperative study, research, and dialogue.

As a retired Major General with 34 years of service, Vares-Lum has held key roles addressing priority national security challenges in the region. She brings decades of executive leadership and planning experience, culminating in over five years serving with and advising the most senior officials at US Indo-Pacific Command, where she cultivated and supported key relationships with nations throughout the Indo-Pacific region.

Prior to her position at East-West Center, she formed Vares-Lum Indo-Pacific Consulting, LLC to provide consulting and advising on Indo-Pacific issues. She is an advocate for education and building bridges across the Indo-Pacific and has led collaborative initiatives in the region.

As a community leader, Vares-Lum serves on a variety of boards, including the Bank of Hawai’i Corporation board of directors, Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and Fiduciary and Investment Management Committee. She also serves on non-profit boards including the Pacific and Asian Affairs Council, and the Pacific International Center for High Technology Research. She is a current member of the U.S.-Japan Council and served on committees that promote Hawai‘i’s economic diversification, workforce development, and community dialogues on issues of land and water.

She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and her Master of Education in Teaching from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. As a graduate of the US Army War College, she earned a Master of Strategic Studies degree in 2011. In 2019, she became a National Security Fellow of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. She is also an alum of the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, and a National Academy of Public Administration Fellow.

In addition to her military awards, which includes the Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit and Bronze Star Medal, she is the recipient of the 2024 University of Hawai‘i Journalism Program Distinguished Alumni Award, 2023 Pacific Buddhist Academy Lighting Our Way Honoree, 2023 Girl Scouts of Hawai‘i Women of Distinction Award, and a 2017 Ellis Island Medal of Honor Award.

Ms Vares-Lum was born and raised in Wahiawa, Hawai’i and resides in Kāneʻohe, Hawaiʻi. She is married to Lt Col. (Retired) Courtney Vares-Lum, and they have two daughters, Diana and Connie.