Brian Winter, AS/COA Vice President of Policy, spoke with Univision News about the protests in Chile and their potential effect on Sebastian Piñera's presidency. Widespread protests in the country occurred after an increase in subway fare. 

"Inequality in Chile, it's quite high," Winter said. "If you really look at the numbers, not just in Chile, but elsewhere around the region, Ecuador, Bolivia, Honduras, some of these other places where we've seen protests: the common denominator is that economies have slowed down."

Winter cited the International Monetary Fund's prognostic of barely any economic growth in the region this year, saying that although President Piñera rolled back the increased subway fare in Chile, people are still angry. Due to protests and unrest in the country, a military presence was brought in.

"It's clear that having soldiers and tanks in the street in a country like Chile that just came out of a dictatorship in 1990 resuscitated memories for a lot of Chileans," Winter said. 

When asked about how unprecedented the protests are in Chile due to the country's level of stability, Winter said that "it was among the most stable countries in Latin America at least for a very long time."

"It's proof there's something going on not just in Chile, but around the region. This tale of stagnant economies is one that has a lot of people angry," he said. "I think there are very high expectations, especially in a country like Chile where a lot of people think their country has more in common with European countries than with the rest of Latin America. And when things slow down and people get disappointed, there's going to be anger."

Winter said that although Piñera rolled back the transport increases, the economic inequality in Chile makes it "tough for people to break into a comfortable upper middle-class or middle-class existence." He also said poverty has decreased in the last 25 years or so, and that Chile has done better on many fronts than other Latin American countries.

"It's a tough one for Piñera, and we'll just have to see how things go."

Speakers:

• Katia Bouazza, Head of Global Banking, Latin America, HSBC
• Taisa Markus, Partner, White & Case LLP
• Michael C. Pergine, Policy and Government Lead for Human Health Commercial, Merck
• Cecilia Tornaghi, Managing Editor, Americas Quarterly (moderator)

• Join us, in person or via live webcast, on November 20, 2019 for our next Women's Hemispheric Network conference in Mexico City.

Speakers on the second panel at the 8th Annual AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network Conference in New York discussed the issue of handling stress in the workplace for both men and women. Katia Bouazza of HSBC emphazised on the importance of building a network of support beyond immediate colleagues and communicating thoroughly. Michael Pergine highlighted the importance of achieving a healthy balance between one's home and work life. Taisa Markus of White & Case talked about being more thoughtful about stress and building the confidence to manage it. The panelists also answered questions on taking care of oneself and family, how to make your superiors aware of stressful situations, and managing responsibilities at home. Each panelists shared their favorite destresser, which included meditation, taking a walk, and watching funny videos online.

Americas Quarterly Managing Edtor Cecilia Tornaghi gave her welcoming remarks at the 8th Annual AS/COA Women's Hemispheric Network Conference in New York, including a word on behalf of President and CEO Susan Segal. Senior Vice President of Global Communications at Philip Morris International Marian Salzman then gave a keynote speech on her own career trajectory, highlighting how she got to her current position and the obstacles she overcame on the way. Salzman emphasized the importance of being honest with yourself, not expecting to have it all, acknowleding your right to exist in the workplace, and taking a step back to recharge. “In every way, drive change,” she said.

Brian Winter, vicepresidente de políticas públicas de AS/COA y editor jefe de Americas Quarterly, habló con Gustau Alegret en Cuestión de Poder de NTN24 sobre el crecimiento económico en Brasil.

"En lo económico están comenzando a mejorar un poco las cosas", dijo Winter. En el segundo trimestre de este año, registró un crecimiento pequeño, pero para un país como Brasil que ha luchado en los últimos años con la peor recesión de la historia, la más larga, y la más profunda, "cualquier crecimiento es preferido".

Winter explicó que para fortalezer más su economía, "Brasil tiene que abrirse más en comercio exterior".

Con respecto al Presidente de Brasil, Jair Bolsonaro, Winter dijo que la retórica del presidente ha llamado mucho la atención y no ayuda muchas veces en la parte económica del país.

"Es un país grande que tiene un ritmo en tiempos normales, es un país que siempre ha crecido en el pasado, pero por los problemas fiscales que ha tenido, los últimos años han sido un desafío", dijo Winter. "Por otro lado tenemos ese problema del ruido político que sigue saliendo de varias figuras en el gobierno, especialmente del presidente".