‘Latin America, the United States and Spain in the Global Economy’ forum analyzes world trends

Innovation, artificial intelligence, food security, energy investments and opportunities in sectors such as transportation and infrastructure are among the topics to be discussed at a forum that will take place on Wednesday in New York, organized by EL PAÍS and the Spain-U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Participants in the event, called Latin America, the United States and Spain in the Global Economy, will analyze these trends and their related challenges. Guest speakers include Spain’s acting prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy.

The forum, sponsored by Abertis, Baker McKenzie, Grupo Nutresa, Iberia, Inditex, and Indra and with the collaboration of the Organization of Ibero-American States for Education, Science, and Culture (OEI), will be broadcast live on the EL PAÍS website, starting at 8:20 a.m. New York time (2:20 p.m. in mainland Spain).

The event is being held at the Roxy Hotel in New York, on the same week that the United Nations is holding the 78th session of its General Assembly. The U.N. Assembly is marked by the war in Ukraine and the geopolitical tensions that affect the world. The president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, is attending in person for the first time since the start of the Russian invasion, since last year he did so by videoconference.

Joseph Oughourlian, the director of Prisa (the parent company of EL PAÍS), and the chairman of the Spain-United States Chamber of Commerce, Alan D. Solomont, will open the event with a few words of welcome, then give the podium to Spain’s acting PM Pedro Sánchez, who will be introduced by EL PAÍS editor-in-chief Pepa Bueno.

A panel discussion will analyze the investment opportunities that have opened up in the United States with the approval of the Inflation Reduction Act. Panelists include Gabriel Alonso, CEO of 547 Energy; Susan Nickey, chair of American Clean Power, and Puneet Verma, vice president of federal government affairs at Avangrid. The panel is to be moderated by José Morán, partner and president of the Energy, Mining and Infrastructure Practice Group at Baker McKenzie.

Next, Miguel Jiménez, EL PAÍS’ chief correspondent in the United States, will interview the secretary general of the OEI, Mariano Jabonero, about his vision on economic and social trends in Latin America. It will be followed by a conversation on the impact of technology multinationals in the Americas, featuring Indra president Marc Murtra, who will be interviewed by the director of EL PAÍS América, Jan Martínez Ahrens.

The following panel discussion will look at trends and opportunities common to the main economic sectors of Spain and the Americas. Panelists include Christian Barrientos, CEO of Abertis Mobility Services, and Teresa Parejo, Director of Sustainability at Iberia, with Inmaculada Riera, the Director-General of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, acting as moderator.

José Manuel Albares, Spain’s acting minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, who is also attending the U.N. General Assembly, will give a speech next.

The challenges and keys to sustainable and inclusive food security will be analyzed next by the panelists Carlos Ignacio Gallego, president of Grupo Nutresa, Álvaro Lario, president of FIDA, Mario Lubetkin, regional representative for Latin America and the Caribbean of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Ana Catalina Suárez, director of Strategy and Innovation of The Global Foodbanking Network. The discussion will be moderated by Macarena Vidal Liy, EL PAÍS correspondent in Washington.

Next there will be a speech by New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, a position he has held since 2018. He is the first Democratic governor to serve a second term in New Jersey in 44 years.

The last panel discussion of the day will analyze the impact of artificial intelligence on the world economy. Panelists include Beena Ammanath, executive director of the Deloitte Global Institute of Artificial Intelligence, and Carme Artigas, Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence of the Government of Spain, with moderation by Ángel Alonso Arroba, vice dean of Management and Development of the School of Public and Global Affairs at IE University.

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