Hello, international trade community! I’m pleased to introduce myself as the President of the Washington Council on International Trade, and to introduce State of Trade, the new WCIT blog.
If you haven’t noticed already, State of Trade is a double entendre. First, of course, this blog will update you on the state of the world of international trade, highlighting and interpreting various relevant policies and events. Second is that Washington is a “state of trade” – as one of the most trade dependent states in the country and with so many of our businesses and organizations engaged in international activities. They always say that if you have to explain the joke, it isn’t funny, but at least it’s clever!
A little bit about WCIT for the uninitiated. Founded in 1973, the Washington Council on International Trade is a nonprofit organization that advances policies beneficial to international trade in Washington state. For 38 years, WCIT has been the leading policy resource for Washington state companies engaged in international trade. Broadly respected for its credible and independent voice, WCIT is the primary information resource on international trade issues for elected representatives, business leaders, the media, educators and community groups in Washington state.
As for myself, I was most recently the program manager for economic development at the Puget Sound Regional Council, working on developing and implementing a regional economic strategy for the Puget Sound Regional Council and staffing the Prosperity Partnership coalition. In particular, I led the Council’s work with the Brookings Institution on reframing the federal-regional economic development relationship. I started my career in the Washington, D.C. office of U.S. Representative Rick Boucher, and also served as the founding executive director of Shunpike, a nonprofit arts services organization that provides business and organizational consulting services to emerging arts organizations. I have an M.P.A. from the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Affairs and majored in political science and theater at the University of Pennsylvania.
I’ll be talking in greater detail over the coming weeks and months about international trade and the various policy issues that are vital to our success, but the heart of the matter is that international trade is crucial to our economic prosperity, and I’m excited to be a voice on federal issues that affect it. Working in partnership with the state’s other internationally-focused organizations, such as the Trade Development Alliance of Greater Seattle, we can ensure Washington’s long-term economic competitiveness in the global economy.