This past August, Sam Grundwerg assumed the post of Consul General of Israel in Los Angeles, succeeding Consul General David Siegel, whose seven year term had come to an end. Mr. Grundwerg is the senior representative of the State of Israel to the Southwestern United States.
Immediately before becoming Consul General, Mr. Grundwerg served as Director General in Israel for the World Jewish Congress (WJC), an international organization representing Jewish communities in over 100 countries to governments, parliaments and other international organizations. As the head of WJC's operations in Israel, Mr. Grundwerg advanced the overall mission of the WJC to strengthen and support Jewish communities around the world, as well as the State of Israel and the Jewish People.
Before joining the World Jewish Congress, Consul General Grundwerg worked as an attorney at a major international law firm in the United States and held positions in the fields of law and finance in the U.S. and Israel. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Miami School of Law and holds an M.B.A. in finance from the University of Miami School of Business, as well as an undergraduate degree from Bar Ilan University.
Consul General Grundwerg is looking forward to building and strengthening the relationships that already exist between Israel and a broad range of communities and groups across the United States, and the Southwestern United States in particular. “As one example,” he explains, “We're doing work in the African-American community in an initiative where we're partnering to establish trauma centers. We worked with leaders in the African-American community and, together, identified that there was a challenge to getting trauma treatment in their community. And we brought Israeli expertise and know-how and established trauma centers in their community. That's the kind of initiative we want to promote in different communities.”
Building relationships with the Hispanic community, Asian community, African-American community, as well as other faith-based communities are all priorities for Consul General Grundwerg. Additionally, he has identified building relationships between Israel and the students, faculty, and administrators at American universities as a priority.