New Perspectives on Foreign Policy in the Americas

March 11, 2024

FIU in Washington, D.C., 601 New Jersey Avenue NW, Washington DC

Presented in collaboration with FIU in Washington, D.C.

In a world increasingly pulled apart by geopolitical tensions, what can states, civil society, and the private sector do to enhance inter-American cooperation? How can the foreign policies of states in the Americas converge to address common challenges such as climate change, environmental destruction, migration, organized crime, inequality, poverty, and threats to democracy? What role can diplomacy, described once as the art of letting others have your way, play in this process?

At this conference, members of foreign policy think tanks in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as Washington D.C., will address these questions. Think tanks represented include the Institute of Political and Strategic Studies (IDEPE), Lima, Peru; Institute of International Studies, University of Chile (IEI), Santiago, Chile; Argentine Council for International Relations (CARI), Buenos Aires, Argentina; Brazilian Center for International Relations (CEBRI), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and the Global Foundation for Democracy and Development (FUNGLODE), Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. In addition, U.S.-based think tanks participating include the Brookings Institution, Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, Woodrow Wilson Center, Inter-American Dialogue, and Americas Society/Council of the Americas.

Program

8:30 a.m.: FIU in DC is open to conference participants and the audience (coffee and pastries)

9:00 a.m.: Welcoming remarks by Dr. Shlomi Dinar, Dean of the Green School at FIU

9:15 a.m.:Keynote Speaker: Thomas Shannon, former U.S. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, and Senior International Policy Advisor, Arnold and Porter

10:00 a.m.: Break

10:15 a.m. Panel I: The Changing World Order

How have changes in the world order of the last few decades transformed foreign policies in the Americas?

Moderator
Dr. Anthony W. Pereira, Director, LACC at FIU

Panelists
Martin Redrado, former head of the Central Bank of Argentina and Chief Economist, Fundacion Capital
Michael Shifter, former President and senior fellow, Inter-American Dialogue
Cynthia Arnson, Distinguished Fellow and former Director of the Latin America Program, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Eric Hershberg, Emeritus Professor and former director, Center for Latin American and Latino Studies, American University

11:30 a.m.: Break

11:45 a.m.: Panel II Rising Tensions and Multipolarity

How have rising geopolitical tensions and increasing multipolarity transformed foreign policies in the Americas?

Moderator
Guillermo Areas, Government Relations, BMW

Panelists
Martha Barcena, Former Mexican Ambassador to the US, fellow, Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center (via Zoom)
Richard Feinberg, former White House, State Department and Treasury official and professor at UCSD; professor at School of Global Policy and Strategy, UC San Diego
Hussein Kalout, Advisory Board member, Brazilian Center for International Relations, Rio de Janeiro, and Research Scholar, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University 
Valerie Wirtschafter, fellow in foreign policy, Brookings Institution


1:00 p.m.:
Lunch

2:00 p.m.: Panel III Inter-American Collaboration

In which policy areas have states been able to collaborate to face common challenges, and what more could be done to find constructive convergence in foreign policies?

Moderator
Dr. Gabriela Hoberman, Director of Academic Programs, LACC at FIU

Panelists
Gustavo Martinez, Managing Director, Head of Public and International Affairs, CARI in Argentina
Stan Gacek, Senior Advisor for Global Strategies, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union             
Jennifer Garcia, Global Foundation for Democracy and Development, Dominican Republic
Greg Howell, Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau of Latin America and the Caribbean, USAID


3:15 p.m.:
Break

3:30 p.m.: Panel IV Latin American – US Relations

Where are Latin-American-U.S. relations producing positive outcomes, and where is there a lack of understanding and/or conflict?

Moderator
Dr. Carlos Diaz-Rosillo, Director, Adam Smith Center at FIU

Panelists
Donna Hrinak, former U.S. Ambassador in Latin America
Federico Rojas de Galarreta, Instituto de Estudios Internacionales, University of Chile            
Guillermo Enrique Obando, Fellow in the Institute for Political and Strategic Studies (IDEPE), Lima, Peru
Moises Rendon, Director, Washington at Americas Society/Council of the Americas


4:45 p.m.:
Final Remarks

5:30 p.m.: Reception