Economics Day: A Focus On International Business - An Israeli Model

John Brown

In 1983, during a visit to Israel, John Brown, spiritually inspired by scripture (1 Kings 8:41- 43), dedicated himself to finding oil and gas in Israel; starting the process that led to the Joseph Project. During the next seventeen years he made numerous trips to Israel, hired oil and gas consultants in Israel and Texas, met with Israeli government officials, local exploration companies, and assisted those companies in trying to raise money for oil and gas exploration in Israel. This activity led Mr. Brown to form Zion Oil & Gas, Inc. in April 2000.,

John M. Brown the company's founder, has been chairman of the board of directors since its organization in April 2000. He served as CEO until September 2004, and as president of Zion until October 2001. Mr. Brown has extensive management and marketing experience, serving as corporate director of purchasing at GTE Valeron, a subsidiary of GTE Corporation from 1966 to 1986, and as corporate director of procurement at Magnetek Universal, Inc. during 1988-89. Mr. Brown is also a director of M&B Holding Inc. a provider of cement walls and floors for industrial buildings, office buildings and home developers. Mr. Brown attended Fullerton Jr. College and then received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Fullerton College, which was awarded to him by a non-accredited correspondence school (1966).

(excerpted from The Oil of Israel, pgs. 47-48)

Consul General Meir Shlomo

Meir Shlomo assumed the role as Consul General of Israel to the Southwest, based in Houston, Texas.

Prior to his current posting, Mr. Shlomo recently completed a four-year term as the Head of Mission at the Consulate General of Israel to New England in Boston. He has also served as the Deputy Chief of Mission in the Israeli embassies of India, Denmark, Peru, and El Salvador.

Mr. Shlomo also served as the head of the Foreign Ministry's Public Diplomacy Division, responsible for Israel's public diplomacy campaign throughout all of its missions across the globe. Mr. Shlomo has a Bachelor's degree in political science from Tel Aviv University and a Master's degree in mass communication from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, graduating from both summa cum laude and he is currently working on his PhD in the field of Public diplomacy.

He speaks Hebrew, English, and Spanish.

Mr. Shlomo is married to Bracha Shlomo, with two children, Ido and Noa.

Executive Assistant at: 713-627-3780 Ext.501, or email: concal.sec@houston.mfa.gov.il

Bracha Shlomo

Bracha Shlomo currently resides in Houston, Texas since September 2010. Bracha Shlomo works at the State of Israel Economic Mission as Trade and Investment officer. There she is responsible for business development in Investments, nanotechnology, logistics, transportation and Homeland security with her focus in New Mexico and Arkansas.

In Israel, Bracha worked as a Business Developer and Project Manager for two Israeli companies tendering for World Bank projects in Eastern Europe, South East Asia, South America and Africa. Bracha managed the tendering processes, partnerships, and overall project management.

At her last position in Israel, Bracha worked for an Architecture and Urban Planning firm executing World Bank projects and Urban Development Plans in four cities in Albania.

Among her experience, Bracha worked as the head of the Ministry of Defense's Rehabilitation office for Israel in Boston, Massachusetts administrating all medical services rendered to IDF veterans and victims of terror attack who suffered from severe injuries and were sent to Boston for special treatment.

Bracha Shlomo was born in Poland, growing up in Israel. She attended the University of Tel Aviv receiving her B.A. in Philosophy and Jewish Studies.

Bracha speaks Hebrew, English, and Spanish.

David Sickey

David Sickey is a member of the 909-member Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana (Deer clan), a federally recognized Native American Tribe located in Southwest Louisiana, and serves as a member of the Tribe's elected 5-member governing body, the Tribal Council.

In his role as a member of the Tribal Council, David deals with public policy issues on Tribal, local, state, and national levels. He plays a key role in Tribal governance, community relations, sovereignty issues, social and economic development, and land use planning. He is focused on the establishment of long-term economic and social stability for the Tribe and the surrounding communities. In 2008, David helped create the Coushatta Tribal Department of Commerce in order to coordinate all non-gaming economic development efforts for the Tribe, including diversification of business holdings, generation of long-term sustainable income, job creation, and promotion of economic development initiatives.

Along with his brother, Tribal Chairman Kevin Sickey, David helped plan and launch a major effort by the Tribe to establish ties with foreign governments in order to bring about cultural exchange and business development. The first significant step in this effort took place in the fall of 2008 when the Coushatta became the first Native American tribe to recognize, honor and welcome official representatives of the State of Israel. David was the architect of this nation-to-nation outreach effort and he has continued to develop the Tribe's relationship with Israel by traveling to the country for meetings with high-ranking officials and business leaders, as well as U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro.

In addition to business development and international relations efforts, David's priorities for the Tribal community include building interest in public service among Tribe members, creating opportunities for Tribal youth, and the development of a new generation of leadership for the Coushatta Tribe. He is also working to promote the Coushatta history, culture and language by supporting the construction of a new, 20,000-square-foot Coushatta Heritage Center.

David was the recipient of a 2008 Times/Fusion Five "Up & Coming Under 40" Award presented by Fusion Five and The Times of Southwest Louisiana in Lake Charles, La. He is a member of the Committee of 100 Louisiana, the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance, the LSUE Foundation Board of Directors, the Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance Board of Directors, the Corporate Advisory Council for the College of Business at McNeese State University and the Louisiana State University National Diversity Advisory Board. He was also recently appointed by the Allen Parish Police Jury to serve on the 33rd Judicial District Children and Youth Planning Board for 2011-2013.

David is involved in a variety of national organizations as well, including the Native American Finance Officer's Association, the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the National Congress of American Indians, the Native Financial Education Coalition, Indigenous Language Institute, the National Tribal Environmental Council, the National Museum of the American Indian, and the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. In 2009, David represented the Coushatta Tribe at the White House Tribal Nations Conference in Washington, D.C.

Because of his strong leadership role within the Tribe, David has been featured in a variety of state and national media. He has been interviewed for articles in national news outlets USA Today, The Washington Post, The Hill, and The New York Times, as well as Louisiana publications such as 1012 Magazine and Thrive Magazine. He has also appeared on national news shows such as Nightline.

David was born May 1, 1978, to Ernest and Ena Mae Sickey and is a life-long resident of Elton, Louisiana. He is currently serving his third term as a member of the Coushatta Tribal Council. David was first elected to the Coushatta Tribal Council in May 2003, at the age of 25, making him the youngest person ever elected to the Council. He is married to Kelly Cannon Sickey of Kinder, La. They have a 3-year-old daughter, Marianna; an 18-month-old son, Maxwell Clark; and a newborn son, Miles Carter.

Brie Knox

Ms. Brie Knox is an International Trade Specialist for the U.S. Department of Commerce at the New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance Center.  Ms. Knox assists businesses in southeastern Louisiana to enter the international marketplace and expand their global presence.  Her portfolio includes companies in various industries, including Oil and Gas equipment and services; Defense; Maritime equipment and services; Construction; Franchising; Education; Tourism; and Environmental Services.  She is involved in the Energy, Maritime, and Environmental Global Teams at the Department of Commerce and has organized and led Commercial Service Trade Missions to Colombia, Ghana, Nigeria, Brazil, and Israel.  Ms. Knox originally joined the Commercial Service in 2001 as an Intern at the Los Angeles Export Assistance Center and moved overseas to intern with the Commercial Service at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid, Spain in 2002.  Ms. Knox has a background in finance and previously worked for JPMorgan Chase and PNC Bank.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts, Cum Laude, in International Studies and Spanish from the University of La Verne in California and the Cuauhnahuac Institute in Cuernavaca, Mexico.
 
Company profile: The U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service, New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance Center, is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration, with a global network of trade specialists in 109 U.S. offices and posts in nearly 80 countries around the world.  The mission of the Commercial Service is to promote the export of U.S. goods and services, particularly by small and medium-sized businesses, and to represent U.S. business interests internationally.  The CS provides market research and counseling, assistance at U.S. and foreign trade events, international partner search and matchmaking, consulting and advocacy.

Delilah DeSouza

Delilah DeSouza is an international trade specialist with the U.S. Commercial Service New Orleans Export Assistance Center. Stationed in Lafayette, Louisiana, her portfolio includes a wide range of companies in the oil and gas equipment and services, construction, environmental and marine industries. She is the deputy team leader for the Oil & Gas sector for the U.S. Department of Commerce Global Energy Team.  She has served the Commercial Service internationally on temporary duty assignments at the U.S. Consulate in Calgary, Canada and most recently at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, China.  She has organized and led commercial trade missions to Venezuela, Trinidad, Panama, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, Colombia, Peru and Chile.  Delilah previously worked as trade development specialist for the International Trade Division of the City of Lafayette, Louisiana prior to joining the federal government.  She received her B.S. in International Business from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.  Delilah has lived in Honduras, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and Panama and is proficient in Spanish.

Company profile: The U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service, New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance Center, is an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration, with a global network of trade specialists in 109 U.S. offices and posts in nearly 80 countries around the world.  The mission of the Commercial Service is to promote the export of U.S. goods and services, particularly by small and medium-sized businesses, and to represent U.S. business interests internationally.  The CS provides market research and counseling, assistance at U.S. and foreign trade events, international partner search and matchmaking, consulting and advocacy.

Daniel Groft, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

Department of Accounting, Finance, and Economics


Contact:(337) 475-5564


dgroft@mcneese.edu

David Conner

Vice President of Economic Development & International Services

SWLA Economic Development Alliance


Contact: (337) 433-3632 Ext. 213


dconner@allianceswla.org

Tracy Mclemore, Ph.D.

Director

Ann Rosteet Hurley Center for Economic Education


Contact: (337) 562-4194


tmclemore@mcneese.edu

Diego Conde-Zanca

President

McNeese International Business Club


Contact: diego.conde17@gmail.com