NEW ORLEANS — As promised before departing for Paris, France, Mayor Helena Moreno is publicly reporting on the meetings, accomplishments and opportunities generated during her visit, which focused on strengthening international partnerships, improving infrastructure and pursuing new investment and jobs for New Orleans
Throughout the visit, Moreno also kept residents informed in real time through her social media channels, sharing updates on meetings with government officials, business leaders and international organizations.
The trip, which coincided with the historic New Orleans Saints game in Paris, included meetings focused on water management, tourism, transportation, maritime commerce, energy, hospitality and cultural exchange.
Strengthening the New Orleans–Paris Relationship: Mayor Moreno met with Paris Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire to discuss strengthening the relationship between the two cities through collaboration on infrastructure, cultural exchange and economic opportunities.
The mayors discussed shared challenges facing historic cities, including managing aging infrastructure, improving resilience and protecting the cultural identities that make their communities internationally significant.
Mayor Moreno invited Mayor Grégoire to visit New Orleans in 2027 to continue building the relationship and explore opportunities for cooperation between their administrations.
The discussions established a foundation for ongoing collaboration between New Orleans and Paris, particularly in sharing expertise and innovative approaches to infrastructure and cultural development.
Securing New Cultural Partnerships with UNESCO and Francophonie: A major outcome of the visit was securing commitments to pursue event partnerships in New Orleans with UNESCO and the Organisation International of La Francophonie.
Mayor Moreno met with UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany and participated in discussions with Francophonie Secretary-General Louise Mushikiwabo, alongside leadership from New Orleans & Company.
UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, is the United Nations agency dedicated to advancing international cooperation in education, science, culture and heritage preservation. Its global reach creates opportunities for New Orleans to host international programming, strengthen cultural partnerships and showcase its unique heritage.
The Organisation International of La Francophonie (OIF) brings together countries and governments connected by the French language and shared interests in cultural, educational and economic cooperation. New Orleans’ French heritage and living Francophone traditions position the city to pursue cultural exchanges, conferences and international events associated with the organization.
The commitments establish a foundation for continued planning with both organizations and New Orleans & Company to develop future events and partnerships in New Orleans, bringing additional visitors, economic activity and international attention to the city.
Advancing Infrastructure Innovation and Resilience: Infrastructure was another major focus of the mayor’s visit. Mayor Moreno toured Paris’ Austerlitz stormwater storage basin, a major underground facility designed to capture and temporarily store stormwater during heavy rain events. The mayor discussed with Paris water-management officials opportunities for technical collaboration, particularly around predictive modeling, forecasting technology and strategies to better manage intense rainfall.
In a separate meeting with French global environmental services company Veolia, Mayor Moreno received a demonstration of the company’s innovative drinking water operations in the Paris suburbs including disinfecting water with UV and Ozone to eliminate additional bacteria and viruses.
The meetings build on New Orleans’ ongoing investments in stormwater management and resilience, with the goal of identifying technologies and operational improvements that could help reduce flooding and improve services for residents.
Pursuing Global Investment and Job Creation: Mayor Moreno also met with executives across several major international industries to explore opportunities for additional investment, business expansion, tourism growth and job creation in New Orleans.
Among the engagements:
- Maritime and logistics: Met with maritime and shipping executives alongside Port NOLA leadership, to discuss the maritime industry’s continued growth and investment opportunities connected to New Orleans and the region.
- Hospitality and tourism: Met with senior executive with global hospitality company Accor which owns the new Fairmont Hotel in New Orleans, to discuss additional hotel investments and the continued growth of New Orleans as an international destination.
- Aviation: Met with Air France network planning officials to explore the potential for direct air service between Paris and Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, which would strengthen tourism and business connections between Louisiana and Europe.
- Energy: Engaged with Shell global leadership as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen relationships with major employers and pursue additional economic opportunities.
- International partnerships: Discussed potential climate and youth recreation partnerships with a representative connected to the Prince Albert II of Monaco network.
These meetings reflect the Moreno administration’s focus on actively recruiting investment, supporting major employers, expanding international business relationships and positioning New Orleans to compete for new jobs and projects.
Celebrating New Orleans Culture on an International Stage: The mayor also participated in events showcasing New Orleans’ cultural influence, including activities associated with the New Orleans Jazz Museum’s programming in Paris and events surrounding the historic Saints game.
These events provided opportunities to promote New Orleans’ music, hospitality, culinary traditions and tourism industry to international audiences.
The Saints’ international presence also created opportunities to build relationships with government and business leaders that extend well beyond sports.
From Paris, France, to Paris, Kentucky: Pursuing Additional Tourism Opportunities: Following her visit to Paris, France, Mayor Moreno is traveling directly to Paris, Kentucky, for a visit lasting less than 24 hours to join Mrs. Gayle Benson and other Louisiana business leaders in pursuing opportunities to bring additional major events to New Orleans including positioning New Orleans as a potential future host city for the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, should an opportunity become available. One of the world’s premier thoroughbred horse racing events, the Breeders’ Cup rotates among host cities and attracts international competitors, thousands of visitors and significant global attention. Hosting the event represents a major tourism and economic development opportunity for the cities selected.
Mrs. Benson has been leading efforts to bring the Breeders’ Cup to New Orleans; an initiative Mayor Moreno has actively supported for many years. The Kentucky visit is an opportunity to continue advancing those efforts, strengthen relationships within the thoroughbred racing industry and help position New Orleans for consideration in a future host-city rotation.
The visit will also advance additional tourism and economic development opportunities under discussion by Mayor Moreno and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear. Leadership from New Orleans & Company and Kentucky partners are in planning efforts to identify areas of collaboration and opportunities to bring additional tourism activity to New Orleans.
Mayor Personally Funding Travel: Mayor Moreno personally paid for all aspects of her travel, including the visits to Paris, France, and Paris, Kentucky. No City of New Orleans funds were used for the mayor’s travel expenses.
Mayor Moreno: Building Relationships That Deliver Results
“Before leaving New Orleans, I promised that I would report back to the public about what we accomplished on this trip, and that’s exactly what I’m doing. I also made it a priority to share our work in real time on social media so residents could see the meetings, conversations and opportunities we were pursuing on behalf of our city. Transparency for my official travel will continue throughout my term which will include information on how travel was paid for, in this case, due to the City’s significant budget constraints, I chose to cover all the costs personally.
New Orleans is an extraordinary city with a global reputation, and we need to be using that strength to our advantage. From building a stronger relationship with the City of Paris to securing new opportunities with UNESCO and Francophonie, learning about innovative infrastructure solutions and meeting with international business leaders, every part of this trip was focused on how we can make New Orleans stronger and more prosperous.
And now, from Paris, France, to Paris, Kentucky, that work continues. Whether it’s pursuing major international investment, bringing new events to our city or competing for opportunities like the Breeders’ Cup, I want New Orleans at the table. These have been jam-packed days, but tremendously valuable for the future progress and growth of our city. I’ve also stayed in constant contact with my leadership team in New Orleans and City Council President JP Morrell.
Whether it’s the Mayor of Paris, France or the Governor of Kentucky, leaders of international cultural organizations or executives behind some of the world’s biggest sporting events, these relationships are impactful. They open doors to new partnerships, new investments and opportunities that can have a lasting benefit on New Orleans.
We cannot afford to sit back and wait for opportunities to come to us. We have to go after them. That means building relationships, opening doors and making sure the world knows New Orleans is open for business. My focus is on turning those relationships into real projects, better services, more jobs and greater opportunities for the people of New Orleans.”
Attached is a copy of the mayor’s schedule from Paris, France. Click Here