Mark Jaffe

Mark Jaffe was born and raised in Westchester County. He attended college at SUNY Albany, business school at the University of Utah and later graduated from Cardozo Law School in NYC.

After business school, Mark started a fundraising and consulting company for nonprofits throughout the United States. Mark’s understanding of economic development, local governments and entrepreneurship led to close working relationships with the U.S. Small Business Administration, the NYS Empire Development Corporation and the NYC Dept of Business Services. In 1994 Mark was selected to serve on the Mayor’s Small Business Advisory Board for the City of NY where he helped spearhead the rebuilding of downtown Brooklyn. Later that year Mark became the executive director of the Greater Chamber of Commerce and subsequently served as Legal Counsel for the Business & Labor Coalition of NY.

In 2002 Mark was appointed to be the treasurer of the Manhattan Boro Development Corporation (where he was put in charge of monitoring the success of post 9/11 recovery efforts) and was also promoted to be the President and CEO of the Greater NY Chamber. As the CEO of the Chamber, Mark has built a strong coalition of over 30,000 business and civic leaders throughout the Metro NY Area. In 2021, Mark was selected as one of the top economic and development leaders in NY by City and State Magazine.

Mark is actively politically and serves as the treasurer of the NY Chamber PAC. He is an elected district leader in Westchester County and recently qualified to run for the House of Representatives in NY’s 16th Congressional sixteenth district. The Chamber also runs a Foundation where Mark serves as trustee and a Legal Center where Mark serves as lead counsel.

Edward Mermelstein

Edward Mermelstein is New York City’s Commissioner for International Affairs. As head of the Mayor’s Office for International Affairs, he leads the office’s mission to serve as the primary liaison between the City of New York and the diplomatic community, consular corp., and the United Nations.

Prior to joining the Adams Administration, Edward was the CEO and founder of One & Only Holdings and One & Only Realty, where he specialized in international corporate and real estate law, private equity investment and joint ventures, as well as real estate investment. Edward’s experience in navigating international markets led him to be named one of New York City’s 10 most influential figures in real estate. He aims to bring the same tenacity to the Commission for International Affairs, and to help Mayor Adams reestablish New York City as the capital of the world. 

In addition to a remarkable career in the private-sector, Edward has also been an integral member of the philanthropic community.

In 2016, Edward joined the Board of Overseers of NYU, where he established the Mermelstein Family Scholarship. He is also a Board Member of JDC, a leading global Jewish humanitarian organization, which works in 70 countries to lift lives and strengthen communities.

He also served as the USA Director of the Link of Times Foundation, where one of the projects he helped facilitate was organizing the return of the Danilov Bells to the Russian Orthodox Church in 2008 from Harvard University.

Edward sits as Chairman Emeritus of COJECO (Council of Jewish Émigré Community Organizations), where he gave guidance to help facilitate the integration of Russian-speaking Jews into the greater American Jewish community while preserving their cultural heritage.

From 2018 until 2021 he served as President of Zaka International Rescue and Recovery, a UN-recognized humanitarian volunteer organization that provides a rapid response to mass casualty disasters across the world. To date, ZAKA has saved thousands of lives—and honored those who couldn’t be saved with dignity in death.

Fluent in English and Russian, Edward emigrated to the U.S. in 1976 as a refugee from Ukraine. He holds a BA from NYU and a JD from Western Michigan Law School. Edward lives in NYC with his wife, Rose, a Broadway producer, and six-time Tony award winner, and his two sons.

Mohammed Mohammed

Mohammed Ibrahim Mohammed is a Senior Manager of Corporate Sales at DMCC, the world’s leading Free Zone and Government of Dubai Authority on commodities trade and enterprise.

Joining DMCC in 2014, Mohammed is responsible for promoting the benefits of doing business in Dubai and establishing a presence in DMCC. Building strategic relationships is a key focus for Mohammed, and so too is engaging with local and international business communities at key industry events throughout the year.

With over 16 years of business development and corporate sales experience, Mohammed has worked alongside a number of senior figures in both the public and private sectors of the United Arab Emirates. Mohammed earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from the American University in Emirates.