Take some time to connect with other leaders across sectors while fueling up for the morning. It’s a chance to build and strengthen the network that will make this Culturefix so impactful.  

Meridian International Center CEO sets the stage for the 2026 Meridian Culturefix.

Speaker:

• David Bohigian | CEO, Meridian International Center

• Shannon Sprenger | Deputy Assistant Secretary for Professional and Cultural Exchanges, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs

When cultural fault lines deepen and diplomatic channels strain, fashion emerges as an intimate ambassador—humanizing leaders through style choices that whisper across borders what speeches cannot shout. Couture becomes conversation; collections carry cultural memory from ancestral homelands to global stages. Runway presentations spark dialogue where formal talks falter, turning aesthetic decisions into acts of cross-cultural fluency and mutual recognition. 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy honoree Reem Acra reveals this subtle artistry. From Lebanese civil war survivor to international couturier, she shares how her designs navigate geopolitical tension—crafting garments that celebrate heritage while fostering empathy between divided worlds. Acra illuminates the delicate ways fashion shapes perceptions, builds unexpected alliances, and reveals shared human stories beneath national rivalries. 

Speakers:

• Reem Acra | Founder and Designer, Reem Acra and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• Amna Nawaz | Co-Anchor, PBS News Hour (Moderator)

Visionaries Tham Kannalikham and Hervé Pierre explore design as a form of diplomacy and cultural influence. Drawing on their careers in interior decoration and fashion, they will discuss how design communicates identity, values, and place. Through their distinct perspectives and experiences, they will reflect on how creative choices shape the meaning and impact of their work. The conversation will examine how creative work shapes soft power and influences the way the United States presents itself to the world. 

Speakers:

• Tham Kannalikham | Founder and Principal, Kannalikham Designs, LLC 

• Hervé Pierre | Creative Director, The Atelier Caito for Hervé Pierre

• Anita McBride | Director, Legacies of America's First Ladies Initiative, American University (Moderator)

Long before treaties are signed or policies enacted, nations often first encounter one another through competition, spectacle, and shared moments of triumph. This conversation examines the enduring power of sports diplomacy as a vehicle for international engagement, cultural exchange, and global connection. From the Olympic movement to athlete-led advocacy, explore how sports transcend borders and political divides, creating rare arenas where excellence, identity, and national narratives converge before a worldwide audience. As athletes increasingly shape conversations far beyond their fields of play, this discussion considers how sport continues to serve as one of the most influential platforms for soft power, mutual understanding, and international cooperation. 

Introduction: 

• Emily Carwell | Vice President of Global Engagement and Government Affairs, U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee 

Speakers:

• Ilia Malinin |Olympic Team USA Gold Medalist and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• Chris Lillis | Olympic Team USA Gold Medalist and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• Breezy Johnson | Olympic Team USA Gold Medalist and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• Travis Smith Parker | Founder & CEO, CenterCircle Sport (Moderator) 

A key request from Culturefix attendees? More networking opportunities. So many new partnerships and ideas have emerged from Meridian connections. Chat with a potential collaborator and imagine the ways you might work together, or head to Cultural Currents for an intimate deep dive.  

True diplomacy often begins where language ends—in the visceral encounter between a viewer and a work of monumental vision. This conversation explores the ability of contemporary art to serve as a primary, unfiltered narrative that bypasses traditional statecraft. In an era of increasing abstraction, the material reality of a masterpiece acts as a grounding force, ensuring that stories of identity, memory, and resistance are not just told, but physically anchored in the global square. Examine how the creative vanguard and leading institutions are reshaping our shared landscape, utilizing the undeniable scale of contemporary work to project a message of pioneering truth and enduring cultural agency. 

Introduction:

• Elizabeth Duggal | 2026 Culturefix Co-Chair 

Speakers:

• Jeff Koons | Contemporary Artist and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• Melissa Chiu | Director, Hirshhorn Museum (Moderator) 

At a time when debates over who owns history are unfolding in courtrooms, parliaments, and public squares around the world, Egypt’s ancient past sits at the center of global attention. The story of pharaohs, pyramids, and hidden tombs is no longer confined to textbooks and museum labels; it is invoked in negotiations over repatriation, in campaigns for cultural justice, and in the race to protect fragile sites from conflict, looting, and climate change. In this moment of heightened scrutiny and fascination, Dr. Zahi Hawass brings to life the journey of Egypt’s most iconic treasures—from the sands of Giza to the vaults and galleries of major institutions—revealing how each artifact carries questions of power, identity, and belonging. Through vivid accounts of discovery, controversy, and cooperation, explore how the guardians of antiquity help nations shape their narratives on the world stage and why the stakes around cultural heritage have never been higher. 

Speakers:

• Dr. Zahi Hawass | Egyptologist and 2026 Meridian Cultural Diplomacy Honoree 

• H.E. Motaz Zahran | Ambassador of Egypt to the United States 

• Deborah Lehr | Vice Chair, Meridian Board of Trustees (Moderator) 

Podium remarks.

Speaker:

• Manisha Kapani | Culturefix Co-Chair and Meridian Trustee, President, The Kapani Family Foundation