How Obama’s Havana Trip Signals a ‘New Normal’ in U.S.-Cuba Relations
For all the pomp and circumstance surrounding U.S. President Barack Obama’s trip to Cuba last week, the visit had a simple goal: to make the administration’s opening to the island impossible to reverse, no matter who wins the White House in November. After spending the week of Obama’s visit in Havana, it is clear to … Read more
Rio’s Big Moment: A Photo Essay
This was supposed to be the year of Rio de Janeiro. The 2016 Olympics were meant to showcase a safer, modernizing city that could not only provide for its more than 6 million citizens, but also play host to a marvelous global party. Unfortunately, it hasn’t turned out that way – Rio has been badly … Read more
Interview: Javier Olivan, Facebook
Facebook began in 2004 as an online social networking service for students at Harvard University. Since then, it has grown into a global enterprise worth over $200 billion, with more than 1 billion active users. In July 2014, the company launched Internet.org, with telecom and other industry partners, in an effort to broaden access to … Read more
Commerce Without Borders: Latin America’s Wired Entrepreneurs
In 2013, Nataliya and Daniel Ulasik started their own business in Quito, Ecuador. The business, EcuaLama, enables Indigenous people in the small Ecuadorian mountain town of Otavalo to sell handmade blankets, ponchos and hats to consumers in 30 countries. The company’s online sales and marketing eventually led to a relationship with a London-based retailer. Today, … Read more
Silicon Valley 2.0
Not too long ago, in a city known for its sunshine and surrounding mountains, a team of young developers submitted their newest creation to Apple’s app store. It was called Typic. Beautiful in its simplicity, it offered a means of artistically embedding text in a photo, along with various filters and other options. After the … Read more
Innovators
Some of our hemisphere’s emerging leaders in politics, business, civil society, and the arts.
Mil maneras de ¨hackear” el Congreso
La pregunta que el cofundador y director de Personal Democracy Media, Micah L. Sifry, se hizo en su libro, “The Big Disconnect: Why the Internet Hasn’t Transformed Politics (Yet)” (“La gran desconexión: Por qué Internet no ha transformado la política (aún)”), ocupa desde hace años la mente de activistas, politólogos, hackers, periodistas y todos aquellos … Read more
Why Our Businesses Need Executive Action on Immigration
Over the past week, politicians have argued about whether or not President Barack Obama should take administrative action to protected undocumented immigrants and their families. But for small business owners like me, the case is clear: the president should act quickly and boldly. I’m the proud, tax-paying owner of Latina Beauty Variedades, a clothing and … Read more
Constructing Peace: How the Private Sector Can Help
Colombia finds itself at a watershed in the country’s history. With the possible end to over half a century of violence, a new peaceful future beckons. But Colombia’s much-desired peace will not just fall from the sky. It will have to be built by all Colombians through an arduous, perhaps decades-long process. We have come … Read more
Why Entrepreneurship Matters in Cuba
For almost two decades, I have watched entrepreneurship explode across Latin America and the Caribbean, empowering citizens, transforming economies and changing lives. In sectors ranging from restaurants and small manufacturing to high tech, entrepreneurs are changing the economic and social landscape of the region. Perhaps most important, they are also generating jobs. Across the region, … Read more
Cuba’s New Business Class
A palpable energy is reinvigorating the once-stagnant Cuban economy. Entrepreneurial businesses—spanning all sectors and industries—are springing up across the island. Walking through the streets of Havana, Santa Clara or Camagüey, it’s hard not to trip over construction sites for private restaurants, or see the storefronts offering manicures, haircuts, cell phone repairs, or colorful artwork. View … Read more
Hedgefund Education
In both the U.S. and Latin America, the forces of technology and entrepreneurship are on the cusp of fundamentally reshaping the higher education sector. Increased demand and the changing nature of the labor market have led to new players and new models entering the higher ed market. The combination of sustained economic growth, a region-wide … Read more
Higher Education and Competitiveness
Articles: The Future of Latin American Studies by Charles Hale The prospects have never been better. Full text available. published article?1 Protest U. by Indira Palacios-Valladares Latin America’s students are angry—and getting angrier. Student Debt in the Americas by Carolina Ramírez A threat to the region’s middle class? Full text available. Academic Brain Drain by … Read more
MOOCs in Development: Fad or Future?
Those following tech and continuing education news have been surprised by the rising popularity of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs).1 The basic promise for professionals in Latin America and the Caribbean is quite alluring: free online access to a world-class knowledge base. But questions remain. Will this new learning methodology last, or fade quickly once … Read more
Business Innovator: Lisa Besserman
Lisa Besserman could be at home anywhere in the world; but last year, the Queens, New York, native put down roots in Argentina to launch Startup Buenos Aires, to motivate, support and connect startups across the globe. The 29-year-old tech entrepreneur, named one of the “100 Most Influential Tech Women on Twitter” by Business Insider … Read more