Michael Swords accepting LACI's Outstanding Resource Award  Each year IVCLA takes the time to celebrate the importance of Citizen Diplomacy. This year at the beautiful California Club, an opera performance, a delicious candle-lit dinner and silent auction, all made for a delightful evening. While guests sipped on a selection of international wines donated by the Consulates General of New Zealand and Italy, Siuzanna Iglidan, a young opera singer from Ukraine of Russian-Arabic descent, sang a medley of songs in English, Russian and Italian. Our Citizen Diplomacy Celebration highlighted what it means to be a Citizen Diplomat. IVCLA members and resources personify diplomacy in every professional appointment and home hospitality experience they have with the international visitors. Our 2016 Outstanding Citizen Diplomat Award recipient, David Simon, summed it up well during his acceptance speech. He explained we are all Citizen Diplomats whether we are aware of it or not, "You could be the only person from your country someone meets in their life", he said. Simple, everyday interactions can determine one's impression of not only you, but your country. The same can be said of the meetings and home hospitality experiences IVCLA arranges between international counterparts. This is why IVCLA believes serving as a Citizen Diplomat is not only a right, but a responsibility.    David has been a member of IVCLA for more than 30 years and served as a member of the Board of Directors during its formative years. As President of the Los Angeles Sports Council, he has played a significant role in virtually every major sporting event brought to the L.A. area in the last 20 years. Sports can play an important role in diplomacy. The arts and sports are often the best ways to begin a dialogue with countries when relationships are strained, but they're also a way to strengthen relationships with our friends. This month, IVCLA will be hosting a delegation of women athletes from Afghanistan, and also a delegation from China who will be discussing how to bolster physical education activities within the school system.   Our 2016 Outstanding Resource Award was presented to the Los Angeles CleanTech Incubator (LACI) for their willingness to share information with IVCLA's emerging international leaders in the clean tech industry. LACI is a non-profit organization that accelerates the development of cleantech start-ups by offering flexible office space and expert advice on issues facing early to growth stage companies. This year, LACI has met with several of our international groups to discuss clean technology and entrepreneurship. Most recently, they met with a group from France to discuss Low Carbon Energy, as well as a delegation from several European countries to discuss Public Private Partnerships - of which LACI is a wonderful example.

Outstanding Citizen Diplomat David Simon with Lourdes Saab of the Los Angeles County Office of Protocol

In Nepal, Carlos met up with family members of IVLP Alumni

The Chair of our Young Professional Steering Committee, Carlos Collard, recently wrote an article about his experiences with home hospitality, which are dinners where International Visitors and IVCLA members have the opportunity to chat over food and make lasting friendships. The relationships formed over these casual dinners can result in a role-reversal, where our members travel across the globe to reunite with visitors, just like Carlos has.

IVCLA lost a dear friend with the passing of Carl Terzian, who died peacefully on March 19 ^th at the UCLA Medical Center following a short illness. Carl, who was the Founder and Chairman of the public relations firm Carl Terzian Associates, was known throughout the Los Angeles area for his support of non-profit efforts of every type. He connected IVCLA with several potential board members who have been valuable additions to our organization. He perhaps made his greatest impact hosting hundreds of unique networking meetings each year bringing executives of for-profits, non-profits and governmental organizations together for their mutual benefit. Carl had a special interest in building international understanding from an early in his career. He was selected by Secretary of State John Foster Dulles to serve as one of President Eisenhower's International Goodwill Ambassadors. In 2003 IVCLA honored Carl Terzian as our International Citizen of the Year. Carl was one-of-kind and he will be greatly missed.

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