|
|
 |
The Changing Landscape ofU.S.-Latin American Relations
Dr. Susan Kaufman-Purcell
|
 |
| Dr. Susan Purcell addresses the Council
|
Speaker's Remarks:
Although the words "Latin America" give the impression of a united region, in reality the countries to our south are divided between those governed by elected democrats and those governed by elected autocrats. The former, exemplified by Brazil, are pursing essentially market-based development strategies, while the latter, exemplified by Venezuela, are moving toward ever greater state-controlled economies. The former have friendly relations with the United States while the latter do not.
Dr. Susan Kaufman Purcell will discuss the reasons for the split within Latin America, its implications for the
future of democracy and development in the region, and the challenges facing the Obama administration's desire to improve US relations with our neighbors to the south.
 |
| Dr. Susan Kaufman Purcell
|
Speaker's Biography:
Dr. Susan Kaufman Purcell is the Director of the Center for Hemispheric Policy at the University of Miami. Established in March 2005, the Center sponsors public and private programs and meetings dealing with Latin American economic and political issues and U.S.-Latin American relations. Through its task forces and associated publications, the Center helps define and shape the debate over public policies involving the Western Hemisphere.
Prior to assuming her current position, Dr. Purcell was Vice President of the Council of the Americas, a U.S. business organization dedicated to promoting regional economic integration, free trade and the rule of law in Latin America and the Caribbean. She also served as Vice President of the Council’s affiliate organization, the Americas Society, a not-for-profit educational institution focusing on Latin America and Canada.
Between 1981 and 1988, Dr. Purcell was a Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. During her tenure, she established and directed the Latin America Project, which sponsored meetings with Latin American government and private sector leaders, as well as study groups and publications on issues of concern to U.S. policy makers.
Prior to joining the Council on Foreign Relations, Dr. Purcell was a member of the U.S. Department of State’s Policy Planning Staff, serving under Presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan. Her responsibilities included preparing talking points for the Secretary of State, as well as writing strategy papers and participating in inter-departmental working groups on Latin America.
Before joining the U.S. government, Dr. Purcell was a tenured professor of political science at the University of California, Los Angeles (1969-79). She was also a visiting professor at Columbia University (1981). She holds a BA degree in Spanish and Latin American literature from Barnard College, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and MA and Ph.D. degrees in political science from Columbia University.
A recognized authority on Latin America, Dr. Purcell has written, co-authored or co-edited eleven books. The most recent ones are Mexico under Fox (2004), Cuba: The Contours of Change (2000), Mexico under Zedillo (1998), Brazil under Cardoso (1997), Europe and Latin America in the World Economy (1994), Japan and Latin America in the New Global Order (1992) and Latin America: U.S. Policy after the Cold War (1991). She has published more than 150 articles on Latin American economic, trade, political and foreign policy issues. They have appeared in journals including Foreign Affairs, Latin Finance, The International Economy and CEO Magazine. Her op-ed articles on NAFTA, the FTAA, economic and political reform in Latin America and U.S. policy toward the hemisphere have been published in major U.S. newspapers such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, The Miami Herald and the Sun-Sentinel, as well as in influential Latin American newspapers such as Reforma (Mexico) and Clarín (Argentina). She also writes a monthly column for AméricaEconomia.
In addition to her writings, Dr. Purcell regularly comments on developments in Latin America on television programs in the United States and Latin America, including CNBC, CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, PBS and Bloomberg and their Spanish-language affiliates. She has been a guest on Adam Smith’s Money World, the Mac Neil/Lehrer NewsHour, The Charlie Rose Show, and Firing Line. She has testified on Capitol Hill on issues such as NAFTA, economic sanctions, U.S.-Mexican relations and U.S. policy toward Latin America. She has also participated in private briefings at the White House and State Department prior to visits to Latin America by the President and Secretary of State, and has helped define the U.S. agenda for presidential summits in the hemisphere.
Dr. Purcell also has done extensive consulting on Latin American economic, trade, investment and political issues for U.S. corporations including AIG, AT&T, AT Kearney, Citicorp, The Chrysler Corporation, Ernst & Young, IBM, Sara Lee Corporation, Texaco, Tiffany & Co. and Xerox Corporation, and for foreign companies including Bank of Tokyo, SmithKline Beecham and Toyota.
Since 1994, Dr. Purcell has been a member of the Board of Directors of Valero Energy Corporation, a Fortune 100 company based in San Antonio, Texas. She also was a Director of the Argentina Fund (1992-2001), the Latin America Dollar Income Fund (1992-1998), the Scudder World Income Opportunities Fund (1994-1998), the Korea Fund (2002-2004), the Scudder Global Commodities Stock Fund (2004-2005), the Scudder Global High Income Fund (1992-2005), the Scudder New Asia Fund (2002-2006) and the Brazil Fund (2002-2006). Her service on non-profit boards includes the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce of Florida (2007-2008), the National Endowment for Democracy (1990-1999), Freedom House, the Foundation for Management Education in Central America (FMECA), the Center for a Free Cuba (1997-2007) and the Women’s Foreign Policy Group (1999-2004). She is also a member of the advisory board of the Mexico Institute of the Woodrow Wilson Center.
Dr. Purcell is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Women’s Forum. She has been an International Affairs Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, a Visiting Fellow at the Overseas Development Council, and a Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. Other awards and honors include a National Defense Foreign Language Fellowship, a Fulbright-Hays Fellowship and a Foreign Area Fellowship.
|
| | |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
World Affairs Council of the Florida Palm Beaches
|
|
|
|
