EFTA00314931.pdf

IPI MWMMMPIAL MAM mmwn June 8, 2017 US DHS CIS Vermont Service Center 30 Houghton Street St. Albans, VT 05478 Re: Ms. O-1 Visa Application Dear Sir or Madam: I am writing this letter on behalf of Ms. a communications and public relations professional of extraordinary ability, who has contributed immensely to our organization, International Peace Institute. Since 2005 I have been President of the International Peace Institute (IPI), an independent, international not-for-profit think tank dedicated to managing risk and building resilience to promote peace, security, and sustainable development. To achieve its purpose, IPI employs a mix of policy research, strategic analysis, publishing, and convening. IPI is an independent non-profit research and policy development institution based in New York (beside the headquarters of the United Nations, with which IPI works closely). Additionally, the Institute has regional offices in Europe (Vienna, Austria), and in the Middle East. We specialize in multilateral approaches to peace and security issues, working closely with the Secretariat and membership of the United Nations. Our primary objective is to promote effective international responses to new and emerging issues and crises through research, analysis, and policy development. Before joining the IPI, I was principal architect of the 1990s Oslo Peace Accords (between the PLO and the Government of Israel) and am a Norwegian sociologist and diplomat who has served the UN as Norway's senior envoy in the Middle East. I had the distinct pleasure of working with benefitting from her extraordinary abilities. All my staff who 777 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017 USA TEL +1-212-6874300 FAX +1-212-983-8246 www.lpinst.org EFTA00314931 have worked closely with appreciate her skills, command of languages and her always warm and amicable personality. I first observed communication and language skills during a visit to Central Asia in 2014, where she interacted with foreign officials and professionals. Impressed with her extraordinary skills, we asked and the Enhanced Education Foundation, to provide support for our international conference on Global Health and Pandemics. III met and exceeded all our expectations. On September 12 the IPI hosted a high-level international conference on "Preparing for Pandemics: Lessons Learned for More Effective Responses" at Palais des Nations, Geneva, Switzerland. Prominent leaders of international organizations such as the United Nations, the World Health Organization, the Red Cross, the Institut Pasteur, Medecins Sans Frontieres and the Open Society Foundation, as well as senior officials and leading health experts from around the world participated in this event. The conference offered an ideal platform to discuss challenges and lessons learned from the Ebola crisis, as well as actionable solutions and their implementation. The meeting builds on IPI's work on peace and health, particularly its cooperation with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, to overcome the final barriers to the global eradication of polio. and the Enhanced Education Foundation has been an extraordinary asset for us the last few years, especially in the organizing and fundraising of the Epidemic Conference. III through Enhanced Education, helped allocate and raise funds for the Conference. Without her extraordinary efforts, the fundraising would not have reached the levels it reached. Furthermore, participated in the Conference on behalf of Enhanced Education, taking an active and lead role, coordinating the follow-up meetings. In major international conferences like our Epidemic Conference, the sessions and the program is very strict and rigid, given the world leaders participating. Policy, general mission and vision statements are made at the regular sessions. After the structured sessions, sometimes impromptu, sometimes formal, follow-up meetings need to be organized to effectively initiate the dialogue and the working relations for the goals and policies set forth at the conference sessions. And, this is where shined: Using her extraordinary understanding of international relations, knowing who is who, and, how they would interact with each other, and, 777 United Nations Plaza. New York. NY 10017 USA zu +1-212.687-4300 FAX +1-212-983-8246 www.ipinst.org EFTA00314932 understanding precisely the goals and the mission of the Conference, she organized some of the follow-up meetings. The follow-up meetings, repeating myself, are as important as the Conference itself—the working groups and the stakeholders get together in the follow-up meetings more efficiently, and, the real work begins in these meetings. Given competing and sometimes conflicting interests, it is extremely difficult to put the right people on the right table. And this is where excelled—she understands the inner workings of international organizations and governments, and, she was able to, with her singular communications skills, was able to put the right people in the right room, furthering the success of our Conference. We are currently discussing with future fundraising opportunities for the IPI. is an amazing public relations and fundraising expert. She told me about her new endeavor, : She is undertaking a crucial task- promoting, subsidizing, and fostering STEM Education and standardized test taking preparations. As IPI, we firmly believe that education is the key to solving the world's problems. Therefore, we applaud in this endeavor. With best regards, roA Terje Rod-Larsen President 777 United Nations Plaza. New York, NY 10017 USA ru +1-212-687-4300 FAX +1-212-983-8246 www.ipinst.Org EFTA00314933