AIAC AT THE CENTENNIAL GALA FOR THE EXPLORERS CLUB WASHINGTON GROUP
For Immediate Release
Washington, D.C. – November 20, 2024 American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) and its affiliates shall host its friends, colleagues, and clients at the Centennial Anniversary Celebration of the founding of the Washington, D.C. Chapter of the Explorers Club on December 7, 2024. The formal, black-tie, full military dress uniform, and ball gown gala will be held in the grand ballroom of the Cosmos Club, the traditional home for the Chapter’s events.
The evening’s program will include a presentation by Kirk Johnson, world renowned paleontologist, explorer, and the Director of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, where he oversees the world’s largest natural history collection. The museum's collections contain over 146 million specimens of plants, animals, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites, specimens of human remains, and human cultural artifacts. It is also home to about 185 professional natural history scientists—the largest group of scientists dedicated to the study of natural and cultural history in the world.
AIAC and its affiliates, Bradford Space, Arnprior Aerospace, SuperAlloy Manufacturing Solutions, Canadian Kraft Paper Industries, Champlain Cable, and Umbilicals International are corporate partners of the Explorers Club. AIAC Chairman L. M. Levie serves as Trustee of the Explorers Club, Member of its Legacy Society, and Chairman of its Reciprocity Committee.
AIAC Chairman L. M. Levie commented, “2024 is a landmark year for our club, as we celebrate both the 120th anniversary of the Explorers Club as well as the 100th anniversary of its Washington Chapter. The Cosmos Club, a magnificent monument to achievement in the arts and sciences, is the most appropriate locale for our salute to exploration.” He continued, “Kirk Johnson's presentation promises to be electrifying. Kirk is the living embodiment of Indiana Jones.”
About American Industrial Acquisition Corporation
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation (AIAC) is a diversified industrial group with manufacturing and distribution sites in 24 countries in North America, Europe, and Asia. AIAC has acquired and grown non-core subsidiaries and divisions of Boeing, Siemens, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Johnson Controls, Merck, Pfizer, Astellas, Visteon, Carlyle, Ahlstrom, Tolko, Groupe Suez, Groupe Rexel, and many other leading multinational corporations.
AIAC companies serve companies and governmental entities worldwide in all major sectors, including aviation, space, defense, automotive, truck, rail, marine, petrochemical, solar, nuclear, food, confectionary, beverage, civil engineering and infrastructure, commercial construction, mining, dredging, disaster relief, education, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. AIAC companies manufacture materials, components, assemblies, packaging, equipment, and finished products. In addition, AIAC companies are exclusive, authorized distributors of leading branded industrial and consumer products throughout Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. AIAC is a leading manufacturer of building, street, and highway signage in Europe, signage and illumination structures in North America, and a distributor of electrical products throughout France.
Of note, AIAC purchased Boeing Canada in 2005 and has produced over 10,000 unique components for every Boeing jet plane ever since, reliably serving Boeing from manufacturing facilities in North America. A leader in ultra-high precision jet engine component manufacturing, AIAC companies produce 2,200 fan blades and blisks for each jet engine produced by GE, Pratt & Whitney, Rolls Royce, and Honeywell. AIAC companies produce the critical automotive wire and cable for Tesla, GM, Ford, Chrysler- Fiat, Toyota, and Nissan. In connection with its kraft paper manufacturing interests in Canada and the US, AIAC controls and sustainably manages 22 million acres of Manitoba, Canada forestland, an area equivalent in size to the nation of Hungary.
AIAC companies actively support exploration into outer space, manufacturing critical components for launching and propelling spacecraft and satellites. AIAC customers in this sector include NASA, the European Space Agency, SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Boeing. AIAC companies also lead in the design and manufacture of undersea umbilical cables for worldwide oceanographic research.
Another AIAC affiliate, located in Germany, designs, manufactures and distributes high performance emergency portable power generators required during natural disasters, including extreme climate events worldwide. Clients include government agencies and the International Red Cross.
For further information, please see:
About AIAC Philanthropy
AIAC and the AIAC Foundation support a wide range of nonprofit, nonsectarian, bipartisan organizations which promote international conflict resolution, disaster relief, economic development, environmental sustainability, and exploration. The exploration-focused nonprofit organizations which they actively support include the Explorers Club, the National Geographic Society, the Royal Geographical Society, the American Museum of Natural History and the Hayden Planetarium, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Air and Space Museum, the National Space Society, and the United States Space Foundation.
In recent months, AIAC Companies have proudly served as a corporate sponsor of Hubert Sagniere’s historic circumnavigation of the earth in a single-engine plane (www.flightaroundtheglobe.com).
AIAC’s other beneficiaries include the Appeal of the Nobel Peace Laureates Foundation Inc., the Asia Society, the Atlantic Council, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation - Gates Philanthropy Partners, the Bretton Woods Committee, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Carter Center, the Council on Foreign Relations, the Economic Club of New York, the Foreign Policy Association, the Institut Française des Relations Internationales, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the International Crisis Group, the International Rescue Committee, the Japan Society, the JFK School of Government of Harvard University, the Peterson Institute for International Economics, the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), the Sierra Club, and the Trilateral Commission.
For further information, see:
https://www.aiac.com/our-values
About the Explorers Club
The Explorers Club is a world-renowned international organization dedicated to promoting scientific exploration and field research across land, sea, air, and space. Founded in 1904 in New York City, the club was created to unite explorers, scientists, and adventurers involved in expeditions to uncharted territories, providing a platform for the exchange of knowledge and collaboration on significant discoveries. Its mission is to advance the cause of exploration, encourage scientific research, and inspire the next generation of explorers.
The club was born from the vision of a group of prominent adventurers and scientists, including Henry Collins Walsh, Adolphus Greely, and Carl Lumboltz, who sought a place where those pushing the limits of human endurance and curiosity could gather. Early on, the club became a meeting ground for individuals who were mapping the world’s unknown regions, from the polar ice caps to the deepest jungles. Over time, the Explorers Club attracted some of the greatest explorers and scientific minds in history.
Famous members of the club include many iconic figures who have made their mark on history. Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the United States and an avid explorer of the Amazon and Africa, was an honorary member. Aviator Amelia Earhart, the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean, was a pioneering member, as was Walter Cronkite, the legendary news anchor who chronicled many of the 20th century’s great scientific achievements. Astronauts John Glen and Neil Armstrong, the first to walked on the moon, were also members.
Other notable members include Sir Edmund Hillary, the first person to summit Mount Everest, Charles Lindbergh, who made the first solo nonstop transatlantic flight, and Thor Heyerdahl, known for the Kon-Tiki expedition across the Pacific. The club’s roster also includes oceanographer Sylvia Earle, and deep-sea explorer Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck of the Titanic. It is also known for embracing the next generation of explorers, such as modern-day space pioneers and conservationists.
The club’s headquarters, located at 46 East 70th Street in Manhattan, is a historic landmark filled with artifacts, maps, and memorabilia from expeditions around the globe. The building serves as a meeting place for members, and it regularly hosts lectures, special events, and its famed annual dinner, which attracts the world's leading explorers and scientists. The Explorers Club Flag, first introduced in 1918, is awarded to expeditions of scientific merit, and has been carried to the highest mountains, the deepest oceans, the North and South Poles, and even to the moon.
Today, the Explorers Club continues to support and sponsor expeditions in fields ranging from archaeology and anthropology to oceanography and space exploration. The club provides grants and fellowships to emerging explorers, while also educating the public about the importance of conservation and exploration. Its motto, "To the Field," captures its enduring commitment to advancing human knowledge through exploration and scientific discovery.
With its distinguished history and its continued role in shaping the future of exploration, the Explorers Club remains one of the most influential organizations in the world for those seeking to uncover the unknown.
The Explorers Club continues to attract an elite group of modern-day pioneers, entrepreneurs, and scientists who push the boundaries of exploration and discovery. Among its current distinguished members are some of the most influential figures in various fields. Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and Blue Origin, and Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, represent the new frontier of space exploration. Buzz Aldrin, the second person to walk on the moon, remains an active symbol of human space exploration. Jane Goodall, the renowned primatologist and conservationist, champions the cause of wildlife and environmental preservation through her membership. Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Galactic, embodies the spirit of adventure and innovation in both space tourism and exploration. Ray Dalio, the billionaire investor and philanthropist, and D.E. Shaw, the influential hedge fund manager, are both dedicated to supporting global scientific initiatives.
The Explorers Club also includes royalty among its ranks. Prince Albert II of Monaco, a passionate advocate for environmental protection, and the King of Bhutan, known for his environmental and conservation efforts, are both members. Prince Guillaume of Luxembourg, who was recently made an honorary member of the club, is a supporter of exploration and scientific research, further cementing the club's global influence. The late Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, a noted aviator and conservationist, was a long-time member.
For further information, please see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Explorers_Club
About the Explorers Club Washington Group
The Explorers Club Washington Group (ECWG) is the largest local chapter of The Explorers Club, founded in New York City in 1904 as a multi-disciplinary not-for-profit professional society dedicated to the advancement of field research, scientific exploration and the ideal that it is vital to preserve the instinct to explore. One must be a member of The Explorers Club to belong to ECWG.
The Explorers Club’s mission is the encouragement of scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space. Our members hail from all corners of the globe and are among the most accomplished in all facets of exploration and the field sciences.
The ECWG encourages explorers of the future with its Exploration and Field Research Grants. These are made each year to graduate students who are enrolled in a college or university in Washington, D.C., Virginia, West Virginia, or Maryland, and who are under the supervision of a qualified scientist or educator. The activity may occur anywhere in the world, but must be for scientific purposes, in accordance with The Explorers Club’s stated objective, “to broaden our knowledge of the universe.”
For further information, please see:
https://www.explorersclubdc.org/about-2/
About Kirk Johnson
Kirk Johnson is the Sant Director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History where he oversees the world’s largest natural history collection. The museum hosts more than 6 million visitors each year. In 2017, its scientists published over 760 scientific research papers and named 300 new species. In 2019, the museum opened its largest renovation, the David H. Koch Hall of Fossils-Deep Time. This exhibition interprets the history of life on Earth and address its relevance to the future of humanity.
Before his arrival at the Smithsonian in 2012, Johnson was a paleontologist at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science who led expeditions in 18 states and 11 countries. His research focuses on fossil plants and the extinction of the dinosaurs. In 2011, he led an ice age excavation near Snowmass Village in Colorado that recovered parts of more than 50 mastodon skeletons. He is known for his scientific articles, popular books, museum exhibitions, documentaries and collaborations with artists.
Johnson’s recent documentaries include the three-part NOVA series Making North America (2015) and The Great Yellowstone Thaw (2017), which aired on PBS channels. He is currently working on a documentary about the ancient climate of the Arctic and Antarctic. His latest book, Cruisin’ the Fossil Coastline, The Travels of an Artist and a Scientist along the Shores of the Prehistoric Pacific explores the deep history of the West Coast from California to Alaska.
Johnson is originally from Bellevue, Washington, has a bachelor’s degree from Amherst College, a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a doctorate in geology and paleobotany from Yale University. He completed postdoctoral research at the University of South Australia, worked as a marine geologist at the U.S. Geological Survey and served as a Crosby lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
For further information, please see:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kirk_Johnson_(scientist)
About the Cosmos Club
The Cosmos Club is a private social club in Washington, D.C., renowned for its distinguished membership of individuals who have made significant contributions to science, literature, public service, and the arts. Founded in 1878 by John Wesley Powell, a geologist, Civil War veteran, and explorer best known for leading the first expedition through the Grand Canyon, the club was established as a haven for those devoted to the advancement of knowledge and discovery. Powell’s passion for exploration and intellectual pursuits set the tone for the club’s mission.
The Cosmos Club is sited in the historic Townsend House—a grand Beaux-Arts mansion on Embassy Row, which exudes refinement with its elegant woodwork, marble accents, and opulent chandeliers.
Cosmos Club members include 3 US presidents, 2 vice presidents, 4 US Supreme Court justices, artists, writers, businessmen, government officials, journalists, scientists, and university presidents, 36 Nobel Prize winners, 61 Pulitzer Prize winners, and 55 Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients.
With a strong dedication to tradition and excellence, the Cosmos Club remains a vibrant community dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge and culture.
For further information, please see:
Kirk Johnson among giant sloths at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History. A renowned paleobotanist whose work bolsters the theory that an asteroid destroyed the dinosaurs, he now directs this most visited natural history museum in the world. (Photo by Brooks Kraft.)
Johnson, left, and a volunteer admire a mastodon mandible unearthed at the massive ice age excavation in Colorado. (Photo by Rick Wicker, from the book "Digging Snowmastadon.")
