Wednesday, February 5, 2025
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. EST
February 5, 2025
Global Outlook: Latin America's Place in the World
Event Series: Spotlight on the Americas
With the waning power of Europe and the United States, Trump’s second term, and the rise of Russia and China, many experts are reconsidering Latin America’s place in the world. With competitive advantages such as credible institutions, strong finance ministries, and independent judicial systems, how can Latin America countries position the region as a global “middle power” in international groups like the G20 or BRICS bloc? What strategies should leaders pursue to enhance regional coordination on the world stage and influence global events? The Georgetown Americas Institute is pleased to host a panel discussion on the outlook for Latin America during the new U.S. administration, featuring Mary Beth Sheridan of the Washington Post, Michael Shifter, adjunct professor in the Center for Latin American Studies at Georgetown University, Camila Zuluaga of Noticias Caracol, and moderated by GAI Founding Director Alejandro Werner.
Featuring
Mary Beth Sheridan is a correspondent covering Mexico and Central America for The Washington Post. She came to The Post in 2001 after 11 years as a foreign correspondent for the Associated Press, Miami Herald and Los Angeles Times. During her career, she has been based in Rome; Bogota, Colombia; and Mexico City. Her previous assignments for The Post include covering diplomacy, homeland security and immigration. She served as deputy foreign editor from 2016 to 2018.
Michael Shifter is an adjunct professor at the Center for Latin American Studies at Georgetown University and former president of the Inter-American Dialogue. Shifter held senior positions at the Dialogue for nearly three decades and served 12 years as president; he currently serves as senior fellow at the organization. Prior to joining the Inter-American Dialogue, Shifter directed the Latin American and Caribbean program at the National Endowment for Democracy and, before that, the Ford Foundation’s governance and human rights program in the Andean region and Southern Cone. In the 1980s, he was a representative in Brazil with the Inter-American Foundation and worked at the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Latin American Program. Shifter graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude from Oberlin College and holds a M.A. in sociology from Harvard University, where he taught Latin American development and politics for four years.
Alejandro Werner is the founding director of the Georgetown Americas Institute and a non-resident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute. He recently completed almost nine years as director of the Western Hemisphere Department at the International Monetary Fund. Prior to that appointment, he was undersecretary of finance and public credit in Mexico’s Finance Ministry and held several positions in that ministry and the Central Bank. He also taught at leading universities in Mexico, Spain, and the United States. He holds a Ph.D. in economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a B.A. in economics from ITAM.
Camila Zuluaga is a journalist. M.A Public Policy (Columbia University), Political Scientist (UniAndes). Director of Mañanas Blu10am on Blu Radio. She presents and directs the section Código Caracol in Noticias Caracol. She is co-founder of Dip-Detox, an innovation center and behavioral science consultant.