US embassy cable - 05PARIS3199

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 PARIS 003199 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR ECA/PE/V/R/E (CAROL GRABAUSKAS; STEVE TAYLOR); 
EUR/PPD (LILLIAN DEVALCOURT) 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OEXC, SCUL, FR 
SUBJECT: FY 2006 IVLP- NOMINATION AND PART I BIODATA FOR MR. 
NICOLAS RECH - ALTERNATE CANDIDATE FOR INDIVIDUAL PROGRAM. 
 
REF: 
 
START FIXED-FORMAT TEXT (PLEASE DO NOT EDIT): 
: The following data is in a fixed format which enables 
: automated processing in Washington and should not be 
: edited except by means of the Post-EVDB software. 
EXPORT-SOURCE: POST-EVDB 
VERSION: 3.0.7 
POST-EMAIL: PaillardS@state.gov 
TRANSMITTING-POST: PAS Paris 
TRANSMITTING-POST-ID: 14544 
EXPORT-TYPE: BIO DATA 
START NOMINATION: 
ECA-OFFICE: E/VGE 
PROG-AGENCY-NAME: 
POST-PROJ-ID: 291 
ECA-PROJ-NO: 
PROJ-NAME: FY 2006 - INDIVIDUAL Program - Nicolas Rech 
(Alternate) 
START MEMO PROJ-DESC: 
 
END MEMO PROJ-DESC: 
PROJ-TYPE: Individual 
PROG-TYPE: IV Grant Visitor 
FY: 2006 
DEPART-POST: 
SESSION-DATE: 
RETURN-POST: 
NO-OF-PART: 1 
RANK-ORDER: 19 
START MEMO POST-OBJ: 
 
END MEMO POST-OBJ: 
START MEMO POST-RCMD: 
 
END MEMO POST-RCMD: 
ECA-OFFICE-ID: 1047 
PROG-AGENCY-ID: 
PROJ-TYPE-ID: IND 
PROG-TYPE-ID: 29 
NOMINATING-POST-ID: 14544 
FUNDING-CNTRY-ID: 
STATUS: N 
ORIGINATOR: P 
SUBJ-DISC: Agriculture 
START BIO: 
PREFIX: Mr. 
F-NAME: Nicolas 
M-NAME: 
L-NAME: Rech 
SUFFIX: 
POSITION-CODE: 0 
PRINCIPAL?: No 
M-ADDR1: Lagarrigue 
M-ADDR2: 
M-ADDR3: 
M-CITY: Senouillac 
M-STATE: 
M-CNTRY: France 
M-ZONE: 81600 
M-ZIP: 
M-PHONE: + (33) 5.63.41.70.83 
M-FAX: + (33) 5.63.81.59.88 
M-EMAIL: nicolas.rech@wanadoo.fr 
M-CNTRY-ID: FR 
M-ADDRTYPE: H 
GENDER: M 
DOB: 05/22/1976 
MAR-STAT: S 
BIRTH-CITY: Albi 
BIRTH-CNTRY: France 
CITIZ-CNTRY: France 
RES-CNTRY: France 
START MEMO POSITION: 
Wine grower and manager of winery, since 1997 
END MEMO POSITION: 
START MEMO OTHER-POSITIONS: 
- President of the Young Farmers' Union of Midi-Pyrenees 
(Jeunes Agriculteurs), since June 2004 
- President of the Young Farmers' Union of Tarn Department, 
since February 2003 
- Administrator, Wine cooperative, Labastide de Levis, Tarn, 
since 2002 
- Municipal Councilor, Senouillac, since 2001 
- Treasurer, SICAREX (R&D agricultural firm), since 2001 
END MEMO OTHER-POSITIONS: 
START MEMO PREV-POSITIONS: 
 
END MEMO PREV-POSITIONS: 
START MEMO US-TRAVEL: 
None 
END MEMO US-TRAVEL: 
START MEMO OTHER-TRAVEL: 
- Canada, July 1996 - participant in a Rotary Club cultural 
visit and exchange 
- Spain, March 1995 - school trip to visit Spanish wineries 
END MEMO OTHER-TRAVEL: 
START MEMO EDUCATION: 
- 1994-1996 - Associate Degree, major in wine growing- 
oenology, High School for General and Vocational Training in 
Agriculture, Bordeaux-Blanquefort 
END MEMO EDUCATION: 
START MEMO MEMBERSHIPS: 
 
END MEMO MEMBERSHIPS: 
START MEMO PUBLICATIONS: 
- Member, Board of Directors, Center of Rural Economy, Tarn 
department 
- Member, Board of Directors, Chamber of Agriculture of the 
Tarn department 
- Member, Board of Directors, Departmental Federation of 
Farmers' Unions (FDSEA), Tarn department 
- Member, Board of Directors, Regional Federation of Farmers' 
Unions (FRSEA), Midi-Pyrenees 
- Member, Board of Directors, Departmental Committee on 
Agricultural Orientation, Tarn department 
- Member, Board of Directors, Departmental Association for the 
Development of Farm Facilities (ADASEA), Tarn department 
END MEMO PUBLICATIONS: 
START MEMO SPEC-CONSID: 
 
END MEMO SPEC-CONSID: 
FIRST-LANG: French 
ENGL-READ: 2 
ENGL-SPEAK: 2 
ENGL-COMP: 2 
START OTHER-LANGS: 
OTHER-LANG: Spanish 
OTHER-LANG-ID: QB 
READ: 2 
SPEAK: 2 
COMP: 3 
END OTHER-LANGS: 
START MEMO NOM-POST-OBJ: 
As the Mission aims to reach out to the successor generation, 
Mr. Rech's reach among young farmers (i.e. less than 35 years 
old) would enable us to directly address this hard-to-reach 
audience. Developing productive contacts in the agricultural 
sector, which is the second industry after aeronautics in Midi- 
Pyrenees, is essential for APP Toulouse. Agriculture employs 
10% of the Midi- Pyrenees workforce --double the national 
average. It is therefore a sector whose leaders have a major 
influence on a large portion of the local population. Yet, 
most young farmers have never traveled to the United States, 
much less met with their American counterparts. Therefore, an 
IV trip will give Mr. Rech the rare opportunity to interact 
with American farmers, lobbyists, and policy makers. Helping 
Mr. Rech gain a clear perception of American agricultural 
issues and solutions will shape his decisions as President of 
Young Farmers. 
Promoting a better understanding of U.S. agriculture among 
young farmers such as Mr. Rech will also help influence the 
way the French agricultural sector approaches agricultural 
trade negotiations at the international level (WTO). 
END MEMO NOM-POST-OBJ: 
START MEMO NOM-POST-RCMD: 
Mr. Rech has never been to the U.S. and is unfamiliar with 
most of its agricultural issues. It would therefore be 
essential for him to gain a broad knowledge of USG 
agricultural policy before meeting with lobbyists, union 
leaders, farmers/winegrowers, Congressional staffers, and 
local Chamber of Agriculture-equivalent representatives. Mr. 
Rech is interested in learning about American agriculture's 
financing (especially with regard to financial aid to newly- 
established farmers), rural development policies in the U.S., 
and the organization of agribusiness networks. Helping him 
develop contacts with his counterparts among young unionists 
and with American farmers in order to confront the issues they 
face and the solutions Americans have adopted is also crucial. 
Mr. Rech has also started a farmers' committee in the Tarn 
department tasked with analyzing biofuel production 
opportunities for farmers. Presentations on U.S. energy policy 
as it pertains to biofuel and renewable energy would also be 
of use to Mr. Rech in his endeavors, as would meetings with 
biofuel producers. 
END MEMO NOM-POST-RCMD: 
START MEMO VIS-OBJ: 
 
END MEMO VIS-OBJ: 
START MEMO VIS-REC: 
 
END MEMO VIS-REC: 
NOMINATING-OFFICER: Helene Mason 
START MEMO NOMINATING-JUSTIFICATION: 
At age 28, Nicolas Rech has already reached a high level of 
responsibility within his professional union and is a key 
player in the Midi-Pyrenees young farmers' community. The 
successful running of his winery enables him to dedicate much 
of his time to the advancement of agricultural issues 
important to young farmers. 
A highly-motivated and energetic individual, he has been 
actively involved in departmental and regional groups of the 
national Young Farmers union since 2001. As departmental 
administrator for the union in 2002, he handled farm 
establishment, which is one of the major issues facing young 
farmers. In that capacity, he promoted rural development and 
interacted with local political leaders. His dynamism was well 
recognized among his peers, and he rapidly progressed within 
the union's hierarchy to become the elected Departmental and 
Regional President of Young Farmers. He currently holds these 
two positions simultaneously and is actively working to 
energize his union members at the county and departmental 
levels in order to build up support for and voluntary 
participation in Young Farmers' regional endeavors. To that 
end, he has chosen to focus union priorities on the 
harmonization of farm establishment procedures at the regional 
level and on polling young professionals to assist them with 
their projects. 
As Regional President of Young Farmers, he represents the 
union's Midi-Pyrenees 2,000 members at the national level 
through the Council of Regional Presidents and also through 
promotional events and demonstrations. He therefore has a 
significant domestic impact on the issues that are of 
relevance to young farmers and on the ways the union should 
push its agenda. 
As a professional wine grower, Mr. Rech is also very active in 
his community through the wine cooperative (300 wine growers) 
of which he is an administrator. He has innovative ideas as to 
how cooperatives in his area should be run and merged, and 
vocally supports favoring efficiency over individual interests 
and susceptibilities. 
His involvement with Young Farmers -and undoubtedly later with 
other farmers' unions- is a long-term choice. He intends to 
continue to seek responsibilities at the national and local 
levels, depending on time constraints. He feels that a 
national role in Young Farmers in the short-term would be 
tremendously interesting, as it would enable him to work with 
Ministries, the European Union, and financial institutions. 
However, within the next five years, he intends to run for a 
departmental Chamber of Agriculture position and to become 
more actively involved in the local wine production 
organization (i.e. the running of local cooperatives). 
Already engaged in his village's political life as municipal 
councilor, Mr. Rech will very likely continue in politics in 
the future in order to have a direct impact on budgets and 
laws affecting his profession. He is considering running for 
office within the next ten years, either at the national level 
as a Member of the National Assembly to propose laws or at the 
regional level as a Member of the Regional Council to shape 
local development by voting on financial attributions. 
A likely future key actor in rural development in Midi- 
Pyrenees, Mr. Rech would be a very valuable contact for the 
USG. Participating in the IV program at this stage would 
undoubtedly be a decisive experience for him. Not only would 
it broaden his understanding of American agricultural policy 
in a context of Franco-American disagreements on agricultural 
exchanges and policies, but it would be an opportunity to have 
a significant impact on the way he tackles agricultural 
issues. 
 
END MEMO NOMINATING-JUSTIFICATION: 
NOM-OFF: APP Toulouse, France 
SPEAKER?: No 
NOTIFY-EMB: No 
MEDIA?: No 
HOME-STAY: No 
HOME-HOSP?: No 
E-I-TYPE: INTERPRETER 
NOMINEE-ID: 578 
PERSON-ID: 477 
BIRTH-CNTRY-ID: FR 
CITIZ-CNTRY-ID: FR 
RES-CNTRY-ID: FR 
FIRST-LANG-ID: FR 
E-I-TYPE-ID: I 
NOM-POST-ID: 14544 
NOM-FUNDING-CNTRY-ID: 0 
NOM-STATUS: N 
DS2019-ACTION: 1 
DS2019-SUBJECT: 
SPONS-FUNDS: 0 
SPONS-AGENCY1: 
USGOVT-AGENCY1: 
US-AGENCY-AMT1: 0 
USGOVT-AGENCY2: 
US-AGENCY-AMT2: 0 
INTL-ORG1: 
INTL-ORG-AMOUNT1: 0 
INTL-ORG2: 
INTL-ORG-AMOUNT2: 0 
VIS-GOVT-AMT: 0 
COMMISSION: 0 
OTHER-AMOUNT: 0 
VIS-AMOUNT: 0 
VIS-CAT: 
END BIO: 
END NOMINATION: 
END FIXED-FORMAT TEXT: 
 
  WOLFF