Growing Green
Since the time of the Conquest, conservation has taken a backseat to empire, nation-building and economic growth. The results are evident today in fragmented ecosystems, displaced communities, lost biodiversity, and altered watersheds. The toll taken by the rubber boom, for example, can be tracked a century later in the impact on species, human populations, and … Read more
Five Ways to Fix Urban Transportation
Cities need good public transportation systems to prosper and grow. But in today’s world such systems must also be environmentally sustainable. That is especially true in developing countries, where rapid urbanization is creating huge pressure on aging infrastructures. By adopting smart policies that incorporate environmental needs, a city can improve the quality of life for … Read more
A Tale of Our Cities
In an increasingly urban world, the greatest challenges to quality of life will be in the cities. According to the 2007 United Nations Habitat Global Report on Human Settlements, an estimated 1 billion people live in slums—and the figure is growing. In environmental terms alone, the threat posed by our crowded cities is significant. An … Read more
The Fulcrum of Our New Relationship in the Americas
Ever since President John F. Kennedy launched the Alliance for Progress in 1961, every new U.S. administration has pledged to dedicate itself to our common hemispheric agenda. Too often, our efforts have fallen short. Today, a truly galvanizing challenge—the threat of catastrophic climate change—offers the United States a chance to break that pattern and reengage … Read more
Green Venture Capital
The newest “miracle” food in U.S. health food circles is a juice made from açai, a tiny Brazilian berry grown in the Amazon. A palmberry about the size of a blueberry, açai has ten times the antioxidants of red wine. Not only is it good for you: it’s good for the environment, thanks to sustainable … Read more
Dispatches from the Field: Is Cuba Really Changing?
“I’m not a communist” the cab driver said shortly after I identified myself as an American. In the short ride from Habana Vieja to my casa particular in Vedado, he added “I am not a capitalist either. I’m a progressive.” When I ask if his political stance causes any problems, he drives a few blocks … Read more
Ask the Experts: Human Rights
Felipe Agüero Answers: Over the last few decades, major strides have been made in enshrining human rights into international law, in creating accountability mechanisms and, to some degree, in encoding these laws and mechanisms into national policy. Despite this progress, however, the lives of the most vulnerable people in societies around the world remain much … Read more
[i]Política pública y democracia en América Latina: Del análisis a la implementación[/i] coordinated by Freddy Mariñez Navarro and Vidal Garza Cantú
Latin America is constantly being tested by leaders and bureaucrats hungry for more power. This is in part due to lingering authoritarian tendencies that prevent the development of strong democratic roots, which in turn leads to public policies that are neither based on local needs nor responsive to civil society concerns. Política pública y democracia … Read more
[i]The Obama Administration and the Americas: Agenda for Change[/i] edited by Abraham F. Lowenthal, Theodore J. Piccone, and Laurence Whitehead
As the new U.S. administration completes its first six months in office, the authors of The Obama Administration and the Americas: Agenda for Change may be pleased to see that the themes they outline—dialogue, collaboration and multilateralism—are reflected in President Barack Obama’s initial outreach to Latin America. Despite this thematic convergence, however, the volume falls … Read more
The Re-electionistas: The Debate Continues
Twenty years ago, the Dominican Republic was the only Latin American democracy that allowed its presidents to seek re-election. Today, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela have joined the list of countries that allow presidents to seek a second consecutive term. Venezuela and Colombia are poised to go further still; in a February plebiscite, … Read more
Manifest Destiny in the Amazon Basin
Brazil is an Atlantic nation in search of its Pacific destiny. Although it has long nurtured the dream of becoming a two-ocean, continental power, much as a young and expanding America was drawn across the continent to the Pacifc by the call of Manifest Destiny, South America’s largest country has for most of its history … Read more
The Obstacles to Justice for the Indigenous
Latin America’s estimated 50 million indigenous people, who make up 10 percent of the region’s population, liv in appalling conditions. They suffer endemic poverty as well as marginalization and exclusion from mainstream society. To make matters worse, the international and national legal norms intended to guarantee indigenous communties fair and equal access to justice have … Read more
Energy. Bringing Fuel-Efficient Vehicles to the U.S. Market
As the troubled U.S. auto industry begins to take seriously the challenge of “going green,” American car-buyers stand to benefit from Latin America’s achievements in promoting and marketing fuel-efficient transportation. Affordable subcompacts like the Ford Fiesta and General Motor’s (GM) Chevrolet Corsa and Spark are popular with drivers across the region. Subcompacts are a success … Read more
Climate Change. Responding to Global Fluctuations
Climate policy debates are usually focused on future actions. But for many of Latin America’s poorest people, the crisis is already underway. Global climate change is currently responsible for 300,000 deaths per year. A May 2009 report by the Global Humanitarian Forum (GHF) estimates that the effects of climate change annually leave 325 million people … Read more
Crime and Security in Central America
In the aftermath of Central America’s brutal civil wars, the region became a laboratory for “zero-tolerance” policies to reduce violent crime. Now, the region’s governments have concluded that such repressive policies have failed, and they are exploring new approaches with the help of the international community. Guatemala and El Salvador are leading moves to develop … Read more
