Joe Biden pledged a shift from Donald Trump’s policies when it comes to Central America, particularly on issues like migration, democracy promotion, and corruption. In this episode, we speak to Salvadoran journalist Nelson Rauda of El Faro about the differences between the two presidents' approaches to the region and how that will impact domestic politics in countries like El Salvador and Honduras. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of...
Feb 18, 2021•27 min•Ep. 128
February marks a year since the first coronavirus cases were confirmed in Latin America. Now the pandemic has entered a new phase, one in which countries are trying to roll out vaccines as quickly as they can even as variants threaten to undermine the protection those vaccines offer. In this episode, COVID-19 researcher Dr. Roselyn Lemus-Martin covers vaccine rollout in the region while Doctors Without Borders’ Pierre Van Heddegem gives a ground-level view of a variant-fueled outbreak in Brazil’...
Feb 03, 2021•31 min•Ep. 127
From tensions over the U.S. investigation against a Mexican general to reversing the Trump administration's immigration policy, there are plenty of pressing topics on the U.S.-Mexico agenda. COMEXI President and Mexico’s ex-Deputy Minister for North America Sergio Alcocer tells AS/COA’s Carin Zissis how bilateral relations could shake out in 2021 and beyond. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up f...
Jan 19, 2021•26 min•Ep. 126
From an absent president to illegal fishing to agro-tech, AS/COA Online dives into under-covered—but important—issues facing Latin America in a year of competing headlines. In this episode: AEI’s Ryan Berg talks about the deepening crackdown on Nicaragua’s opposition, Pew’s Dawn Borg Costanzi covers what the region can do to slow illegal fishing, and Frubana’s Carlos Upegui Echavarría gets into how the pandemic has accelerated change for the region’s food businesses. Read more: t.ly/mYQn Opinion...
Dec 21, 2020•37 min•Ep. 125
Latin America should use the current crisis to “push for a greener, digital, and more inclusive future for the region,” said International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. In this conversation with AS/COA President and CEO Susan Segal, the economist outlined the structural reforms the region must undertake to avoid stagnation. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our news...
Dec 16, 2020•27 min•Ep. 124
With growing climate change concerns and the rising cost of oil extraction and production, governments around the world are considering reactivating their economies with more sustainable and less fossil fuel-reliant investments. IHS Markit’s Steven Knell and Escopo Energia’s Lavinia Hollanda explain what it takes to spur the development of renewable energy in Latin America. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its memb...
Dec 02, 2020•37 min•Ep. 123
If there isn’t quality, factual content on a topic, trolls and bots will be there to fill the gap with disinformation on online platforms. Claudia Flores-Saviaga, a Facebook fellow and PHD candidate at West Virginia University, tells AS/COA’s Carin Zissis what that meant for Latino voters in the 2020 U.S. election and for Spanish speakers overall, as well as ways to stop the spread of disinformation. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council ...
Nov 18, 2020•17 min•Ep. 122
Unrest, a pandemic, polarization, and an election. In 2020, we could be referring to a number of countries. But in this episode, we’re talking about Chile’s transformational year, beginning with an October 2019 protest against a transit-fare hike that sparked a movement to rewrite the country’s dictatorship-era constitution. Santiago-based journalist John Bartlett gives an on-the-ground view of what it’s been like to cover the country through it all. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not nec...
Nov 02, 2020•23 min•Ep. 121
Most Latin American countries have yet to reopen schools as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. What does it mean for Latin America’s present and future human capital development? Brookings Institution’s Emiliana Vegas and Tinker Foundation’s Caroline Kronley cover the problems, but also the silver linings, of the disruption in schooling. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: a...
Oct 21, 2020•39 min•Ep. 120
Remittances help pay medical bills and keep people fed in times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. In Latin America, where many work informally and don’t have access to government assistance, the cash migrants send to their loved ones can even boost political stability and provide a buffer for national economies. In this episode, we hear about remittance trends in pandemic times from Creative’s Manuel Orozco, NYU’s Roy Germano, and Remitly’s Matt Oppenheimer. Opinions expressed in this po...
Sep 30, 2020•32 min•Ep. 119
The pandemic is upending education as we know it. But even before COVID-19 hit, political unrest sparked by economic and social inequality proved the desire for a conscientious approach to business. In this episode, Joanne Li of FIU Business and Ignacio de la Vega of Tecnológico de Monterrey’s EGADE tell AS/COA Online’s Carin Zissis how their programs are adapting to both COVID-19 and the drive for compassionate leadership. Watch the deans’ participation in an AS/COA panel on business schools in...
Sep 16, 2020•36 min•Ep. 118
Women were already struggling to achieve gender equity in Latin America. Then along came COVID-19, threatening jobs and bringing new burdens at home. PepsiCo’s Monica Bauer and Think Olga’s Juliana de Faria talk about the hurdles, as well as the opportunities arising for women in the region during the pandemic. Learn about the AS/COA Women’s Hemispheric Network at as-coa.org/women. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or ...
Aug 26, 2020•38 min•Ep. 117
Was President Nayib Bukele’s tough-on-crime approach the reason behind El Salvador’s murder rate dropping 60 percent during his first year in office? International Crisis Group’s Tiziano Breda tells AS/COA Online’s Carin Zissis there’s more to the story. Read the report co-authored by Breda titled “Miracle or Mirage? Gangs and Plunging Gang Violence” here: https://bit.ly/3jQMi0n Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its...
Jul 29, 2020•29 min•Ep. 116
Around the world, tales of pandemic mismanagement abound. But there are success stories as well, such as Uruguay. The country’s PAHO representative, Dr. Giovani Escalante, spoke with AS/COA Online about the country’s quick steps—from voluntary quarantine to an integrated healthcare response—to contain the pandemic. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters F...
Jul 16, 2020•26 min•Ep. 115
Earlier this month, as demonstrators across the United States took to the streets to oppose police violence, Mexico was witnessing protests of its own following the extrajudicial killing of a construction worker by police in Guadalajara. Roberto Hernández, a lawyer and co-director of the film Presunto culpable, delves into the findings of World Justice Project report showing the high rate and underreporting of police brutality. As he tells AS/COA’s Carin Zissis: “Mexico is using torture and ill ...
Jun 18, 2020•31 min•Ep. 114
If Latin America is now being described as the new coronavirus epicenter, then Brazil’s raging outbreak is a major reason why. But that doesn’t mean solutions don’t exist. Marcia Castro is chair of the Department of Global Health and Population at Harvard University and a demographer who has done extensive research on malaria and Zika. She tells AS/COA Online’s Luisa Leme that, despite leadership mistakes, “There is still time,” explaining that one answer lies in the country’s teams of community...
Jun 11, 2020•44 min•Ep. 113
“Latino outreach” shouldn’t just be in Spanish. U.S. Latinos are split on deportation policy, and they’re being hit hardest economically by COVID-19. In this episode, AS/COA Online chisels away at the data on the voting bloc with Mark Hugo Lopez of the Pew Research Center. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters Follow us on social media: Twitter/X: @ASCOA...
May 07, 2020•35 min•Ep. 112
In Brazil, the coronavirus is a crisis that’s piling up on top of a previous recession, deforestation worries, and political polarization. AS/COA Online’s Luisa Leme spoke with three prior Latin America in Focus guests—Mauricio Santoro, Tai Nailon, and Maria Antonia Tigre—to understand the pandemic’s impact on China relations, misinformation campaigns, and the environment. Past episodes with our guests: How Asia-Brazil Trade Shifted Bolsonaro's China View https://j.mp/3bPYcn4 Fact-Checking Brazi...
Apr 29, 2020•45 min•Ep. 111
“It felt like doing a movie,” says Cuban-American photojournalist Lisette Poole, talking to AS/COA Online’s Luisa Horwitz about her 51-day journey documenting two Cuban women migrating through 13 countries to reach the United States in 2016, before the end of Washington's “wet foot, dry foot” policy. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters Follow us on soc...
Apr 16, 2020•32 min•Ep. 110
“We need to understand that health security is national and global security,” says the University of Miami president, a former health minister of Mexico and dean of Harvard University’s School of Public Health who has held decision-making roles during a number of pandemics. Dr. Frenk tells AS/COA’s Carin Zissis that, with a fraction of what’s been lost in the stock market during this pandemic, “we could have competent surveillance and preparedness systems. But again, this is the invisible part o...
Mar 16, 2020•29 min•Ep. 109
Abril, Ingrid, Fátima. It’d take seven more names to get to 10—the average number of women killed daily in Mexico. Though the country poured resources into battling the violence, the femicide rate rose 138 percent from 2015 to 2019. And women are taking to the street to demand action. EQUIS Justice for Women’s Ana Pecova talks with AS/COA’s Carin Zissis about why Mexican institutions have failed to stop rising femicide, as well as the changes needed to turn the tide. Read Pecova’s award-winning ...
Mar 03, 2020•37 min•Ep. 108
Despite challenges like economic hardships and culture wars, the film industry faces big changes in countries such as Brazil and Argentina. Still, Latin America’s booming sector is making its mark in festivals and screens globally. Film critic Ela Bittencourt speaks with AS/COA Online’s Luisa Leme about how the world’s perception of cinema from the region is shifting. Films cited: Bacurau, by Kleber Mendonça Filho and Juliano Dornelles (Brazil) http://bit.ly/385Ws6d Zama, by Lucrecia Martel (Arg...
Feb 26, 2020•36 min•Ep. 107
Fintech in Latin America is growing, and Argentine entrepreneur Pierpaolo Barbieri talks with AS/COA Online about how technological innovations in the financial sector are transforming the economy in both his own country and the region at large. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters Follow us on social media: Twitter/X: @ASCOA Instagram: @ascoa LinkedIn:...
Feb 19, 2020•19 min•Ep. 106
Is Latin America suffering from secular stagnation? Bloomberg's John Authers interviews the IMF's Western Hemisphere Department Director Alejandro Werner on the economic scenario in 2020 as the region—and the world at large—face uncertain times. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters Follow us on social media: Twitter/X: @ASCOA Instagram: @ascoa LinkedIn:...
Feb 06, 2020•58 min•Ep. 105
In 2020, Brazil's economic woes might be similar to those of last year, but the world around it is changing fast. The Peterson Institute's Monica de Bolle talks about the country's nationalistic government and its efforts to recover growth amid global concerns about Brazilian climate change policy and rising discontent in Latin America. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as...
Jan 30, 2020•42 min•Ep. 104
Ahead of January 26 special legislative elections in Peru, we talk with constitutional law expert Alonso Gurmendi of Universidad del Pacífico about what makes these elections “weird” and how the country’s Magna Carta is holding up amid considerable constitutional strain. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 📧Sign up for our newsletters: as-coa.org/newsletters Follow us on social media: Twitter/X: @ASCOA I...
Jan 23, 2020•29 min•Ep. 103
2019 closed with disruption and discontent across much of Latin America. If we didn’t see last year’s wave of protests coming, what are the stories we’re overlooking as 2020 starts? James Bosworth, author of Latin America Risk Report and founder of Hxagon, talks with AS/COA Online’s Carin Zissis about what to watch in the coming year. Get the Latin America Risk Report newsletter: https://boz.substack.com/ Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Cou...
Jan 14, 2020•22 min•Ep. 102
After his first six months in government, Jair Bolsonaro has been more disruptive when it comes to social issues than tackling Brazil stagnant economy. Can he fix the country’s problems? Economist Monica de Bolle of SAIS and the Peterson Institute for International Economics tells AS/COA Online’s Luisa Leme about Brazil’s economic growth problems and explains what’s standing in the way as the new government tries to get the country back on track. Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessa...
Jan 01, 2020•37 min•Ep. 101
As Andrés Manuel López Obrador rounds out his first 100 days in office as president of Mexico, CIDE’s Carlos Bravo Regidor talks with AS/COA's Carin Zissis about his popularity, use of corruption as a political weapon, “omnipresence” through message control, and nostalgia. “He has this fantasy that he’s going to be able to choose his place in posterity,” says Bravo Regidor. Follow Carlos Bravo Regidor on Twitter: twitter.com/carlosbravoreg Learn more about AMLO’s first 100 days: www.as-coa.org/a...
Dec 26, 2019•45 min•Ep. 100
He’s 37, a social media maven, and he won El Salvador’s presidential election without the backing of the country’s two main parties. Nayib Bukele, an ex-mayor of San Salvador, isn’t exactly a political newcomer. But his June inauguration will end 10 years of the leftist FMLN in power. Bukele spoke with CNBC’s Michelle Caruso-Cabrera our COA’s 49th Washington Conference about U.S. ties, Venezuela, China, and an ambitious promise on immigration. The #2019WCA conference lineup included U.S. VP Mike...
Dec 20, 2019•29 min•Ep. 99
