Latin America In Focus

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 necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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. 

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 podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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 the Americas: 
www.as-coa.org/bizeducation Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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 its members. 

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 members. 

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. 

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 treatment as investigative tools.” Get the WJP report: https://bit.ly/3hDdQW3 Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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 health workers who make up part of Brazil’s universal healthcare system. Find out more about COVID-19 in Latin America at: www.as-coa.org/coronavirus Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

“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. 

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 Brazil's Misinformation Crisis https://j.mp/3eWtdHM Can International Law Save the Amazon? https://j.mp/2VPW6hn Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

“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. 

“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 of the health system. It’s the thing that we only notice when it fails.” Learn more about how the pandemic is affecting Latin America: https://www.as-coa.org/covid19 Learn about our Healthcare Series: https://www.as-coa.org/healthcare Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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 piece, “Derechos de papel.” https://bit.ly/2VFTJOC Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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 (Argentina) http://bit.ly/391xl69 La Flor, by Mariano Llinás (Argentina) https://nyti.ms/3aavBaW Coffee with Cinnamon, by Glenda Nicácio, Ary Rosa (Brazil) http://bit.ly/2SYYYqP The Invisible Life of Euridice Gusmão, by Karim Aïnouz (Brazil) http://bit.ly/3a4GTNG Opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of Americas Society/Council of the Americas or its members. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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/Council of the Americas or its members.