IPCC Special Diplomatic Event

International Press Club of Chicago Special Diplomatic Event

in Partnership with WorldChicago and International Women Associates

SCHEDULE:

11:30 a.m. Gathering, Networking & Light Buffet Lunch (3rd Floor)

12:15 p.m. Program and Q&A

1:30 p.m. Italian American Veterans Museum Tour

*Students are Free. General Admission is $25 which includes museum donation and light buffet lunch.

If you prefer to pay with a Credit or Debit card, please choose that option at the Paypal checkout page. Thank you!

PROGRAM:

Please join us to have a conversation with Consul General Botzios at the Italian American Veterans Museum located in Stone Park Illinois where he will deliver an informative presentation delving into the history behind the diverse Italian community here in Chicago. He will highlight the many Italian American businesses, which perhaps go unnoticed yet surround us and manage to touch all our daily lives. We will hear many contributions, social and educational alike, that Italian immigrants have made to Chicago and our nation as a whole!

You will also learn about Italy in 2023 and how it is collectively weathering the storm of current European-wide sanctions imposed by the EU on Russia and their direct effects on trade, daily costs, energy availability, tourism, and the cultural backbone of this economically diverse country. Further we will hear what we, as travelers, may need to know while planning a trip this year.

Following the program, we will have the chance to tour the Italian American Veterans Museum honoring the legacy and stories of bravery that date back to the birth of our nation. The museum contains a library, an archive of memorabilia, and an exhibit of military artifacts and wartime memorabilia.

ABOUT OUR DIPLOMATIC GUEST SPEAKER:

Hon. Thomas Botzios, Consul General of Italy in Chicago Thomas Botzios was born in Rome where he graduated in law in 1995 at “La Sapienza” University.  After working as a freelancer and in the private sector he entered the diplomatic career at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on December 17, 2001.

His first assignment was at the DG for Human Resources. He served abroad as Head of the Economic and Commercial Office in Belgrade (2005 – 2009), and as Chief of Staff to the Ambassador at the Embassy of Italy in Washington D.C. (2009-2013).

In 2013 he returned to the headquarters of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome to work at the DG for Political Affairs and Security at the International cooperation against global threats office.

From 2014 to 2020 he worked as deputy Head of The Crisis Unit at the Secretariat General of the Ministry of Foreign Office. On October 13, 2020 he took office as Consul General in Chicago, Illinois, whose jurisdiction includes Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Thomas Botzios is married and is fluent in Italian, English, Spanish and Greek.