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For Immediate Release
April 11, 2008 - King’s College will host a two-day interdisciplinary conference titled “Landscapes of Latin America: Economic Development, Ethics and the Environment in the 21st Century,” April 24-25. The conference sessions will examine the changing business, political, economic, cultural, ethical and natural landscapes in the countries of Latin America. Funding for the conference is provided by the McGowan Center for Ethics and Public Life and a Department of Education Title VI, International Studies Grant to King’s College. The McGowan Center for Ethics and Public Life serves as a hub for research, assessment, and publication of best practices in ethics and moral development. There will be plenary and concurrent sessions on both days of the conference. On April 24, Rev. David Farrell, C.S.C., founder and director of the Insituto de Pastoral de la Familia in Lima, Peru, will open the conference with an address on “Business, Ethics and Society in a Latin America Context.” Eduardo Marques Almeida, vice president of TechnoServe, a world leading non-governmental organization designed to alleviate poverty in rural areas of Latin America through business and entrepreneurship development will speak on “Value Chain Approach for Economic Development.” Senator Juan Fernando Perdomo of Mexico will discuss “Mexico: Economic and Political Challenges.” The concurrent sessions on April 24 will include “Doing Business in Latin America,” “Immigrant Educational Outreach,” “Health Care Issues,” and ‘Coverage of Latino Affairs.” A plenary session on “Ethical Considerations for Operating in Latin America” led by Kim Byriel, vice president international for Inter-Metro, will begin the Friday, April 25, schedule. That presentation will be followed by two separate concurrent sessions, the last one ending at 3:30 p.m. Among the topics discussed in the concurrent sessions will be immigration issues, internationalizing education, economic policy, foreign investment & Latin America and environmental issues. The conference will close with a presentation by Miguel Pinedo-Vasquez, professor of environmental science at Columbia University who will speak on “Research and Implementation of Development and Conservation Projects in Amazonia.” A highlight of the conference will be the Friday luncheon address of noted Cuban-American poet and fiction writer, Gustavo Perez Firmat, the David Feinson Professor of Humanities at Columbia University. He will deliver an address titled “Havana Manana: Cuba in the American Imagination.” Registration fee for the conference is $80 and includes access to both days of programs as well as three meals a day on Thursday and Friday. Complete information on the conference is available at: http://www.kings.edu/idc or by contacting Margarita Rose, professor of economics and the Herve LeBlanc Distinguished Service Professor at King’s Colllege, at (570)208-5900, x. 5778. King's College is a Catholic College sponsored by the congregation of Holy Cross. |