Democracy and Development in 21st Century Latin America Symposium

(l-r): Geoffrey Cowan, Manuel Castells, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Fernando Calderon, Ernesto Ottone.

Guest Speakers:
• Fernando Henrique Cardoso, former president of Brazil
• Fernando Calderon, the Regional Advisor for the United Nations Development Program in Latin America
• Ernesto Ottone, the Chief of the Strategic Analysis Unit of the President of Chile
• Manuel Castells, the Wallis Annenberg Chair for Communication, Technology and Society at the USC Annenberg School for Communication

Chair: Geoffrey Garrett, professor at the USC School of International Relations, and President of the USC-based Pacific Council on International Policy

Opening Remarks: Geoffrey Cowan, dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication.

USC Center on Public Diplomacy held a closed door workshop in conjunction with the United Nations Development Program focusing on Globalization, State and Citizenship. As a pre-event, USC Center on Public Diplomacy organized a by-invitation symposium, "Democracy and Development in 21st Century Latin America." This event was attended by over 70 scholars of Latin American issues from distinguished California univerisities: UCLA, USC, UC-Santa Barbara, UC-Berkeley, and UC-San Diego.

The symposium discussed current relationships between democracy and development in Latin America. The paradox is that while the region is doing relatively well in terms of economic growth and is improving its place in the global economy (particularly Argentina, Chile, Brazil and Peru), there is a growing crisis in political institutions and credibility of government officials. With the exception of Chile, most countries are faced with a series of political scandals, corruption, and even potential disintegration of the country. Other issues addressed by the panelists included population growth, inequality and unemployment in the countries of the region. Some of the most provocative questions from the audience concerned the modernization and remodeling of the political and institutional structure and the stratification of the educational system.

Pictures from the event are below.

CPD Senior Fellow Emma Kiselyova asks a question to the panel.

(l to r): Joseph Aoun, Dean of the USC College of Letters, Arts & Sciences, Fernando Henrique Cardoso.