Executive Committee Member Ruth Kruger pins FIABCI-USA member Tuan Truong Anh, Sr. from Vietnam as Mailan Trinh Houston Southwest Council President proudly looks on. Mr. Anh joined the US delegation of more than 70 – the largest at the 64th World Congress that also included FIABCI-USA members from Lebanon, Turkey and Venezuela. Click here for more photos from the World Congress.

FIABCI-USA President Sharon K. Young presents Eugenia Foxworth the Jack Sharp Memorial Membership Award in Taichung, Taiwan. The Jack Sharp Award is for the member who did the most to promote FIABCI and grow membership in the previous year. Eugenia was instrumental in recruiting new members at the NAR Expo in Orlando last year and continues to be a great ambassador for the organization. Click here for more pictures from the Annual Membership Meeting & Celebration Dinner.

The first full day of the 64th World Congress got underway with a fascinating keynote by 2013 Pritzker Prize winner Japanese architect Toyo  Ito. Ito’s architecture is fluid and not confined by what he considers to be the limitations of modern architecture. In the Taichung Metropolitan Opera House currently under construction, the horizontal and vertical network of spaces creates opportunities for communication and connection. Seeking freedom from the rigidity of a grid, his work draws  inspiration from the principles of nature and organic structures such as trees, bamboo or human bones and skin.

The day concluded with one of the highlights of the Congress – the Prix d’ Excellence Gala Dinner and Awards Ceremony. More than 700 celebrants witnessed awards in 12 categories including Environmental Rehabilitation, Master Planned Communities, Retail, Residential, Hotel and Public Infrastructure categories. Projects from Brazil, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan were among the awards recipients.

The first step is always the most important. The 64th FIABCI World Congress Welcome Reception was held at the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts. In addition to access to the museum, the delegates were treated to outstanding cultural performances by native Taiwanese drummers, dancers and chorus.

During the reception Mr. Shih-Ming You came up to me and said, “I know you!” In 2004 I attended the Pan Pacific Congress in Taipei. Mr. You won the Young Members prize for best paper. He remembered me and is now a Section Chief with the Taiwan Ministry of the Interior.

Developers Highwealth Construction and Bosing Construction are sponsoring Sleepless in Taichung – evening entertainment for the World Congress delegates. The event starts with tours of Bosing’s The Superior Villa residential development and ends at Highwealth’s CBD Time Square office development where the lobby has been converted into a jazz club. After only two days, the U.S. Delegation is completely blown away by the incredible hospitality of our hosts.

The FIABCI-USA delegation – again the largest outside the host country – arrived in Taichung, Taiwan and celebrated an incredible year for the organization made of outstanding volunteers. The evening included a lavish dinner of seafood, duck and great friends. President Sharon K. Young awarded President’s metals to Hisako Kay Tippit (above), Judy Sykes, Maire Rosol, Frank Young & Eugenia Foxworth.  In addition Judy Shenefield current World President was presented with the FIABCI-USA Past-President’s Medal.

The Annual Meeting & Celebration Dinner ended with the installation of Bonnie Carris as 2013-2014 President, an event sponsored by the Seattle Pacific Northwest Council and  witnessed by five FIABCI-USA Past-President’s, FIABCI-USA members from Lebanon and Venezuela as well as international guests from France and the United Kingdom.

India Case Study students Nicolas Nemni, Dakota Semler, Michael Joffe &  Benjamin Heldman at the State Department with the model of the US Moscow Embassy Master plan winner of the 2012 FIABCI-USA Prix Award for Public Buildings.

The FIABCI Scholarship Foundation recently awarded grants for the Spring term. One grant was used to award prizes to two Case Studies from The George Washington University “Real Estate Development Cases” course co-taught by Professor Dr. Tom Geurts and Anthony Balestrieri. Jason Dallara, FIABCI-USA member and Director of the Office of Master Planning & Evaluations at the State Dept judged the case studies.

The 1st place case was in Berlin (Germany) dealing with the intricacies of redevelopment in a congested and politically sensitive area. The 2nd place case was in Mumbai (India) where the development of a completely new shopping mall was analyzed. The students visited the cities and saw the developments first-hand and interacted with local specialists to better understand the issues and provide project-specific recommendations. Click on the highlighted city links to view their presentations. Click her for the full list of the grants awarded.

FIABCI-USA member & AREAA International Chair Nancy Suvarnamani (4th from left), FIABCI-France International Chair Leo Attias (5th from left), FIABCI-USA Principal Member NAR’s Janet Branton (in pink), FIABCI World Council of Brokers President Kirkor Ajderhanyan (3rd from right) and FIABCI-USA Secretary General Bill Endsley (on the end) joined numerous other FIABCI-USA members at the Asian Real Estate Association of America’s Global Summit in Hawaii from April 21-24.

A select group of FIABCI-USA members gathered at the luxurious Decorus Realty office in Sunny Isles Beach, FL, on March 20 to chat with Mr. Henri Gast (Center in photo), French BNP Paribas Real Estate Executive and Past FIABCI-France President. During the event, Mr. Gast asked questions about the current condition of the market – especially the general confusion among French buyers about the big gap in property prices. Members explained the differences in demand within submarkets and the myths still circulating in spite of the current strength of the market, which has definitely become a seller’s market.

Mr. Gast made suggestions on how advertise to French Buyers and what products to offer. He revealed that the current dynamics in France fiscal policies make overseas investments palatable to the French investor. Since the UK market is tight, Florida, and specifically Miami, is among the top choices for the French.

Attendees were also treated to a “State Of The Market” presentation with the latest statistics and numbers yet to be released to the public from FIABCI-USA member Teresa Kinney, Chief Executive Officer of the Miami Association of Realtors. Attendees also got a preview of the new development 95th On the Ocean.

The UN General Assembly designates March 22nd of every year as World Water Day. 780 million people live without access to safe drinking water and 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation.  Women and children are typically burdened with the collection of water, traveling long distances, often in dangerous circumstances. Both sickness and the burden of collection keep people from school and work, which costs countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia and estimated 5-6% of their GDP every year.

Ensuring access to water, sanitation and hygiene services in a rapidly urbanizing world is a critical challenge. Of urban dwellers, it is the poor and those living in slums that have the least access to these resources. Issues of land tenure and overcrowding make the construction and maintenance of water and sanitation infrastructure difficult, and magnify the health consequences that come from unsafe water and poor sanitation facilities. Click on the World Water Day logo for more information.

1050 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC

On March 7 FIABACI-USA began operations from a new office in our nation’s capitol. The new office provides the organization with a prestigious address only two blocks from the White House.