ST. PAUL, MN – Gen. Charles F. Wald (Ret.) will be the keynote speaker at the Automotive Fleet & Leasing Association’s (AFLA) 2007 Annual Conference, themed “Turning Change into Opportunity,” Sept. 5-7, at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Ariz. Wald is founder and president of Wald & Associates, Inc., an international management consulting and strategic planning firm. He is also a board member with the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC), National Commission on Energy Policy (NCEP), Securing America Future Energy (SAFE), and a member of the Military Advisory Board for the Center for Naval Analysis (CNA). He is also involved with the Brookings Institute Roundtable on Energy Security; Atlantic Council and Council on Foreign Relations; board of directors, Banks, Inc.; and board of advisors, Triangular Integrated Structures LLC. Wald has been a guest lecturer with the Atlantic Council, Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, Global Business Forum of Canada, U.S./Canada Chamber of Commerce, and the Philanthropy Workshop. Wald has more than 35 years of managing international operations involving strategic organizational planning and budgeting at the highest executive levels. He professionally interacts with various departments of the U.S. government, top foreign government leadership, international non-government organizations, and commercial and private business enterprises linked to national security. He has experience in strategy and policy development, business planning, international policy and business development, congressional liaison, aerospace and defense technology and operations, alternative energy and energy security solutions, and information operations. Wald’s most recent military experience was as deputy commander, U.S. European Command in Stuttgart-Vaihingen, Germany, from December 2002 – May 2006. He has also served as Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations, commander of the 9th Air Force/U.S. Central Command, Vice Director of Strategic Plans and Policy for the Joint Staff, Director of Strategic Planning and Policy, Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans and Programs, and Deputy Chief of Staff for Air and Space Operations at U.S. Air Force Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Wald is a member of the National War College Alumni Association and Cohen Group Leaders Project. For more information on AFLA's 2007 Annual Conference, visit www.aflaonline.org.