World Trade Center Institute

The World Trade Center Institute (WTCI) operates as a private, non-profit, and non-political membership organization located in the Baltimore World Trade Center

Baltimore World Trade Center

Located on the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, Maryland, the Baltimore World Trade Center is the world's tallest regular pentagonal building . It was designed by the architectural firm Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, with the principal architects being Henry N...

 building on the Inner Harbor

Inner Harbor

The Inner Harbor is a historic seaport, tourist attraction, and iconic landmark of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Described by the Urban Land Institute in 2009 as “the model for post-industrial waterfront redevelopment around the World.” The Inner Harbor is actually the end of the...

 of Baltimore

Baltimore

Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...

, Maryland

Maryland

Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...

. Financed in cooperation with area businesses and the State of Maryland, WTCI’s mission is to drive the growth of Maryland’s global business community. WTCI is one of the 320 members of the World Trade Center Association (WTCA), which operates WTCs in 96 countries around the world.

Maryland Governor William Donald Schaefer

William Donald Schaefer

William Donald Schaefer was an American politician who served in public office for 50 years at both the state and local level in Maryland. A Democrat, he was mayor of Baltimore from 1971 to 1987, the 58th Governor of Maryland from January 21, 1987 to January 18, 1995, and the Comptroller of...

 founded WTCI in 1989 along with Chairman of RTKL Associates, Harold Adams and a Board of Directors. After partnering with the Maryland Port Administration in 1991, WTCI was granted the World Trade Center Association license, making it the official proprietor of the World Trade Center Baltimore and a subsidiary of the World Trade Center Association.

WTCI was recognized in 2010 by the Baltimore Business Journal as the Largest Association in the Baltimore area and in 2009 as the Largest Business Networking Organization.

In March 2011, WTCI was selected by the World Bank

World Bank

The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...

to act as the Mid-Atlantic region’s Private Sector Liaison Officer (PSLO). The PSLO enables the region’s business community to use the World Bank program as a way to engage the private sector in international development programs. WTCI joined three other organizations in the United States with the World Bank accreditation, including the Chicago Global Mid-West Alliance, the Greater Houston Partnership and the Trade Development Alliance of Greater Seattle.