Xavier Vera Grunauer is a civil engineer from the Santiago de Guayaquil Catholic University, and obtained a master's degree in Engineering, specializing in geotechnics, at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). He has a doctorate in Geotechnical Engineering and Seismology from the University of California, Berkeley (United States).

He has more than 21 years of experience in the field of Civil Engineering, specializing in geotechnics and seismic engineering in mining, hydrocarbon, road and building projects.

Julio José Prado is an economist with 15 years of experience in project development, research and teaching, on issues of competitiveness, production and value chains, and productivity.

Before being Minister of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries of Ecuador, he was executive president of the Association of Private Banks of Ecuador ASOBANCA (December 2015-May 2021), where he led a process of digital transformation of the sector.

Julianne Canavaggio is an investment banker and lawyer with over 20 years of experience working in the US and Latin America. She is the CEO of Lazard Latin America (Ex. BraMex).

Amy Barnes is responsible for leading Marsh’s global strategy on the development of climate and sustainability-related initiatives for clients, particularly in relation to the impact of a changing physical risk landscape, improving access to capital for green initiatives, and a more thorough understanding of climate-related project risk. She also participates in Marsh McLennan’s Sustainability and Climate Change program, which focuses on developing sustainability and climate change services.

A career diplomat with extensive experience in promoting Brazil’s interests before a number of international organizations, Ambassador Farani Azevêdo is the new Consul General of Brazil in New York, as of April 1st, 2021.

During her accomplished career, Ambassador Farani Azevêdo has held several important positions in Geneva, Montevideo, Washington D.C. and Brazil.

Michelle Gadsden-Williams is the Managing Director and Global Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for BlackRock. She is an award-winning global diversity executive, author, activist, producer and philanthropist with more than 25 years of experience as an advocate for equality within corporate America and a thought leader around diversity and inclusion. Michelle is a seasoned diversity practitioner with experience working in the consumer goods, pharmaceutical and financial services industries before transitioning to professional services in 2017.

Sarah Aiosa has been serving as SVP and President, Latin America for MSD (known as Merck & Co. Inc, in US and Canada) since February 1, 2022. In her current role, she sets the strategic direction and oversees pharmaceutical operations in human health across all Latin American subsidiaries encompassing 4,000 employees in more than 20 countries. Sarah also serves on the Board of Directors for the Council of the Americas.

Philippa Scarlett is the head of worldwide government affairs and policy at RELX, a U.K.-based public company with over 33,000 employees globally and which provides information-based analytics and decision tools for customers in more than 180 countries.

As Organon’s Chief Human Resources Officer, Aaron Falcione is focused on building a “culture-first” company that attracts the best talent, fosters an environment where all employees have a sense of belonging and can wholeheartedly embrace Organon’s values. With diversity, equity and inclusion at the core, Aaron leads a team of Human Resources professionals around the world who are responsible for all aspects of the Organon employee experience, including performance and change management, succession planning, learning and development, and compensation and benefits.

Jeannine Acevedo is a seasoned New York project finance partner, who focuses on the development and financing of power and infrastructure projects in Latin America. She regularly represents sponsors and creditors, in complex cross-border financial transactions, particularly in the renewable energy, transmission and transportation sectors.