AIAC AT THE RENAISSANCE WEEKEND
For Immediate Release
Charleston, South Carolina – January 1, 2025 L. M. Levie, Chairman of the American Industrial Acquisition (AIAC) and Trustee of the Explorers Club, was among the distinguished attendees of the 2024 Renaissance Weekend, held from December 28, 2024, to January 1, 2025. The event, hosted by founders Ambassador Philip Lader and Rev. Linda Lader, took place at its traditional New Year’s venue at the Charleston Place Hotel, in Charleston, South Carolina.
Founded in 1981, Renaissance Weekend is an invitation-only gathering renowned for fostering substantive, cross-disciplinary dialogue and bridging traditional divides in professions, politics, religion, race, and age. Past participants have included U.S. Presidents, Supreme Court Justices, Nobel laureates, Astronauts, Ambassadors, Generals, University Presidents, Corporate and Foundation CEO’s. These have included Gerald Ford, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Justice Steven Breyer, Justice Harry Blackmun, Justice Neil Gorsuch, Asa Hutchinson, General Wesley Clark, Alan Greenspan, Jeh Johnson, Jamie Dimon, Jon Huntsman, Susan Crown, Reid Hoffman, Leon Panetta, and Alan Patricoff.
The New Year’s event is the largest and most prominent of several Renaissance Weekends held annually. Its 650 participants engage in an array of seminars, discussions, and performances, cultivating an environment of civility, non-partisanship, and public-spirited impact.
Each Renaissance Weekend encourages participants to design their own schedules from a program featuring a wide array of topics and activities, ranging from civic, finance, science and technology, legal, journalism, and art discussions. The event maintains a strict non-disclosure policy to preserve its integrity and independence.
Mr. Levie personally greeted the following attendees:
Hon. Phil Lader, Senior Advisor, Morgan Stanley, Director, Rand Corp., formerly Chair, WPP plc, Ambassador to the UK, White House Deputy Chief of Staff, Deputy Director, Office of Management and Budget
Linda Lader, Minister, Palm Beach Gardens Presbyterian Church, formerly, Minister, New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, Washington, DC
Jason McMetheny, CEO of the Rand Corporation, former White House Policy on Technology and National Security at the National Security Council and the Office of Science and Technology Policy
Nelson Cunningham, Senior Economic Advisor, US State Department, Co-Founder, McClarty Associates, former General Counsel, White House and US Senate Judiciary Committee
Lawrence Schneider, former Partner, Arnold & Porter, former President, Washington Council of Lawyers
Kay Koplowitz, Founder of USA Network and Syfi Channel, Director of Oracle, Nabisco and Time, former Chairman of Liz Clairborne
Thurgood Marshall Jr., Former Chairman, US Postal Service, Trustee, Ford Foundation
Paul Ackerman, Senior Advisor, McKinsey, former Vice Chairman, Wells Fargo
Scott Turrow, 15 times New York Times Bestselling Author, former US Attorney, Partner, Dentons
Hon. Janet Mills, Governor of Maine and former Attorney General
Hon. Kate Gallego, Mayor of Phoenix, former City Council Member
Hon. Mark C. Sanford, former Congressman and South Carolina Governor
Hon. Harris Hartz, Judge, US Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit, former Chief Judge, New Mexico Court of Appeals
Richard Viguerie, former Publisher, Conservative Digest and political marketing pioneer
Scott Simon, Anchor, NPR Weekend Edition, Chicago Bureau Chief, NPR, Peabody and Emmy Award Winner
Dan Kaniewski, Managing Director, Marsh McClennan, Deputy Director, FEMA, Special Assistant to President G. W. Bush
Bill Marovitz, Chairman Marovitz Group, real estate developer, former Illinois State Senator
David Lax, Professor, Harvard Business School, Distinguished Fellow, Harvard Negotiation Project of Harvard Law School, Managing Principal, Lax Sebenius, co-author of 3D Negotiation and The Manager as Negotiator
Ken Bartels, Global Head, Citicorp Realty, Trustee, Wellesley College and Choate School
Loraine Hariton, CEO, Catalyst Inc., former Commercial Development Specialist, US State Department
Jan Koors, Managing Director, Pearl Meyer
Gillian Sorenson, former Assistant Secretary General, United Nations, Trustee, International Rescue Committee, Director, Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Adam Aron, CEO, AMC Entertainment, former CEO of Starwood Hotels, Vail, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Philadelphia 76’ers.
Adam Met, 7 times Platinum Indie Pop Musician
David Hogg, Founder, Leaders We Deserve, survivor, Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
Hon. Joy Cunningham, Illinois Supreme Court Justice, President, Illinois Bar Association
Deborah Brewster, former SVP Strategy, News Corp, former Deputy Managing Director, The Wall Street Journal
Charlie Bolden, former Administrator of NASA and Astronaut and Space Shuttle Pilot
Vanessa Broadhurst, Director, Johnson & Johnson, Chair of Global Strategy for Innovative Medicine for J&J
Kevin Chavers, Managing Director of Blackrock, former President, GNMA
AIAC Chairman L. M. Levie participated as a panelist in two Renaissance Weekend seminars, during which he described recent case studies in corporate and nonprofit organization turnaround situations. He hosted luncheon and dinner discussion groups and was a member of the Renaissance Family Singers, which performed at the New Year’s Eve Gala.
“I was privileged to join once again this extraordinary group of thinkers, leaders, and innovators, whom I am delighted to call my friends,” Mr. Levie said. “Renaissance Weekend offers a unique, bi-partisan, multi-discipline platform for exchanging ideas and exploring solutions to the most pressing challenges of our time.”
During the program, it was announced that President Jimmy Carter had died, following a long illness. Ambassador Lader and others offered their solemn personal reminiscences and observations.
Mr. Levie noted, “The passing of President Jimmy Carter struck many at the Renaissance Weekend as the end of an extraordinary chapter in American history. A man of deep faith, humility, and unwavering dedication to service, he leaves behind a legacy that transcends partisan politics.”
For more information, please see:
https://www.renaissanceweekend.org/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance_Weekend
About the Renaissance Weekend
Renaissance Weekend is an invitation-only retreat that brings together a diverse group of influential and innovative minds from various fields, including business, science, academia, government, media, the arts, and philanthropy. Established in 1981 by Linda and Philip Lader, the event aims to foster thoughtful dialogue, interdisciplinary collaboration, and intellectual renewal.
Held several times a year, often in scenic or tranquil locations, Renaissance Weekend provides a unique setting for participants to engage in nonpartisan discussions and explore a broad spectrum of topics. These range from global policy and scientific breakthroughs to ethics, the arts, and personal development.
The event features a series of roundtable discussions, seminars, workshops, and informal conversations, encouraging active participation and the free exchange of ideas. Sessions are off the record to promote candid dialogue and mutual respect among participants.
Renaissance Weekend is celebrated for its emphasis on building relationships across disciplines and ideologies, fostering a spirit of curiosity, lifelong learning, and mutual respect. It attracts attendees from all walks of life, from political leaders to Nobel laureates and Pulitzer Prize winners to rising stars and accomplished athletes, artists, and professionals, all united by a shared commitment to exploring new ideas and perspectives.
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 and serve as critical suppliers for major airports, schools, hospitals, performing art and sports centers, offices and hotels 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
Media Contact:
Isabel Carro-Toro, Vice President
American Industrial Acquisition Corporation
+34 689 295 827 (Spain)
+ 1 787 244 3175 (USA)
icarro-toro@aiac.com
