Many of the world’s great cities are known by their bridges. San Francisco has the Golden Gate, New York has The Brooklyn, Sydney – The Harbour, Vancouver - The Lions Gate, and Paris – Pont Neuf. There are many more that have captivated visitors and made an indelible mark on a city’s identity.

It has been seven months since we launched MAPLE. With an exciting new brand, five networking meetings in three cities, 13 organizations represented in our membership, 15 presentations, and hundreds of new friends, MAPLE is establishing itself in the Southern California communities we serve with our own unique voice.

Going international is not typically an initiative that start-ups undertake within the first six months of forming but when your mission is cross-border trade and investment, it figures more prominently on the launch calendar.

Canada is our neighbour to the north. The one who spells neighbour with a "u".

Generally it is a country we don't spend much time thinking about even though (or perhaps because) we share the longest undefended border in the world and have forged the world's largest trade and security partnership. Over $734 billion a year in two-way goods and services trade in fact. That's $1.4 million per minute. Canada is our #1 customer nationally buying more from the U.S. than does any other nation and that includes all 28 nations in the European Union - combined.