The Board of Directors



BOARD MEMBERS | APR 2004

BOARD MEMBERS | JAN 2005

BOARD MEMBERS | OCT 2006

BOARD MEMBERS | AUG 2007

BOARD MEMBERS | FEB 2009

BOARD MEMBERS | JUL 2011

BOARD MEMBERS | MAR 2012

BOARD MEMBERS | AUG 2012

BOARD MEMBERS | MAY 2013

BOARD MEMBERS | JUL 2013

BOARD MEMBERS | AUG 2014

BOARD MEMBERS | JUL 2015

BOARD MEMBERS | NOV 2016

Ambassador Maura Harty | President & CEO, ICMEC

Ambassador Maura Harty is our President and Chief Executive Officer. She came to ICMEC after a career in the United States Foreign Service, devoted in large part to serving the interests of American citizens abroad. As Assistant Secretary for Consular Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, Ambassador Harty directed fundamental changes in visa policies and procedures in the wake of the September 11th attacks, prioritizing national security needs while facilitating legitimate travel to the United States. Ambassador Harty created the Department of State’s Office of Children’s Issues (OCI) to address two daunting diplomatic challenges: the abduction of children by parents across international borders, and intercountry adoptions. Ambassador Harty served in a variety of senior positions at the State Department including Special Assistant to Secretary of State George P. Shultz, Executive Assistant to Secretary Warren Christopher, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Paraguay, and Executive Secretary of the Department of State under Secretary Colin Powell. Ambassador Harty demanded that Romania accept foreign adoption agreement, or be denied inclusion for U.S. Visa Waiver Program A/S HARTY MEETINGS IN ROMANIA ON ADOPTIONS | WIKILEAKS 05BUCHAREST1173_a | MAY 20, 2005 SUMMARY AND ACTION REQUEST 1.(C) In meetings May 10 and 11 with President Basescu, Foreign Minister Ungureanu and other officials of the Government of Romania (GOR), Assistant Secretary Maura Harty found no evidence that the GOR had specific plans or strong commitment to resolve pending cases of international adoption affected by the law in place since January 1 banning adoptions out of Romania. She informed her interlocutors she would have to share that impression with American families whose petitions to adopt Romanian children were affected by the ban. She reiterated to FM Ungureanu the message given by the Secretary during his meeting with her in Washington, that establishing a road map towards eventual inclusion of Romania in the U.S. Visa Waiver Program (VWP) would depend on progress towards resolving the pending cases. 2.(C) (Summary, cont,d.) After his meeting with A/S Harty, President Basescu appeared to have changed his mind and decided to take positive action on the issue. On May 12, he informed Charge d,Affaires that he had discussed the adoption issue with EU Commissioner for Enlargement Olli Rehn on May 11; would instruct FM Ungureanu to write the EC expressing the desirability of putting in motion a process to resolve the cases; and that Romania would take the initiative to convince the Germans, Italians, French and others to wield their influence and urge the EC to view resolution of the cases favorably. End summary. 3.(C) Action Request: Per internal discussions during A/S Harty,s visit, post requests Department consideration of a letter from the Secretary to the European Commission urging the EC support humanitarian resolution of pending international adoption cases from Romania. End request.

COMMENT

24.(C) Post believes Basescu’s May 12 statements indicate he took to heart A/S Harty’s message and realized anew how seriously the USG takes resolution of the pending cases. His was the most forward-leaning commitment to action by the GOR leadership to date. Post will follow up with his advisors, the Prime Minister’s office and the MFA in the coming days, and continue to discreetly explore with European embassy interlocutors possibilities for their engaging the EC and European Parliament to resolve pending adoptions. End comment.

ForMin Diaconescu, Secretary of State Clinton discuss including Romania in Visa Waiver program | EMBASSY OF ROMANIA | SEP 13, 2011

Why they so obsessed with foreign adoptions? Why Romania?



International Center for Missing & Exploited Children | Secretary

Fundatia Renasterea (Romania) | President

Mihaela Geoana is married to: Mircea Geoana

Government of Romania | Ambassador to the United States (youngest ever)

The Aspen Institute of Romania | President

The Aspen Institute, Inc. | Member, Board of Trustees (Current)

World Bank Group Executive Development Program at the Harvard Business School | 1999 Graduate

Mircea Geoana ran for the Presidency of Romania in 2009. In an unprecedented narrow and contested election, he received 49.6% of the casted ballot.

Clinton To Romania: NATO’s Door Is Open | CNN | JUL 11, 1997

“The door to NATO is open,” Clinton said. “And we will help you walk through it.”

Mihaela Geoana, fighter against cancer | CRUCEA ROSIE ROMANA | MAR 17, 2008

A foundation

The idea to establish a charitable foundation came to America. “There I was involved in many charitable by nature diplomatic activity. We requested various organizations to host events for them. It was something that did not cost us anything, but instead came a lot of people at the Romanian embassy. It was an opportunity to promote Romania “, says it. After a short period, Mihaela Geoana was invited to support an organization in the field of breast cancer. After returning to Romania, in 2001, she managed after half a year to put the Foundation “Rebirth Education, Health and Culture”. Beside it, a founding member was Cristina Copos, wife of businessman George Copos and “ingredients” Andreea Esca, “spokesman message and presenter events”, and Dana Nastase.



Ideas overseas

Mihaela Geoana admits reputation enjoyed by her husband helped develop the foundation. “The fact that my husband was Ambassador of Romania to Washington helped me to observe activities in which politicians were involved wives overseas. I understand how this system works and I thought it would be wonderful to bring it in Romania. Another benefit of notoriety is that my husband brought me to the attention of the media and so we could advocate for the foundation, “said Geoana. However, she says that at first they hosted events in the United States “and saw some ladies of high position in society, I wonder what they want to achieve. I say it is the satisfaction of doing good. I honestly do not understand. That’s why I am afraid that is not understood when I say that I have a satisfaction to help someone “put an end to the discussion Mihaela Geoana.

Interview: Mircea Geoană – NATO membership, the first collateral security in Romanian history | MEDIA FAX | MAR 29, 2014

Geoana said that NATO was the moment of returning Romania to the West and asks rhetorically, how vulnerable it was Romania today to the actions of the Russian Federation, trying to return to his former press imperial without security guarantees offered Alliance and US partners.

(Replace “Russian” with Soros to get the accurate meaning.)

In Romania, Faith in Globalization Survives | NEW YORK TIMES | MAR 2, 2017

BUCHAREST, Romania — A month ago, images of hundreds of thousands of Romanians protesting in front of the government building in Bucharest and in other Romanian cities started to spread around the world. It may have seemed just another popular turn toward right-wing demagogy in a time of receding faith in democracy. But that is not the case.

Diplomatic cables revealed the discussion of agreements between Romanian organized crime and radical Muslim groups.

ROMANIA: G8 COUNTER-TERRORISM ACTION GROUP DISCUSSES DIALOGUE WITH ISLAM, ORGANIZED CRIME, BORDER SECURITY | WIKILEAKS 06BUCHAREST660_a | APR 21, 2006

(C) Summary. During the recent Russian Embassy-hosted G8 Counter-terrorism Action Group (CTAG) meeting (Ref A), participants agreed upon the importance of dialogue and exchange with moderate Muslims but acknowledged that their Embassies had not engaged in such efforts. Several participants discussed the nexus between organized crime networks and terrorism, with one diplomat decrying Romania’s well-organized and politically connected “silent Mafia”. End Summary.

(C/NF) Specifically addressing risks posed by organized crime, the EU Counselor proposed that the “Mafia” plays a pernicious and frequently sub rosa role in Romania. Noting the absence of press or police reports about gangland killings, he suggested that Romanian organized crime “may be so well organized they don’t need to shoot each other.” He conceded that the EU had no specific information to share on this point, opining that organized crime groups Romania “stay below the radar” and frequently collude with government officials. He observed that some sources had alleged that a “deal” existed between “certain Arab groups” and the Romanian government: “let us launder money (in Romania) and we won’t attack” Romanian targets. Later in the dialogue, he stated that PKK “operations are financed by illegal operations in Romania.”

Intelligence agencies have established relationships with foreign militant organizations. Our involvement in the arms trade is fact. Given, that arms, drugs, and people are often trafficked by the same criminal syndicates, is it possible that our government is involved the human trade too?

Bush admits to secret prisons | THE GLOBE AND MAIL | SEP 7, 2006 | UPDATED MAR 17, 2009

After his administration spent months steadfastly refusing to confirm the existence of the widely criticized “black sites,”

Bush not only acknowledged that terrorists had been “held and questioned outside the United States” by the Central Intelligence Agency but he praised the program as one that had broken up several plots and kept “potential mass murderers off the streets before they were able to kill us.”

The presumed terrorists, including suspects in the attack on the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000 and the 1998 bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, have already been transferred to the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba where 455 other suspects are also being held.

Another Secret CIA Prison Found | ABC | DEC 8, 2011

Another CIA secret prison was located and identified today in Eastern Europe, and unlike others previously discovered, this one is in a heavily populated section of a capital city.

According to an AP investigation, the CIA housed six so-called high-value terrorism detainees in a Romanian government building in central Bucharest, in the midst of a leafy neighborhood and next to a railway line.

A secret CIA prison found by ABC News in Lithuania was in a forest on the premises of a former horseback riding academy outside the capital city of Vilnius.

Teresa Carlson

International Center for Missing & Exploited Children | Director

Amazon Web Services Worldwide | Vice-President of Public Sector

Agencies to look for a ‘cloud option’

Federal Cloud Computing Strategy

US Government Cloud Computing Technology Roadmap Volume 1 Release 1.0 (Draft)

The Rise of Amazon Web Services

Amazon Web Services

Smart is beautiful

The Details About the CIA’s Deal With Amazon | THE ATLANTIC | JUL 17, 2014

A $600 million computing cloud built by an outside company is a “radical departure” for the risk-averse intelligence community.

This summer, a $600 million computing cloud developed by Amazon Web Services for the Central Intelligence Agency over the past year will begin servicing all 17 agencies that make up the intelligence community.

Intelligence community loves its new Amazon cloud | FORTUNE | JUN 29, 2015

The new Amazon Web Services-built CIA cloud is more secure and capable than legacy systems, according to intelligence IT officials speaking at an AWS event.

The new Amazon Web Services-built CIA cloud is more secure and capable than legacy systems, according to intelligence IT officials speaking at an AWS event.

U.S. intelligence agencies moving from legacy systems to new cloud computing infrastructure built by Amazon AMZN Web Services are pretty happy about it thus far, according to a report in NextGov.

The use of a single set of infrastructure improves security over using older multiple data centers, speakers said. Jason Hess, cloud security manager for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the first of 17 agencies to put an application in the new cloud, said consolidation means less complexity, which makes the infrastructure easier to protect.

Two years ago, the CIA selected AWS to build and run a special, secure cloud to be used by 17 intelligence-related agencies, in a contract valued at $600 million. That was a watershed event for Amazon, the leader in public cloud services. Many companies with regulatory and compliance concerns resist the notion of using public cloud infrastructure, in which resources are typically shared by many customers, although Amazon cordons off sections of its public cloud for use by select customers.

Why Amazon’s Collaboration With the CIA Is So Ominous — and Vulnerable | HUFFINGTON POST | FEB 20, 2014

As the world’s biggest online retailer, Amazon wants a benevolent image to encourage trust from customers. Obtaining vast quantities of their personal information has been central to the firm’ business model.

Amazon is diversifying — and a few months ago the company signed a $600 million contract with the Central Intelligence Agency to provide “cloud computing” services.

Amazon now has the means, motive and opportunity to provide huge amounts of customer information to its new business partner. An official statement from Amazon headquarters last fall declared: “We look forward to a successful relationship with the CIA.”

The Central Intelligence Agency has plenty of money to throw around. Thanks to documents provided by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, we know that the CIA’s annual budget is $14.7 billion; the NSA’s is $10.8 billion.

The Cloud has been a Godsend | NEXTGOV | AUG 12, 2016

One of the CIA’s top security officials said the cloud infrastructure built by Amazon Web Services is improving the spy agency’s cybersecurity posture and speed to mission handling national security threats.

“We’re very happy with it,” Nicely added. “Our agency and other [intelligence community] components are busily working to move their workloads into the cloud, and off legacy and into the new.”

Inside Romania’s secret CIA prison | THE INDEPENDENT | DEC 08, 2011

In northern Bucharest, in a busy residential neighbourhood minutes from the heart of the capital city, is a secret the Romanian government has long tried to protect.

For years, the CIA used a government building — codenamed “Bright Light” — as a makeshift prison for its most valuable detainees. There it held al-Qa’ida operatives Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of 9/11, and others in a basement prison before they were ultimately transferred to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in 2006, according to former US intelligence officials familiar with the location and inner workings of the prison.

The existence of a CIA prison in Romania has been widely reported, but its location has never been made public. The Associated Press and German public television ARD located the former prison and learned details of the facility where harsh interrogation tactics were used. ARD’s programme on the CIA prison is set to air today.

The Romanian prison was part of a network of so-called black sites that the CIA operated and controlled overseas in Thailand, Lithuania and Poland. All the prisons were closed by May 2006, and the CIA’s detention and interrogation programme ended in 2009.

The CIA prison opened for business in the autumn of 2003, after the CIA decided to empty the black site in Poland, according to former US officials.

Lawyer: CIA gave Romania millions to host secret prisons | FOX NEWS | JUN 29, 2016

BUCHAREST, Romania – A rights lawyer says Romania was paid “millions of dollars” by the CIA to host secret prisons. He spoke at a European Court of Human Rights hearing into accusations that Romania allowed the agency to torture terrorism suspects as part of a secret renditions program under President George W. Bush.

Amrit Singh told the court on Wednesday there were CIA prisons in Romania from 2003-2005 with Romania’s “acquiescence and connivance.”

Singh said her client, Saudi Arabian national Abd al-Rahim Al Nashiri, was shackled, slapped and given forced rectal feeding at a Bucharest CIA prison in 2004. He is currently in U.S. custody at Guantanamo Bay.

Department of State Travel Information: Romania | DEPARTMENT OF STATE

Be cautious about entering into contracts with Romanian businesses and/or organizations without legal assistance. Both official and societal corruption remains problematic in Romania. The Romanian legal system is difficult for foreigners to navigate, making the assistance of a local attorney nearly essential.

See the Department of State and the FBI pages for information on scams.

Balkan Transnational Organized Crime Groups | FBI

Balkan TOC groups are politically and financially motivated groups influenced by, associated with, or originating from Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece, and Romania. These organized crime groups cause significant financial harm to the United States each year.

Unlike traditional organized crime groups, Balkan groups do not appear to operate under a traditional hierarchy, but rather around ethnic associations and friendship ties. They also appear to be more agile, organic, and project-based. Balkan TOC groups are adept at adopting new technologies, thus increasing their ability to expand their criminal market base through cyber-enabled fraud.

These groups engage in a myriad of criminal activity including passport fraud, access device fraud, identify theft, healthcare fraud, real estate fraud, insurance fraud, money laundering, drug trafficking, human smuggling, prostitution, and extortion.

Romania Information | CIA FACTBOOK

Illicit drugs:

Major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western Europe; although not a significant financial center, role as a narcotics conduit leaves it vulnerable to laundering, which occurs via the banking system, currency exchange houses, and casinos

Economy – overview:

Romania, which joined the EU on 1 January 2007, began the transition from communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country’s needs. Romania’s macroeconomic gains have only recently started to spur creation of a middle class and to address Romania’s widespread poverty. Corruption and red tape continue to permeate the business environment.

In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, Romania signed a $26 billion emergency assistance package from the IMF, the EU, and other international lenders, but GDP contracted until 2011. In March 2011, Romania and the IMF/EU/World Bank signed a 24-month precautionary standby agreement, worth $6.6 billion, to promote fiscal discipline, encourage progress on structural reforms, and strengthen financial sector stability; no funds were drawn. In September 2013, Romanian authorities and the IMF/EU agreed to a follow-on standby agreement, worth $5.4 billion, to continue with reforms. This agreement expired in September 2015, and no funds were drawn. Progress on structural reforms has been uneven, and the economy still is vulnerable to external shocks.

Disputes – international:

The ICJ ruled largely in favor of Romania in its dispute submitted in 2004 over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy/Serpilor (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary delimitation; Romania opposes Ukraine’s reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through Ukraine to the Black Sea

Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley

International Center for Missing & Exploited Children | Director

Regis College | B.A. in French & Spanish (graduated 1974)

Department of State | Congressional Liaison Officer (1977 – 1979)

Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe | Congressional Liaison (1980 – 1981)

Department of State | Ambassador to Portugal (1994 – 1997)

Department of State | Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State Madeleine Albright (1997 – 2001) during which time she established and headed the Office of Media Programming Acquisition in the “newly independent” Balkan States and served as Senate liaison for NATO Enlargement.

Department of State | Special Representative for Global Partnerships (2009 – 2013)

Department of State | Senior Advisor for Secretary’s Initiatives in the Office of the Secretary of State under John Kerry

U.N. General Assembly | U.S. Representative

US Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy | Vice Chair

Democratic National Committee | Chair, National Advisory Board

Council on Foreign Relations | Associate Director, Task Force on Democracy

Foreign Affairs Museum Council | Member

The Atlantic Council of the United States | Member, Board of Directors (Current)

Securing America’s Future Energy | Co-Chair, Diplomatic Council on Energy Security

National Democratic Institute for International Affairs | Member, Board of Directors (Current)

The American Ireland Fund | Member, Board of Directors (Current)

Smith Bagley, Inc. | Director

Clinton Community Library | Chair, Board of Trustees (past)

Clinton Foundation Donations

Smith and Elizabeth Bagley | $1,000,001 – $5,000,000 to the Clinton foundation | The Clinton Foundation: The Contributors

Smith Bagley, Inc. doing business as CellularOne | $50,000 – $100,000 to the Clinton Foundation

The American Ireland Fund | $250,000-$500,000

Smith Bagley provides commercial mobile wireless service in Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah, and has extensive wireless coverage throughout Native American lands, including federally recognized tribal lands such as the Navajo Nation and the White Mountain Apache Indian Reservation.

Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley | SKOLL

From 1994 to 1997, she served as the U.S. Ambassador to Portugal. Ambassador Bagley is a longstanding member of The Council on Foreign Relations and the Clinton Library Foundation.

She served as Senior Advisor under former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright where she established and headed the Office of Media Programming Acquisition for the newly independent Balkan states.

Ambassador Bagley was sworn in as Special Representative for Global Partnerships in the Office of the Secretary of State on June 18, 2009.

On Public-Private Partnerships: A Conversation with Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley | DELOITTE REVIEW | 2010

The past several decades have witnessed a marked shift in sources of foreign aid. Whereas the bulk of the money flowing from the United States to the developing world in the 1960s was official development assistance, today over 80 percent of it comes from private sources. In response to the increased role the private sector and civil society are playing in international development, the U.S. Department of State is shifting the way it views the department’s role in advancing U.S. foreign policy objectives.

To better integrate the development work being undertaken across regions and by different sectors, the State Department has created a new office under Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton responsible for creating partnerships with individuals, businesses and not-for-profit organizations around issues of common interest ranging from food security to HIV/AIDS.

To lead this effort, Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley was appointed Special Representative for Global Partnerships. In this role, she leads the State Department’s new Global Partnership Initiative, making public-private partnerships a core component of diplomacy. A seasoned diplomat, Ambassador Bagley comes to this newly created position having previously served as Senior Advisor to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and as U.S. Ambassador to Portugal.

WIKILEAKS – PODESTA – a new generation of donors

WIKILEAKS – CLINTON

WIKILEAKS – PODESTA

WIKILEAKS – DNC

CNN – Fundraising with stars at the home of Elizabeth Bagley

INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING & EXPLOITED CHILDREN | HOME PAGE

The International Center for Missing & Exploited Children held its first Board of Directors meeting in May 1998. It was officially launched in April 1999 by Hillary Clinton, then-First Lady of the United States, and Cherie Blair, wife of British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

ICMEC was born out of tragedy, created as a reaction to heinous crimes committed against children. Since our inception, we have worked to safeguard children from abduction, sexual abuse and exploitation, partnering with governments, academia, law enforcement, and the NGO community, to offer a range of practical measures that protect children.

Since we opened our doors to the world we have trained over 7,500 law enforcement officers. We have contributed substantially to both new and refined laws against child pornography in 100 countries. We have expanded the Global Missing Children’s Network; 24 countries are now members. We have advocated for the commemoration of International Missing Children’s Day, which is presently recognized on May 25th in 17 countries across four continents. And we have expanded our global partnerships.

Keep this in mind. Elizabeth Frawley Bagley | Senior Advisor to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright

Returning to Organized Crime

The Spoils of War: Afghanistan’s Multibillion Dollar Heroin Trade | Washington’s Hidden Agenda: Restore the Drug Trade | GLOBAL RESEARCH.

In 2014 the Afghan opium cultivation has once again hit a record high, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s 2014 Afghan Opium Survey.



Post 9/11 Afghanistan: Opium Cultivation, Production Increases Nearly 20-Fold | BREITBART | SEP 11, 2016

Opium cultivation and production has thrived over the course of the Afghanistan war despite a dramatic drop after the U.S. and NATO ended their combat mission in Afghanistan and withdrew most of their troops at the end of 2014.

Amid the ongoing heroin epidemic in the United States that is killing thousands, the White House and other government agencies have sounded the alarm on Afghanistan heroin possibly flowing into the U.S. through Canada, where most of the heroin available is from Afghanistan.

Tasked With Combating Opium, Afghan Officials Profit From It | NEW YORK TIMES | FEB 15, 2016

More than ever, Afghan government officials have become directly involved in the opium trade, expanding their competition with the Taliban beyond politics and into a struggle for control of the drug traffic and revenue.

Middle Eastern Transnational Organized Crime Groups | FBI

Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the FBI has taken a new look at the various criminal threats originating in the Middle East and from Middle Eastern communities in the United States. The Bureau, and law enforcement in general, recognize that Middle Eastern criminal groups often have no direct nexus to terror. Rather, these groups frequently have the same goals as any traditional organized crime ring—to make money through illegal activities.

Criminal groups with associations to the Middle East have been active in the U.S. since at least the 1970s, particularly in areas with significant Middle Eastern or Southwest Asian populations. These organizations are typically loosely organized theft or financial fraud rings formed along familial or tribal lines, and include criminals from Afghanistan, Egypt, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. They typically use small storefronts as bases for criminal operations.

INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S ORGANIZATION EXPANDS GLOBAL REACH WITH NEW BOARD MEMBERS | ICMEC ARCHIVE

Eve Branson: Mrs. Branson was a founding board member of ICMEC in 1999 and served on the first board of directors until 2005. She is also the mother of Sir Richard Branson who was ICMEC’s founding sponsor. Last month she released her new autobiography “Mums the Word.” Mrs. Branson also heads the Eve Branson Foundation which works to improve the lives of women and girls in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco.

Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley: Ambassador Bagley served as the Special Representative for Global Partnerships for the U.S. State Department from 2009 until 2013. She is an attorney specializing in international law, was an Adjunct Law Professor at Georgetown University, was a Senior Advisor to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and served as the US Ambassador to Portugal.

RICHARD BRANSON | FOUNDER, VIRGIN | 4-TRADERS What travel ban? The Obamas visit neighboring island with billionaire host Richard Branson during second week of holiday on his private island | DAILY MAIL

Leading the Global Partnership Initiative: Insights from Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley | IBM CENTER FOR THE BUSINESSS OF GOVERNMENT | SPRING 2010

Leading the global partnership initiative: insights from Ambassador Elizabeth Frawley Bagley

Strengthening America’s Global Development Partnerships: A Policy Blueprint for Better Collaboration Between the U.S. Government, Business and Civil Society | BROOKINGS

Early Progress on Reform and Partnerships

Only a few months into their tenures, the Obama administration and the 111th Congress have already initiated efforts that present opportunities to strengthen America’s global development partnerships. Since taking office, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has consistently voiced her support for making development an equal partner, along with defense and diplomacy, in advancing U.S. national security. In April 2009, she also announced the launch of the Global Partnership Initiative to facilitate the expansion of current partnerships with business and non-governmental organizations and the creation of new ones. Additionally, Secretary Clinton’s designation of Elizabeth Bagley, a politically connected diplomat, to lead the initiative along with Kris Balderston, one of Clinton’s close advisers, serves as a sign of her significant interest in this area.

In May 2009, the President announced a $63 billion commitment over six years to tackle global health issues such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and maternal health, building on the success of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), one of the most significant foreign assistance programs of the previous administration. It is still unclear what shape these nascent efforts will take as they develop, and President Obama’s designee to head USAID should figure prominently in guiding foreign assistance reform, but early signs indicate clear recognition of the need and opportunity to strengthen partnerships.

– Fundraising with stars at the home of Elizabeth Bagley