National to City, Diagnosis to Funding
For too long, Latin America’s urbanization has been haphazard and chaotic. As a result, the world’s most urbanized region (with over 80 percent of its population living in cities) became associated with sprawl, waste, inefficiency, pollution, and increasing vulnerability to climate change. But a new approach to this challenge emerged on the sidelines of the … Read more
Brazil’s Acre State Asks to Close Borders, Keep Haitians Out
The Brazilian state of Acre has asked the government to temporarily close the Brazil-Peru border to control Haitian migration. Acre’s secretary of justice and human rights, Nilson Mourão, said the levels of Haitian migration into the region are unsustainable and have strained the capacity of social services in the area. Since the 7.0-magnitude earthquake that … Read more
Cuba Under Raúl Castro: Assessing the Reforms by Carmelo Mesa-Lago and Jorge Pérez-López
When Cuban President Raúl Castro first assumed power in 2006 after his bombastic brother, Fidel, fell ill, few knew what to expect. Some believed his custodianship of the presidency would be short-lived and that the island’s longtime Líder Máximo would surely come roaring back. Others simply assumed Raúl would follow in his brother’s footsteps, shepherding … Read more
Chinese New Year with Cuban Flavor
View a slideshow of Havana’s Chinatown below. Havana’s Chinatown was once the largest and most economically significant Chinese community in Latin America. In the latter part of the nineteenth century, more than 150,000 Chinese immigrants arrived in Cuba to work in the sugar fields. Their descendants opened restaurants, cafeterias, theaters, banks, and newspapers, and propelled … Read more
Fresh Look Reviews
Fresh, unique perspectives on recent books from across the hemisphere originally published in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
Cuba: Port Upgrades and Free-Trade Zones
When Latin American and Caribbean heads of state gather in Cuba in January 2014 for the Comunidad de Estados Latinoamericanos y Caribeños (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States— CELAC) summit, the agenda will include a side trip to Mariel Bay. There, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and Cuban President Raúl Castro will cut the ribbon … Read more
Business Innovator: Ruth DeGolia, United States
View a video interview with Ruth DeGolia below. Ruth DeGolia, 31, is living proof that an idealistic college student can make a difference. As founder and executive director of Mercado Global, a Brooklyn, New York–based nonprofit now in its ninth year, DeGolia and her team have earned the respect of both businesses and philanthropic organizations … Read more
Policy Updates
A snapshot of policy trends and successes in the region.
Monday Memo: Supreme Court and Argentina – Michoacán Violence – Pope Names Cardinals – Nicaragua Canal – Venezuelan Bolivars
Likely top stories this week: the U.S. Supreme Court will look at Argentina’s debt case; Michoacán’s government asks for help; Pope Francis names Haitian, Brazilian, Nicaraguan and Chilean cardinals; President Ortega says that Nicaragua Canal construction will begin this year; Air Europa rejects Venezuelan customers’ bolivars. Argentina’s Bondholder Battle Goes to U.S. Supreme Court: The … Read more
U.S., Cuba Discuss Migration Policy
U.S. acting deputy assistant secretary of State for Western Hemisphere affairs, Edward Alex Lee, and Cuban director-general of the U.S. Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Josefina Vidal Ferreiro, met in Havana on Thursday to discuss accords on safe, legal and orderly migration between the two countries. This was the second meeting on migration … Read more
Monday Memo: Brazilian Elections – Fires in Chile – Mexican Protesters – Nicaragua Canal – World Cup
Likely top stories this week: Eduardo Campo and Marina Silva are expected to run in Brazil’s presidential elections; Chile suffers from drought and wildfires; Mexican police remove protesters; Nicaragua will start work on its canal in 2015; FIFA criticizes Brazil’s World Cup preparations. Likely Campos-Silva Ticket in Brazil’s Next Elections: Pernambuco Governor Eduardo Campo and … Read more
DR, Haiti to Discuss Citizenship Ruling
Government officials from the Dominican Republic and Haiti will meet next month to discuss a controversial court decision that would take citizenship away from thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent, Haiti’s foreign minister Pierre Richard Casimir said on Thursday. A commission made up of five officials from both countries will meet in Ouanaminthe, a town … Read more
Cuba Reforms Policy on Car Sales
The Cuban government announced yesterday that it will be loosening restrictions on the purchase of new and used foreign-made cars. Under the new policy, Cubans will no longer need a permit issued by the Transportation Ministry to purchase cars from state vendors. Until 2011, Cubans could only buy and sell cars made before 1959. But … Read more
Cuba’s Loudest Citizens Are Literally Screaming To Be Heard
On Saturday nights in central Havana, a scene unfolds that defies stereotypes on this communist island famous for its salsa, strong rum and revolutionary heroes. With the hiss of a fog machine, the country’s iconic rock star, Diony Arce, emerges from the darkness inside a local theater. He grabs a microphone and launches into a … Read more
Bailout for Puerto Rico? Not Likely.
All eyes were on Detroit earlier this month as Federal Judge Steven Rhodes ruled that the city could discharge public pensions, along with other debt, as it restructures under Chapter 9 bankruptcy. While other cities look at the ruling as a viable—though unfortunate—solution for their financial woes, there is one especially troubled economy that will … Read more
