SCI: Annual Conference - Washington DC 2006

Historian Michael Beschloss to Keynote Sister Cities International 50th Anniversary Gala
Table Sponsorships Available for July 15th Signature Event

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 16, 2006

Washington DC - Acclaimed author and award-winning historian, Michael Beschloss, will keynote the Sister Cities International 50th Anniversary Conference International Gala to be held on July 15, 2006 in Washington D.C. at the National Building Museum.

Michael Beschloss, author of eight books, most recently published the acclaimed New York Times best-seller The Conquerors: Roosevelt, Truman and the Destruction of Hitler's Germany, 1941-1945. Amazon.com called it the best-selling history book in America in 2002. Newsweek has called Beschloss "the nation's leading Presidential historian." He was recently appointed NBC News Presidential Historian and is a regular guest on Imus in the Morning and PBS's The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. He is also a recent Emmy nominee for his role in creating the Discovery Channel series "Decisions that Shook the World," narrated by Morgan Freeman.

Beschloss was born in Chicago in 1955. An alumnus of Williams College, he is also the only political historian of national stature to have an advanced degree from the Harvard Business School. He was a historian with the Smithsonian Institution from 1982-1986, a senior associate member at Oxford University in England from 1986-1987, and a senior fellow of the Annenberg Foundation in Washington, D.C. from 1988-1996.

Lynn Olson, 50th Anniversary Conference Director, said, "We were very impressed by his knowledge of the sister city movement and the historical value of citizen diplomacy. He feels that the citizen diplomacy movement is more important now than it was during the Cold War, and he will lay out a vivid and inspiring perspective on the future of citizen diplomacy."

Twelve hundred people from 30 countries will attend the black-tie event at the National Building Museum. The Master of Ceremonies will be Alan Chambers, a member of the Sister Cities International Board of Directors. Musical entertainment will be provided by Doc Scantlin and His Imperial Palms.

The Sister Cities International Gala: Celebrating 50 Years of Global Citizenship will also honor award winners for: Corporate Global Responsibility Award - Citrix Systems, Inc. - Mark Templeton, CEO, Eisenhower Legacy Award for Global Citizenship - Mary Jean Eisenhower, and Humanitarian Partnership Award - Kenneth Behring.

A limited number of tables are available for outside guests. Contact Phyllis Warren-Briggs for information: pwarrenbriggs@sister-cities.org or call 202.347.8630 ext. 8634.

Representing more than 2,500 communities in 134 countries, Sister Cities International (www.sister-cities.org) is a citizen diplomacy network creating and strengthening partnerships between the U.S. and communities abroad. Begun in 1956 after a White House summit where U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower called for people-to-people exchanges, sister city partnerships are tailored to local interests and increase global cooperation at the grassroots level. Sister Cities International promotes peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation by focusing on sustainable development, youth and education, arts and culture, humanitarian assistance and economic growth programs.

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