Hemispheric Security Conference

9:00 - 9:15 a.m.
Conference Day 2 Welcome
Bienvenida a la conferencia | Bem-vindo à conferência

Luis Guillermo Solis, Director, Kimberly Green Latin American and Caribbean Center, FIU

9:15 - 10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address 
Discurso de apertura | Discurso de abertura

Daniel P. Erikson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Western Hemisphere, U.S. Department of Defense

Moderated by:
Randy Pestana, Assistant Director, Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, FIU

10:00 - 11:15 a.m.
The Future of the Armed Forces in Latin America
El futuro de las Fuerzas Armadas en América Latina
O Futuro das Forças Armadas na América Latina

Alberto José Mejía Ferrero, Colombian Ambassador to Australia and former General Commander of the Military Forces of Colombia

Admiral Craig Faller, retired U.S. Admiral and Senior Fellow at Florida International University

Lieutenant General Rocky R. Meade, former Chief of Defence Staff of the Jamaica Defence Force

Moderated by:
Barbara Fick. Director, Americas Program/Faculty Instructor at Department of National Security and Strategy, US Army War College

11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
The Geopolitical Convergence in Venezuela
La Convergencia Geopolítica en Venezuela | A convergência geopolítica na Venezuela

David Voght, Managing Director of IPD Latin America

Michael Penfold, Instituto de Estudios Superiores de Administración

Celina Realuyo, Professor of Practice, William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies

Brian Fonseca, Director, Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, FIU

Moderated by:
Dr. Eduardo Gamarra, Director of the Latino Public Opinion Forum, Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, FIU

9:00 - 9:15 a.m.
Conference Day 3 Welcome
Bienvenida a la conferencia | Bem-vindo à conferência

Randy Pestana, Assistant Director, Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, FIU

9:15 - 10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address
Discurso de apertura | Discurso de abertura

Ricardo Zúñiga, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State of Western Hemisphere Affairs and Special Envoy for the Northern Triangle

Moderated by:
Juan Cruz, non-resident senior advisor and Director of the Argentina-U.S. Strategic Forum, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)

10:00 - 11:15 a.m.
Reexamination of the 2003 Declaration on Security in the Americas
Reexamen de la Declaración de 2003 sobre Seguridad en las Américas | Reexame da Declaração sobre Segurança nas Américas de 2003

José Miguel Insulza, Chilean Senator, Former Foreign Minister of Chile, Former Secretary-General of the OAS

Rebecca Bill Chavez, President of Inter-American Dialogue and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Western Hemisphere Affairs

Rafael Fernández de Castro, Director of the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies at the University of California, San Diego

Ambassador Anthony Phillips-Spencer, Trinidad and Tobago’s Ambassador to the U.S.

Moderated by:
Ryan Berg, Senior Fellow in the Americas Program and head of the Future of Venezuela Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CISA)

11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Disinformation, Democracy, and the Inter-American System
Desinformación, Democracia y Sistema Interamericano | Desinformação, Democracia e o Sistema Interamericano

Ambassador John Feeley, former U.S. Ambassador to Panama

Carlos Dada, Founder and Director, El Faro

Pedro Vaca Villareal, Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Expression, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Organization of American States

Roberta Braga, Director of Counter-Disinformation Strategies, Equis Research

Moderated by:
Alejandro Alvarado, Associate Professor and Director of the Spanish-Language Journalism Master's Program, Florida International University

9:00 - 9:15 a.m.
Conference Day 4 Welcome
Bienvenida a la conferencia | Bem-vindo à conferência

Dr. Scott Tollefson, Dean of Academic Affairs, William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies

9:15 - 10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address 
Discurso de apertura | Discurso de abertura

Matthew D. Steinhelfer, Deputy Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations

10:00 - 11:15 a.m.
Institutional Challenges to Democracy in the Americas
Desafíos institucionales para la democracia en las Américas | Desafios institucionais para a democracia nas Américas

Gabriel Marcella, Professor, U.S. Army War College

Jonathan Rosen, Assistant Professor, New Jersey City University

Tatiana Kostadinova, Professor, Florida International University

Moderated by:
Orlando J. Perez, Dean, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of North Texas at Dallas

11:15 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Examining Democracy in the Americas through Case Studies
Examinando la democracia en las Américas a través de estudios de caso | Examinando a democracia nas Américas por meio de estudos de caso

John Polga-Hecimovich, Associate Professor, U.S. Naval Academy

Maiah Jaskoski, Associate Professor, Northern Arizona University

Luis Bitencourt, Professor, William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies

Moderated by:
Brian Fonseca, Director, Jack D. Gordon Institute for Public Policy, FIU