Food security, climate change, digitalization, artificial intelligence, combating inflation, economic recovery, democratic health, infrastructure investment and geopolitical challenges are some of the challenges spanning the globe. In the face of these global challenges, the sixth edition of the Latin America, US and Spain Global Economic Forum, held this week in New York, highlighted the importance of the relationships that connect economies on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Forum was organized by EL PAÍS and the Spain-USA Chamber of Commerce with the support of Abertis, Baker McKenzie, Grupo Nutresa, Iberia, Inditex and Indra and in collaboration with the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI). The event was attended by, among others, the current President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, the Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, as well as leading politicians and business representatives. It took place at the Roxy Hotel in New York and once again coincided with the UN General Assembly, making the city more than ever the capital of the world.
“This is a very special moment for the relations between Spain and the United States, but also between Spain and Latin America,” said the President of Prisa (EL PAÍS publishing group), Joseph Oughourlian, at the opening, emphasizing “the enormous progress in. “The relationship between the EU and Latin America” that the Spanish EU Council Presidency brings with it.
The director of EL PAÍS, Pepa Bueno, defined the tripartite relationship between Spain, the United States and Latin America as a “virtuous triangle” and called for joint efforts on two important challenges: “the green transformation and gender equality”.
Strengthen bonds
Spanish American Chamber of Commerce President Alan D. Solomont, like other speakers, emphasized the “importance of relations between the United States, Spain and Latin America.” “In today’s world, our economies are more interconnected than ever before,” he said. Strengthening global connections has always been important, but due to the pandemic disasters in Morocco and Libya, the invasion of Ukraine and geopolitical changes, it has become even more relevant, he argued.
Pedro Sánchez confirmed his government’s achievements in areas such as the green economy, the containment of inflation and “the reformist and transformative path”, which, in his opinion, shows that “Spain wants to move forward.” His words contained some key elements (the ecological transition or reducing structural unemployment) about what he intends to do when he finally manages to form a cabinet for a second term.
Mariano Jabonero, Secretary General of the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI). Corrie Aune
The incumbent Socialist government was also represented by its Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who stressed the importance of transatlantic relations in the face of the challenges of the complex international environment. In this context, “the transatlantic relationship is essential for Spain, for the EU,” he emphasized. “The values we share, the interconnectedness of our economies, put us in an unbeatable position to continue moving forward together in strengthening international and multilateral institutions to promote strong, sustainable and inclusive economic growth, defend democratic governance and provide solutions for global “As examples of this cooperation, Albares pointed to the EU-Celac summit last July and the joint initiatives between the EU and the USA.
Mariano Jabonero, Secretary General of the OEI, also referred to the summit that set a three-fold transition agenda for the region: green, to face climate change; fair, promoting democracy and human rights and digital that closes the gap in Latin America.
First, he said that Latin America “can be the first decarbonized region in the world due to its capacity to produce lithium and solar energy; also because of the enormous amount of fresh water that is available to it.” Secondly, he emphasized that “without democracy, human rights and equality there is no progress”. On the third point, he explained that the pandemic had brought with it a unique opportunity that should not be wasted “to provide quality education”.
From left to right: Christian Barrientos, General Director of Abertis Mobility Services (left); Inmaculada Riera, Director General of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce (center); and Teresa Parejo, Director of Sustainability at Iberia. Corrie Aune
However, relations between the two sides of the Atlantic do not only depend on governments and international organizations, but are largely economic. Two of the Spanish companies with the largest international presence, Iberia and Abertis, met for a conversation moderated by Inmaculada Riera, Director General of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, who highlighted the importance of public-private collaboration in the green and digital transition.
Teresa Parejo, director of sustainability at Iberia, stressed that aviation is one of the “most difficult sectors to decarbonize,” especially for long-haul flights. “But that doesn’t mean it can’t be done,” he emphasized. Parejo also recalled that there are operational solutions to avoid emissions, such as creating a single European sky “so that aircraft do not have to make unnecessary turns.”
The challenge of mobility
Christian Barrientos, Director of Abertis Mobility Services, highlighted the perspective of road infrastructure. He recalled that the planet is moving decisively towards urbanization. Half of the world’s population already lives in cities and this proportion will rise to 70% in the next 20 to 25 years. “This poses challenges for both inter-urban and intra-city mobility,” he said. He exposed the problem of infrastructure financing, which in the United States largely depends on taxes on gasoline. What can be done to help electric cars help maintain these expensive highways? Barrientos suggested refining technologies to obtain information about the movements of these vehicles.
Jan Martínez Ahrens, director of EL PAÍS América (left), in conversation with Marc Murtra, president of Indra. Corrie Aune
Indra is another Spanish multinational with a strong presence on both sides of the Atlantic. Its President, Marc Murtra, made a diagnosis of the main trends in the world of innovation and technology. He first highlighted American dominance. He also pointed to a major political current: the huge public-private component in technology. “The Biden administration is committed to strategic autonomy, which means setting the framework within which you can make decisions,” he explained. And he pointed out the importance of understanding where the relevant trend changes are headed, since it was once the Internet and now generative artificial intelligence (“a tool that increases productivity,” he said).
Biden’s commitment to strategic autonomy and the attractiveness of industrial investment inspired the inflation reduction bill passed last year, discussed in another table. “For the first time in the United States we have an industrial policy that is not limited to loans for one or two years: now we have security for 30 or 40 years,” American Clean Power President Susan Nickey said on a panel moderated by José Morán, President of the Energy, Mining and Infrastructure Group at Baker McKenzie.
Left to right: José Morán, partner and chair of the Energy, Mining and Infrastructure Practice Group at Baker McKenzie, moderates the panel with Susan Nickey, president of American Clean Power; Gabriel Alonso, CEO of 547 Energy; and Puneet Verma, vice president of federal affairs at Avangrid. Corrie Aune
Attractive market
This long-term security, according to Gabriel Alonso, CEO of 547 Energy, “clearly makes the US the most attractive market for investment due to its long-term stability” and puts the country “at the forefront of the energy transition.” .” “.
But other issues still need to be resolved, such as the length of time it takes to get approvals for transmission lines, said Puneet Verma, vice president of federal government affairs at Avangrid. “You commit to a project that you want to carry out, make certain investments and at the end you wait for seven years.” “In order for these funds to be used, we have to solve the problem of permits,” he said.
Phil Murphy, Governor of New Jersey. Corrie Aune
Almost at the end of the forum, the Democratic Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy, recalled that Spain is among the 20 most important trading partners of this state “in the middle of the Northeast Corridor”, where “20% of the…” GDP of “USA”. Murphy explained New Jersey’s success with its “location, its concentration of population [9,3 millones de habitantes] and diversity” (“20% of our neighbors are Latino”). The governor also focused on the state’s commitment to offshore wind energy, which he said is critical to combating climate change.
Artificial intelligence and food safety were other global challenges analyzed in a forum that moved from conversations about the United States to conversations about Latin America or Spain with the same ease with which English and Spanish were combined.
Ángel Alonso Arroba, Vice Dean for Management and Development of the School of Public and Global Affairs at IE University, moderates the panel by Carme Artigas, Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence of Spain (center); and Beena Ammanath, managing director of the Deloitte Global Institute for Artificial Intelligence. Corrie Aune
The present of artificial intelligence
“Artificial intelligence (AI) is not the future, it is the present,” said Carme Artigas, Secretary of State for Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence of the Spanish government. It was, of course, at the sixth Forum Latin America, the United States and Spain in the World Economy that EL PAÍS organized last Wednesday in New York. AI was present in all the morning discussions, but was particularly focused on the topic of the last table, where Artigas debated with Beena Ammanath, Managing Director of the Deloitte Global Institute of Artificial Intelligence, moderated by Ángel Alonso Arroba, Vice Dean for Management and Development of the School of Public and Global Affairs at IE University.
The Secretary of State spoke about how public initiatives can take full advantage of the benefits of AI while having the responsibility to keep its threats at bay. Taking the stand of private companies, Ammanath predicted that AI will boost the economy in unprecedented ways, but also warned that it adds a risk factor that companies will have to learn to deal with. “It will no longer just be financial or reputational risks. Now companies face ethical and trust risks arising from the responsible use of AI,” he argued. “It’s up to our generation to set the rules, just like they did when the automobile was invented. What speed limits are we going to set?”
Artigas recalled that Spain has played a legislative pioneering role in the face of these challenges, in particular with the adoption in 2021 of the Charter of Digital Rights, which includes, among other things, the right to separation, tranquility and reconciliation of private and private life. trusted. Another priority, he said, is that “no one is left behind.” “AI can help advance issues such as achieving the UN Development Goals, promoting sustainability, energy optimization or access to education, and this is where public policy comes into play,” the Foreign Minister added.
Ammanath, for his part, picked up this gauntlet and insisted on another of the driving ideas of the time: the necessary collaboration between the public and the private to meet the challenges of the future.
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