Global Engagement, Local Benefits: A Strategic Toolkit for City, State, and Local Leaders

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Thursday, July 17, 2025

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As global risks increasingly impact local communities, mayors, governors, and city leaders are becoming key players in international affairs. Leading communities worldwide are developing strategic global partnerships that deliver measurable benefits at home: economic development, foreign investment, policy innovation, and collaborative solutions to shared challenges. The question for local leaders is not whether they should engage globally—it is how to make this engagement strategic, purposeful, risk-aware, and outcome-oriented.

To address this need, Meridian International Center, the Truman Center, and the Melbourne Centre for Cities are launching Global Engagement, Local Benefits: A Strategic Subnational Diplomacy Toolkit for City, State, and Local Leaders, developed through collaboration with local leaders and practitioners across nine countries.

For questions regarding this program, please contact Max Bouchet at mbouchet@meridian.org.

Program Speakers

Name Title
Mayor David Holt  (Opening Remarks) Mayor of Oklahoma City, OK, United States
Mayor Lacey Beaty  Mayor of Beaverton, OR, United States
Chris Brown Vice President, Business Development, Calgary Economic Development, Canada
Céline Papin Vice President of Bordeaux Metropolis and Deputy Mayor for International Cooperation of the City of Bordeaux, France
David Warren Head of International Affairs, Welsh Government, United Kingdom
Max Bouchet (Moderator) Director for Subnational Diplomacy, Meridian International Center

About Meridian International Center

Meridian International Center is a nonpartisan center for diplomacy founded in 1960 and headquartered on a historic campus in Washington, D.C. Our mission is to empower the next era of leaders to advance diplomacy for a better future. Our programs strengthen American leadership by accelerating collaboration on shared challenges, increasing economic competitiveness, and building geopolitical resilience. We equip leaders from business, science and technology, cities and states, culture and sports with the insights, networks, and resources to navigate a complex world.