Every year in June, business leaders and investors from all over the world gather at the SelectUSA Investment Summit organized by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration to explore investment opportunites in the United States and to connect with the economic development community and government officials at the federal, state and local levels. This year’s summit was held virtually from June 7-11, 2021 in Washington, D.C.

As in previous years, a large economic delegation from Austria attended the SelectUSA Investment Summt. The Austrian delegation — the third largest from all participating countries — included well-known entrepreneurs with existing investments and established production facilities in the U.S., such as voestalpine, Red Bull, Rauch, Egger, Borealis, Kapsch, Semperit, as well as start-ups (Longevity Labs, bugbattle, newsadoo, meetfox, e-squirrel).

On June 15, 2021, Martin Weiss was officially installed as the Austrian Ambassador to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. During a formal ceremony at Government House in Nassau, he presented his letter of credence to Governor-General H.E. Sir Cornelius A. Smith.

On May 25, 2021, Consul General Andreas Launer presented the prestigious Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art First Class to Prof. Friedrich Prinz, Leonardo Professor for Material Science and Engineering and Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford.

From May 24 to 26, 2021, Ambassador Martin Weiss travelled to the West Coast for his first ambassadorial visit to California. The Ambassador was officially welcomed in the Golden State by California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis and San Francisco Mayor London N. Breed.

On June 2, 2021, fifth graders from our Embassy Adoption partner class at Hyde-Addison Elementary School, a public school in northwest Washington, DC, wrapped up this very different school year with a virtual capstone presentation on Austria.

German historian Michael Brenner has received the very first Salo W. and Jeannette M. Baron Award for Scholarly Excellence in Research on the Jewish Experience, established in 2020 by the University of Vienna and the Knapp Family Foundation. The University of Vienna states that this prestigious award “may well be described as a Nobel Prize in the study of the Jewish experience.

The Austrian Ministry of Defense has tasked the American company Ace Aeronautics, LLC with the avionic upgrade of two of our transport helicopters S70 Black Hawk. After modernizing the first helicopter in 2020, the second batch of two helicopters was shipped from the Belgian port of Zeebrugge to Savannah, Georgia

On April 27, 2021, between 12 a.m. and 1 a.m. Vienna time, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg took part in the second virtual live discussion with Austrian expatriates ­– this time from across the Atlantic. Austrians living in the U.S. were invited to participate, and more than 600 accepted the invitation.

On April 28, 2021, a recovery team of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) of the U.S. Department of Defense found the remains of an U.S. Army Air Forces pilot shot down near Wiener Neustadt, Austria, during World War II. Although his identity has not yet been confirmed by DNA analysis, it presumed that the remains found belong to Lt. Henry Donald Mitchell of Fort Smith, Arkansas. He has been missing in action since July 8, 1944, when his aircraft, a Lockheed P-38 Lightning, was shot during a mission over Lower Austria.

On April 23, 2021, Federal Minister for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology Leonore Gewessler participated in a Ministerial Roundtable with counterparts from 21 nations hosted by U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry alongside the virtual Leaders’ Climate Summit convened by the United States.

On April 20, 2021, Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg spoke with his U.S. counterpart Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken. It was the first extended exchange of views between the two foreign ministers, who already met earlier this year when Secretary Blinken virtually attended a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council of the European Union.

Austria’s probably most famous journalist Hugo Portisch died on April 1, 2021, at the age of 94. According to a report by the Austrian Broadcasting Company (ORF) on his death, “Portisch became known to the general public in the 1960s as the chief political commentator of the ORF. Like no other, he mastered the art of explaining complicated issues in simple terms and conveying knowledge with a high level of competence, but without a raised index finger.”

On behalf of Austria’s annual electronic art festival Ars Electronica Consul General Andreas Launer presented the prestigious Golden Nica Awards to Los Angeles-based artists Lauren Lee McCarthy and Miwa Matreyek on March 22, 2021, in the garden of the Austrian Residence.

On March 17, 2021, the Jamaica National Football Team, nicknamed the "Reggae Boyz", stopped by the Austrian Embassy in Washington, DC, to complete the necessary visa formalities ahead of their overseas travel to Austria next week. The Reggae Boyz will face the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team for an international friendly soccer match on March 25, 2021, at the Wiener Neustadt Arena in Lower Austria. Ambassador Martin Weiss and Consul General Sigrid Kodym-Herzberg welcomed the soccer delegation from Jamaica in the Embassy’s atrium and wished them all the best for next week’s match.

On March 11, 2021, representatives of the Austrian Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs, the Austrian Federal Economic Chamber and the U.S. Department of Labor met for a first virtual exchange on the most important and timely topic of apprenticeships and “Dual Vocational Edcuation and Training” (Dual VET). The expert meeting provided the opportunity for an in depth exchange on Austrian and U.S. apprenticeship policy, to present best practices and to learn from each other.

When: Thursday, March 18, 2021, 10:00 am - 11:00 am EST
Where: Online

On the occasion of International Women’s Day on March 8, the Austrian Foreign Ministry launched the social media campagin #womentothetop. Embracing this year’s #IWD motto “Women in Leadership”, more than 100 portraits of successful Austrian women from all around the world will be featured on the Foreign Ministry’s social media channels throughout the month of March.

On the initiative of the Office of the Defense Attaché, Ambassador Martin Weiss received members of the Society of the 3rd Infantry Division on February 24, 2021, at the Austrian Embassy in Washington, DC. On this occasion, the Ambassador was presented a replica of a memorial plaque commemorating the peaceful liberation of the city of Salzburg by the 3rd U.S. Infantry Division, U.S. Army, in May 1945.

Austrian Ambassador Martin Weiss spearheads the commitment of the Austrian representations in the United States to actively participate in the recently launched “100 Day Masking Challenge”.

“Here at the Austrian Embassy, we fully support the 100 Day Masking Challenge proclaimed by President Joe Biden. We all get tired of wearing our masks but science tells us they really make a difference — they truly do!” the Austrian Ambassador emphasized in a statement.

On January 25, 2021, Ambassador Martin Weiss congratulated Noah and his brother Jordan on becoming new citizens of Austria in memory of their late grandfather, the Vienna-born quantum physicist Dr. Fritz Rohrlich.