8:30 am to 12:30 pm ET

Organization of American States
17th Street and Constitution Ave., NW
Washington
Live Broadcast

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54th Annual Washington Conference: Advancing the Business Case for the Americas

Council of the Americas held its premier conference in Washington on May 8 to discuss trade, energy, democracy, and more.

8:30 am to 12:30 pm ET

Organization of American States
17th Street and Constitution Ave., NW
Washington
Live Broadcast

Live broadcast

Share

Overview

On May 8, 2024, the Council of the Americas hosted the 54th Washington Conference on the Americas: Advancing the Business Case for the Americas.  

The Washington Conference on the Americas is the premier event on the region. Each year, this conference offers an excellent opportunity to hear from the most senior-level officials. It also offers participants the chance to engage with business and policy leaders, members of the diplomatic community, and special invited guests from throughout the hemisphere. 

The 54th Washington Conference on the Americas featured keynote remarks and interviews with senior leaders along with high-level panel discussions.

Speakers: 

  • Luis Abinader, President of the Dominican Republic
  • Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, The White House
  • Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations
  • Brian A. Nichols, Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State
  • Rebecca Lissner, Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President, The White House
  • Christopher Dodd, Special Presidential Advisor for the Americas, U.S. Department of State
  • Arun Venkataraman, Assistant Secretary for Global Markets and Director General for the Commercial Service, U.S. Department of Commerce
  • Adriano Espaillat, Representative, (D-13NY), U.S. House of Representatives
  • Maria Elvira Salazar, Chairwoman, Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, and Representative (R-24FL), U.S. House of Representatives
  • Luis Gilberto Murillo, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Government of Colombia
  • Marushka Chocobar, Special Advisor on Digital Transformation, Government of Peru
  • Jackie Davalos, Technology Reporter, Bloomberg News
  • Dominic Delmolino, Vice President, Technology, Amazon Web Services
  • Michelle Giuda, CEO, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue
  • Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, Vice President for Latin America & Caribbean, World Bank
  • José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary, United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
  • Russ Schriefer, Republican Political Consultant 
  • Doug Sosnik, Democratic Political Consultant
  • Edmundo González Urrutia, Venezuela Opposition Presidential Candidate
  • María Corina Machado, Venezuela Opposition Leader
  • Andres Gluski, Chairman, Council of the Americas, President & CEO, AES Corporation
  • John Negroponte, Chairman Emeritus, Council of the Americas
  • Susan Segal, President & CEO, Council of the Americas
  • Eric Farnsworth, Vice President, Council of the Americas

 


Press inquiries: mediarelations@as-coa.org

Join the discussion on Twitter #2024WCA | @ASCOA 

Read a summary report of the 53rd Washington Conference on the Americas. Learn more about past editions of the event.

Agenda

Download a PDF of the agenda.

Advancing the Business Case for the Americas

May 8, 2024, Organization of American States

7:30–8:30 am — Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30–8:40 am — Welcome, Introduction, and Conference Video

  • Eric Farnsworth, Vice President, Council of the Americas
  • Brian A. Nichols, Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State

8:40-9:00 am — Keynote Remarks: The United States and the Americas: A Partnership Built to Last

  • Linda Thomas-Greenfield, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

Introduced by John D. Negroponte, Chairman Emeritus, Council of the Americas

9:05–9:45 am — Keynote Panel: Strengthening the Business Case for the Americas 

  • Christopher Dodd, Special U.S. Presidential Advisor for the Americas
  • Rebecca Lissner, Deputy Assistant to the President, Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President
  • José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean
  • Arun Venkataraman, Assistant Secretary for Global Markets and Director General for the Commercial Service, U.S. Department of Commerce

Moderated by Susan Segal, President & CEO, Council of the Americas

9:50–10:10 am — Keynote Interview: Colombia's Evolving Global Position

  • Luis Gilberto Murillo, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Colombia

Interviewed by Susan Segal, President  & CEO, Council of the Americas

10:10–10:35 am — Coffee/Networking Break 

Webcast only: Jake Sullivan, U.S. National Security Advisor, The White House.

10:35–11:15 am — Keynote Panel: Digitizing the Americas

  • Marushka Chocobar, Special Advisor on Digital Transformation, Government of Peru
  • Dominic Delmolino, Vice President, Technology, AWS
  • Michelle S. Giuda, CEO, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue
  • Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, Vice President for Latin America and Caribbean, The World Bank

Moderated by Jackie Davalos, Bloomberg News

11:15–11:30 am — Keynote Virtual Interview: Contending for Democracy in Venezuela

  • Edmundo González Urrutia, Opposition Presidential Candidate
  • María Corina Machado, Opposition Leader

Interviewed by Andrés Gluski, Chairman, Council of the Americas

11:30–12:00 pm — Keynote Panel: Expanding Hemispheric Opportunity through Trade

  • Adriano Espaillat, Representative, (D-13NY), U.S. House of Representatives
  • Maria Elvira Salazar, Chairwoman, Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, and Representative (R-24FL), U.S. House of Representatives 

Interviewed by Eric Farnsworth, Vice President, Council of the Americas

12:05–12:25 pm — Keynote Remarks and Presentation of Chairman's Award for Leadership in the Americas

  • Luis Abinader, President of the Dominican Republic

Presented by Andrés Gluski, Chairman, Council of the Americas

12:30 pm — Program Close

Speakers

Luis Abinader
President of the Dominican Republic

Luis Abinader Corona, President of the Dominican Republic, is a figure shaped by his multifaceted background in business and politics. Born on July 12, 1967, in Santo Domingo, Abinader comes from a family with a strong tradition of public service. He received his education at the...

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Jake Sullivan
National Security Advisor, The White House

Jake Sullivan is the 28th Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (National Security Advisor). In the Obama-Biden Administration, he served as Deputy Assistant to the President and National Security Advisor to then-Vice President Biden, Director of the Policy...

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Linda Thomas-Greenfield
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield was nominated by President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. to be the Representative of the United States of America to the United Nations as well as the Representative of the United States of America in the Security Council of the United Nations on January...

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Brian A. Nichols
Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, U.S. Department of State

Brian A. Nichols became Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs on September 15, 2021. Assistant Secretary Nichols previously served as the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Zimbabwe from 2018 to 2021. In that role, he promoted democracy, rule of law and...

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Rebecca Lissner
Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy National Security Adviser to the Vice President, The White House

Rebecca Lissner has served as the Principal Deputy National Security Advisor to the Vice President since May of 2022. Previously, served on the National Security Council Staff as the Acting Senior Director for Strategic Planning. In that role she served as the lead author of the...

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Christopher Dodd
Special Presidential Advisor for the Americas, U.S. Department of State

Christopher Dodd is Special Presidential Advisor for the Americas, following up on his role as Special Advisor for the Ninth Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. Senator Dodd will help advance the implementation of key initiatives President Biden announced at the Summit of the...

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Arun Venkataraman
Assistant Secretary for Global Markets and Director General for the Commercial Service, U.S. Department of Commerce

Arun Venkataraman is the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Global Markets and Director General of the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service. He was appointed by President Joseph R. Biden and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on April 7, 2022, to lead the federal government’s efforts...

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Adriano Espaillat
U.S. Representative (D-NY13)

Adriano Espaillat represents New York’s Thirteenth Congressional District.

Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington...

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Maria Elvira Salazar
U.S. Representative (R-FL27)

Maria Elvira Salazar represents Florida’s 27th Congressional District, passionately serving the people of South Florida. She currently serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs as well as the House Committee on Small Business.

Congresswoman Salazar is committed to acting...

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Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia
Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Government of Colombia

Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia is the Acting Minister of Foreign Relations of Colombia. In July 2022, Murillo was nominated by president-elect Gustavo Petro to serve as ambassador to the United States.

Between 2016 and 2018, he served as the first Afro Colombian Minister of...

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Marushka Chocobar
Special Advisor on Digital Transformation, Government of Peru

Marushka Chocobar leads the Secretariat of Digital Government since January 2018, which is the area responsible for leading the digital transformation in public entities that make up the National Computing System with the aim of making viable the national policy of modernization...

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Jackie Davalos
Reporter, Bloomberg News

Jackie Davalos is a reporter at Bloomberg News based in Washington DC where she covers technology companies, startups and venture capital. She is the co-host of the Bloomberg Originals series AI IRL and has been featured in Bloomberg Businessweek. Jackie is also a regular...

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Dominic Delmolino
Vice President of Field Technology and Engineering for Amazon Web Services Worldwide Public Sector

Dominic Delmolino is the Vice President of Field Technology and Engineering for Amazon Web Services Worldwide Public Sector. He is responsible for the oversight, strategy and definition of AWS field technical offerings and activities supporting public sector customers while...

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Michelle Giuda
CEO, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue

Michelle S. Giuda is the CEO of the Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy at Purdue, an organization dedicated to accelerating the innovation and adoption of trusted technology. As the preeminent global authority on the new category of Tech Diplomacy, the Institute integrates tech...

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Carlos Felipe Jaramillo
Vice President, Latin America & Caribbean Region, World Bank

Carlos Felipe Jaramillo is the World Bank vice president for the Latin America and the Caribbean Region, overseeing relations with 31 countries and a portfolio of ongoing projects, technical assistance, and grants of almost $32 billion. Under his leadership, the bank’s operations...

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José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs
Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)

José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs is Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) since September 2022.

A public policy and economic development enthusiast, Mr. Salazar brings to the position deep development knowledge and a life-long...

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Russ Schriefer
Founding Partner, Strategic Partners & Media

Russ Schriefer is a veteran political strategist, who has been shaping winning campaign messages for more than three decades. He’s held key roles in seven presidential campaigns, including the campaigns of President George H.W. Bush, President George W. Bush, and Mitt Romney, and...

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Doug Sosnik
Senior Advisor, The Brunswick Group

Doug Sosnik is a policy and political expert who has closely advised President Bill Clinton and multiple U.S. Senators, governors, Fortune 100 corporations, foundations and universities for 35 years.

Doug has for decades advised a range of organizations and individuals on their...

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Andrés Gluski
President and CEO, The AES Corporation and Chairman, AS/COA

Andrés Gluski was appointed chairman of Americas Society/Council of the Americas in October 2015. He was named President and CEO of the AES Corporation in 2011.

Under his leadership, AES has become one of the leading renewables and clean technologies companies in the world...

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Susan Segal
President and CEO, Americas Society/Council of the Americas

Susan Segal was elected president and CEO of the Americas Society and Council of the Americas in August 2003 after working in the private sector with Latin America and other emerging markets for over 30 years. A passionate supporter of Latin America, she joined the organizations...

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Eric Farnsworth
Vice President, AS/COA, Washington

Eric Farnsworth leads the Washington office of the Council of the Americas and the Americas Society with a passion for promoting the importance of the Western Hemisphere for U.S. economic, security, and strategic interests.  A recognized expert, he maintains an important policy...

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