Making Global Local with USTDA and Global Chamber

Global Chamber® was pleased to partner with USTDA by sharing the program Making Global Local.

In this globinar we spoke with the USTDA’s Chief Operating Officer and Head of Agency Todd Abrajano along with Verinda Fike, Indo Pacific Regional Director, to get an update on programs of benefit to our members and to new opportunities for U.S.-based firms going global.

Listen and watch HERE.

Global Chamber® is proud to be an original organization in Making Global Local, dating back to the President Obama administration. We continue to have the most number of member organizations involved when counting up all our U.S. metro chapters that are participating.

The U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) has a number of programs that were be discussed. One is the Global Infrastructure Resilience Initiative (GIRI), and we refer you to the USTDA website regarding the GIRI call for proposals.

In addition, the globinar was timed with the Indo-Pacific Business Forum (IPBF), and here's the website. Keynote remarks for that event were delivered by U.S government Secretaries of State and Commerce, and USTDA co-hosted the event with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The IPBF took place in the U.S. on October 27-28, and the live events were held from 9:00 PM to Midnight in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Our Agenda 0:00 – 0:03 Welcome and Introductions 0:03 – 0:23 USTDA 101 and Overview, Todd Abrajano 0:23 – 0:42 Indo Pac Region, IPBF, Health Care and New Agribusiness Sector, Verinda Fike 0:42 – 0:57 Question & Answers 0:57 – 1:00 Closing Remarks

Speakers

Todd Abrajano - Chief Operating Officer and Head of Agency, U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Todd Abrajano serves as the Chief Operating Officer, Head of Agency, for the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, leading the Agency’s export promotion efforts supporting U.S. jobs and businesses in priority development projects within emerging markets in the energy, transportation, ICT, healthcare and agribusiness sectors. He previously served as Deputy Director (Acting), as well as Senior Advisor to the Director of the Agency. Before joining USTDA, Mr. Abrajano served as the Director of the Office of White House Liaison at the U.S. Department of Commerce, where he supported Secretary Wilbur Ross and other senior-level Commerce officials on policy and operational matters. Prior to joining the Trump Administration, Mr. Abrajano served as President of Turning Point Public Affairs which he founded in 2010. Through Turning Point, he focused on legislative and regulatory grassroots advocacy and his clients’ strategic, communications and government relations needs. During the 2016 U.S. Presidential campaign, Turning Point was retained by the Donald J. Trump for President campaign for which Mr. Abrajano served as the Missouri Communications Director. Mr. Abrajano received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science with a concentration in international relations from Yale.

Verinda Fike - Indo Pacific Regional Director, U.S. Trade and Development Agency. Verinda Fike serves as the Regional Director for the Indo-Pacific for the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA), where she is responsible for developing the agency’s strategy, infrastructure project preparation activities, and innovative public-private partnerships throughout the region. Ms. Fike has traveled and worked in over 50 countries and has managed projects in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Ms. Fike began her career at USTDA in 2010, and previously served as Country Manager for Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and for East Asia. Prior to joining USTDA, Ms. Fike consulted U.S. private sector and USAID overseas missions on creating effective public-private partnerships in developing and emerging economies. She also spent three years in China managing patient relations and marketing for several women’s health clinics in cooperation with Johns Hopkins Hospital. Ms. Fike holds a Master of Science in Foreign Service and a Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University, as well as a B.A. from the University of Colorado in International Affairs and Mandarin Chinese.

Moderator: Dianne K. Quebral - White House Liaison and Director of Public Engagement at U.S. Trade and Development Agency

Facilitator: Doug Bruhnke - Founder/CEO of Global Chamber®. Doug is a global entrepreneur dedicated to helping members of Global Chamber® successfully reach new markets across 525 metros - everywhere! He is a two-time expat with Dupont in Tokyo and Singapore with 33+ years of global business experience in nearly all countries and segments. Doug is also regional advisor for U.S. Global Leadership Coalition and a member of Arizona District Export Council, British American Business Council of Northern California and more. He has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from University of Utah and an EMBA from Michigan State University, and is co-inventor on 5 patents. Doug was born in Mt. Kisco, New York and now is based in Scottsdale, Arizona and Palo Alto, California. Hear the Global Chamber® story here.