Enlarge image At signing ceremony, from left, Sven Hackmann, Siemens Corp., Timon Meyer, Cleantech Business Park Berlin, LA Councilmember Tom LaBonge, Berlin Councilmember Christian Graeff, German Deputy Consul General Marc Eichhorn, Ginger Damon, Atwater Village Neighborhood Council, and Greg Moore, Senior Trade Manager, Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. (© courtesy Councilmember Tom LaBonge) Extending the longstanding sister-to-sister relationship between Los Angeles and Berlin to include business-to-business, Berlin District Councilmember Christian Graeff and Los Angeles Councilmember Tom LaBonge signed a Certificate of Friendship on Monday, January 23 at Los Angeles City Hall, agreeing to share information and best-practices on clean-tech industry and environmental issues.

Both Berlin and Los Angeles faced the same problems of revitalizing former industrial areas in the heart of their cites into places of clean-tech industries to foster economic development and growth. In the Berlin, it was the successful establishment of the Clean Tech Business Park in the northeastern district of Marzahn-Hellersdorf, and in the Los Angeles North Atwater area, the Park Expansion and Creek Restoration Project, undertaken to protect, restore, and revitalize the Los Angeles River Watershed, is will be completed Spring 2012. When the much-anticipated 3-acre park opens, it will reconnect the surrounding Los Angeles urban communities to the waterway and the green spaces surrounding it as well as provide economic, environmental and social benefits.

Enlarge image The Los Angeles River Watershed. (© Volker Corell) The Friendship Agreement that both Councilmembers signed, stated that Berlin Marzahn-Hellersdorf and Los Angeles North Atwater are symbolic of their respective areas - sprawling, historical, commercial and industrial in nature - and are both committed to developing and expanding commerce, trade and investments opportunities. Furthermore, they look forward to working together on issues of mutual interest to benefit both cities.

Enlarge image The Marzahn Hellersdorf district of Berlin. (© picture-alliance / ZB) Christian Graeff, who is also the Co-Founder of the Clean Tech Business Park, was in Los Angeles to attend the Verdexchange 2012 Cleantech Conference that took place from January 22-24. In it’s fifth year, the conference drew more than 500 industry leaders from various sectors of the green economy, along with government officials from the local, regional, and international levels, including Germany, Korea, China, Japan, Canada and Australia.

During his visit, Christian Graeff also traveled to the City of Long Beach, where he met with City officials to sign an agreement to promote public transportation.