Dr. Jin (Julie) Zeng is Associate Professor of Politics and International Relations at Florida International University. She graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a Ph.D. in Political Science in 2007. Her primary research interests are Chinese investment in Latin America, agrarian studies in contemporary China, and political economy of development. She is the author of the book, State-Led Privatization in China—The Politics of Economic Reform (Routledge, 2013). Dr.

Hardik Sheth is a leader of Boston Consulting Group's CFO Excellence practice area in North America, and a member of the Corporate Finance & Strategy and Insurance practices globally. Hardik has over 15 years of experience advising CFOs on a broad range of strategic topics so they can determine their vision, mission, strategy, organization structure, capability profiles, engagement models, and supporting processes and systems. 

Ricardo V. Lago is an economist, financial analyst, and lecturer of Macroeconomics at the Miami Herbert Business School of the University of Miami. Previously, Mr. Lago held senior positions at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (1993- 2003), the InterAmerican Development Bank, and the World Bank. In these institutions, he negotiated development programs with countries of Latin America, Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union , and Africa.

John Twichell is a Ph.D. (University of Miami, 2015) and lecturer in the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Miami, where he instructs undergraduate courses in the Departments of International Studies, Latin American Studies, and Political Science. His course offerings are in the areas of international relations, international political economy, Latin American and Caribbean politics, Middle Eastern politics, and research methods. Dr.

Rosa Francisca Zavala Correo is Peru's vice minister of the environment. She has been president of the Board of Directors of FONCOPES, member of the Board of Directors of the National Water Authority (ANA), of the Board of Directors of the National Environmental Certification Service for Sustainable Investments (Senace), president of the Environmental Dispute Resolution Tribunal of the Ministry of the Environment, director general of fisheries and aquaculture environmental affairs and director general of fisheries sustainability at the Ministry of Production. 

Dina Ercilia Boluarte Zegarra is the president of the Republic of Perú since 7 december, 2022, acting as the first woman to hold the position in the Republic's 201-year-old history. From July 29, 2021 through November 2022, Boluarte was the minister of development and social inclusion. Previously, she was on former President Pedro Castillo's ticket for vice president during the 2021 general elections representing the Perú Libre Party.

Alex Contreras Miranda was appointed minister of economy and finance on December 10, 2022. Most recently, Minister Contreras had been serving as deputy minister of economy since August 2021. Prior to this position, he was director general of the General Directorate of Macroeconomic Policy and Fiscal Decentralization of the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF). 

Robert Ogburn joined the Foreign Service in 1987 and currently serves as the deputy assistant secretary of state for Global Media in the Bureau of Global Public Affairs. As a career Senior Foreign Service officer with the rank of Minister Counselor, Robert has served overseas in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Egypt. In Washington, DC, Robert was director of the office of mainland Southeast Asia in the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and earlier served as director of the office of citizen exchanges in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

Kristin M. Kane serves as the principal deputy assistant secretary in the Bureau of Global Public Affairs. She is a career Senior Foreign Service officer with the rank of Minister Counselor. Ms. Kane most recently served as Deputy Chief of Mission and Chargé d’Affaires, ad interim, at Embassy Lisbon from 2019-2022. Her earlier foreign service tours include policy and public affairs work at Embassies Brasilia, Paris, Dakar (covering also Bissau), Maputo, Lisbon, and Consulate Lagos. In Washington, DC, Ms.