As a prelude to the official presentation of Los Angeles as the guest city for the next Guadalajara International Book Fair and to plan activities related to culture and the promotion of reading that will take place at the FIL 2009, a delegation from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the largest government-sponsored cultural agency in the United States, met with officials from the UDGLA in December 2008.

During this meeting, organized by Gustavo Padilla and Paola Cabrera of the University of Guadalajara at Los Angeles, (UDGLA), the American delegation learned about the different types of activities that the guest city could organize or participate in at the International Book Fair. The delegation visited museums, theaters and cultural centers with the idea that it would help them draw up a preliminary agenda.

This delegation was led by Dana Gioia, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. Other NEA officials in attendance included Pennie Ojeda, director of international activities,  Mario García Durham, director of Programming and Presentations, David Kipen, director of The Big Read, as well as Jon Peede, director of Literature. Also participating was Ben Donenberg, the founder and producing artistic director of Shakespeare Festival/LA.