Latin America in Focus Podcast
About Latin America in Focus
Go in depth on the latest trends in Latin American politics, economics, and culture. Twice a month, the AS/COA Online team brings you in-depth interviews with top experts, journalists, artists, and entrepreneurs on the ground in and from countries such as Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Chile.
Notable guests include:
- Ilan Goldfajn, President of the Inter-American Development Bank
- Julio Frenk, Chancellor of UCLA and former Secretary of Health of Mexico
- Amb. Thomas Shannon, former U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs and former U.S. Ambassador to Brazil
- Felipe Chapman, Minister of Economy and Finance of Panama
- Amb. Sarah-Ann Lynch, Senior Advisor at Dinámica Americas and former Senior Foreign Policy Advisor to U.S. Southern Command
- Kenneth Smith Ramos, Partner at Agon and Mexico’s former chief USMCA negotiator
- Otaviano Canuto, Senior Fellow at Policy Center for the New South and former Vice President of the World Bank
- Sebastian Mejia, Co-Founder and President of Rappi
- Paula Escobar Chavarría, Founder and Executive Director of the Women and Media Chair at Universidad Diego Portales, host and panelist at CNN Chile
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The series is heard by listeners in 50 countries around the globe. Join our audience! If you already know us, share your favorite episode and write a review. If you’ve just discovered us, welcome to Latin America in Focus and subscribe via your preferred platform, such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon, SoundCloud, or Stitcher.
Carin Zissis, Host
Carin is the editor-in-chief of AS/COA Online, the website of the Americas Society and Council of the Americas. An award-winning journalist, her writing and commentary have been featured in The Boston Globe, Foreign Policy, The New York Times, Univision, World Politics Review, and other outlets.
Based in Mexico City from 2013 to 2021, she covered the 2018 Mexican elections and subsequent presidential transition. She was a 2024–25 International Competition Fellow at the Woodrow Wilson Center. Prior to joining AS/COA, she served as a staff writer at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Luisa Leme, Executive Producer, Interim Host
As senior producer, Luisa oversees video and live broadcasts for AS/COA. A journalist with an MA in International Affairs, she has experience in traditional news outlets, international organizations, documentary features, mega-events, and cultural institutions in nine countries. Her work has appeared on TV Globo, Radio France Internationale, Rádio CBN, Americas Quarterly, AP, newspapers Folha de S. Paulo and O Globo, and the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics.
Before joining AS/COA, Luisa worked in the UN News and Media division.
Chase Harrison, Reporter
Chase is AS/COA Online's editorial manager and holds an MPhil from the University of Oxford, where his research focused on political parties in Mexico and Central America and where he managed content and served as podcast editor for the OxPol academic blog.
Khalea Robertson, Associate Producer
Khalea is an editorial associate at AS/COA Online. She has worked as a journalist and researcher, and has previous experience in international relations and development. During her MA program in Global Journalism with Latin American and Caribbean Studies at New York University, her research and reporting focused on migration from and within the Americas.
Private and public sector leaders share how Mexican investments are driving jobs and growth across industries—from steel to baked goods.
Ahead of April 2, trade expert Kellie Meiman Hock explains the motivators behind the shift in U.S. trade policy and what tariffs mean for the region.
FTI’s Pablo Zárate and ITAM’s Cecilia Farfán-Méndez explain what the U.S. security policy shift means for bilateral business and North American relations.
Migration experts Diego Chaves-González and João Jarochinski Silva explore Latin America’s reception of migrants, highlighting a novel strategy in Brazil.
Brookings’ security expert Vanda Felbab-Brown explains President Noboa’s security challenge. Will his Bukele-like hardline approach pay off?
Juan Cruz Díaz, Brian Winter, and Carin Zissis discuss the region's place in Trump's inauguration and first executive orders.
Americas Society’s Music Director Sebastián Zubieta shares his passion for the music and musicians that embody the eclectic traditions of the region.
Three experts from the Latin American members of the G20 discuss how leaders are navigating Trump’s return and U.S.-China competition in the region.
Business leaders from Riverwood Capital, Rappi, and VTEX talk about investing in the region and what it takes to build billion-dollar companies.
Political analyst Thomas Traumann examines gains by the opposition, as well as Lula's scenario for 2026 amid deep political divides.