For Immediate Release

Gourlay joins World Trade Center Institute as Vice President for Business Development

Baltimore—July 19, 2002. The World Trade Center Institute (WTCI) has announced that Peter R. Gourlay has joined the organization as Vice President for Business Development.
Mr. Gourlay comes to WTCI from CNA Financial Corporation, a Fortune 500 firm, where he helped CNA’s 20,000 design and construction clients do business overseas. Mr. Gourlay created a “clients-only” consulting service to help CNA’s clients with their international business needs. The free service provided firms with international trade information and contacts, risk management and financial matchmaking. His efforts were a major value added service tool for CNA and helped them to retain and expand their client base. Mr. Gourlay’s efforts were highlighted by national and trade media as a new innovative way to provide value to clients.

“Developing international relationships is key to our success. Peter brings a track record of success and wealth of contacts and knowledge to help to WTCI and our clients,” said Deborah Kielty, President of WTCI.

As Vice President for Business Development, Mr. Gourlay will provide WTCI clients with valuable insight the risk and opportunities of doing business overseas. Additionally, he will provide WTCI with membership recruitment and marketing experience to help the organization further its vision as the premier non-profit international business organization in the region. Mr. Gourlay is also a freelance international business columnist for Manufacturing Today, US-Business Review and Pollution Engineering magazines.

Prior to his work at CNA, Mr. Gourlay established U.S. government environmental business operations in Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia and India for the US-Asia Environmental Partnership (US-AEP), a $100 million public-private initiative to counter Asia’s environmental degradation with U.S. technology and expertise. His efforts lead to U.S. firms winning over $730 million in grants, contracts and joint ventures in Asia. Mr. Gourlay also worked at the U.S. Agency for International Development where he earned the Agency’s meritorious honor award for his business outreach efforts.
Mr. Gourlay was born in Antwerp, Belgium and received primary and secondary education in France and Morocco. He served four years in the United States Marine Corps and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and French from Frostburg State University.

Headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, the World Trade Center Institute (WTCI) was established in 1989. WTCI remains focused on the growth of Maryland’s international business and the resulting benefits this brings to the local and global communities. As a non-profit private and public partnership, WTCI is part of the renowned WTCA global association of over 300 World Trade Centers around the world. WTCI’s mission is to strengthen the mid-Atlantic international community through international education, information and worldwide connections.