Latin America Water Summit

Registration: Google Forms

Presented by CIPS and Wings of Hope

To celebrate World Water Day (March 22, 2024), the Centre for International Policy Studies (CIPS) invites you to a special roundtable discussion convened by representatives of different countries and members of International water initiatives. This summit aims to address pressing global water issues, raise awareness about the current status of water resources, and delve into the unique geopolitical dynamics surrounding water in Latin America. Through expert discussions and presentations, the summit will highlight the challenges facing water management and sustainability, foster collaboration, and propose solutions to ensure equitable access to clean water for all communities.

Join us for an fascinating evening as we showcase the importance of water globally and celebrate this very precious resource.

Speakers:

Ambassador of El Salvador – Ricardo A. Cisneros

Ambassador of El Salvador to Canada since November 2020. He is a career diplomat of El Salvador, since 2005. For 18 years, he held diplomatic posts at UNESCO, the European Union, in Canada, Italy, the United Nations in Geneva and France, before working in Paris from 2010 until 2020 as international diplomatic consultant promoting countries and cities for international Expos candidacies. He had as clients: Astana 2017, Sao Paolo 2020, Minnesota 2023, Osaka 2025, Busan 2030, Riyadh 2030. He have an international MBA specialized in the European Union and a Master in Applied research in management both from La Sorbonne, Paris. He specialized in marketing and particularly in ‘Place Marketing’ and ‘Nation Branding’. Between 2015 and 2020 he was a professor at the ISCOM Paris communication school teaching on Nation Branding, Place Marketing, Soft Power, Mega-events, Lobbying, Strategic marketing. Married, with two children, he speaks Spanish, French and English and speaks Italian well. Photographer and saxophonist in his spare time.

Ambassador of Panama – Romy Vasquez Morales

International manager with over twenty-five years of experience in managing business strategies, building partnerships and practicing high-level diplomacy to achieve successful execution of an organization’s business and strategic plans. Gained extensive hands-on experience developing synergies between the public and private sectors in a global international environment with the aim of fostering economic development with corporate social responsibility, both locally and in the hemisphere. Recognized for strong management and interpersonal skills with an energetic and innovative approach to problem solving. Complemented by excellent multilingual communication and negotiation skills. As Consultant, provides strategies on corporate social responsibility for private companies and foundations, as well as socio economic and political reports. President of CSR and Ethics Committee at Asociación Panameña de Ejecutivos de Empresas in 2016-2017. In Country Manager for Joint Venture Panama, the company selected to lead the first two years of the EPCM contract of Cobre Panama, the most ambitious mining project of the Central American region, from 2011-2013. Ambassador Vasquez also has experience in the logistics sector, main driver of the Panamanian economy today, as she worked for DHL Global Forwarding. As diplomat, Ms. Vasquez has served as Ambassador of Panama to Canada from 2005-2009, appointment that currently has taken her back to Ottawa on December 2019. She was also responsible in Mexico City and Quito as Economic Advisor for the Panamanian missions, and has lived in Milan, Michigan, and Florida; In Mexico City, owned and managed a retail business for ten years from 1995-2005, developing offshoring strategy to move manufacturing from Mexico to China while continuing to run distribution operations through a fully owned retail chain of boutiques. She has an MBA from Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico (1987) and a BS Sciences degree from Georgetown University in Washington DC (1983). Ambassador Romy Vasquez is the mother of Diego Alberto Gonzalez Vasquez and Milena Gonzalez Vasquez.

Ambassador of Peru – Manuel Talavera Espinar

Ambassador Talavera has a Bachelor’s degree in Social Sciences with a major in Economics from the Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Peru (PUCP). He holds a Master’s degree in International Relations with a major in Economic Promotion from the Diplomatic Academy of Peru. He entered the Diplomatic Service of the Republic of Peru on January 1, 1984. Abroad, he served at the Permanent Representation of Peru to the UN (1987- 1993), at the Embassy of Peru in Ecuador (1995-2000), at the Consulate General of Peru in Washington (2004-2007), and at the Embassy of Peru in the United States of America as Deputy Head of Mission (2007-2010). In 2010 he was promoted to the rank of Ambassador. In 2013 he was Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Peru to the Republic of Singapore, in 2021 he was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Peru to the United Mexican States, and he is currently Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Peru to Canada. During his career in Peru, in 2010 he was appointed Executive Secretary of the Administrative Commission of the XI Regular Session of the OAS General Assembly, and was National Executive Secretary of the III Summit of Heads of State and Government of the South American-Arab Countries Forum (ASPA). In 2011, he was appointed Director General of Peruvian Communities Abroad and Consular Affairs. In 2018 he was Secretary General of Foreign Affairs. In February 2020 he was appointed Executive Director of the Peru Chapter of the Binational Development Plan for the Peru-Ecuador Border Region and Executive Secretary of the Binational Fund for Peace and Development. In July 2020 he was appointed Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru. He is married and has two children. His eldest son is First Secretary in the Diplomatic Service of the Republic of Peru.

Program Coordinator, International Secretariat of Water – Vladimir Arana

Vladimir Arana studied urban planning, landscape architecture, environmental engineering and sustainable infrastructure in Peru, USA and Sweden. He has worked as advisor to CAF-Latin American Development Bank, advisor to CARE International, advisor to Peru’s Vice-Minister of the Environment, Director General of Peru’s Ministry of Housing, Construction and Sanitation, Consultant to the Potato Center-CGIAR, etc. Since 2023 he is doctoral researcher at the Applied Human Sciences (SHA) Program at University of Montreal. His research interests are related to the governance of water as a common good, the inclusion of civil society in decision-making, traditional knowledge on water management, climate change, sustainable development, decolonization, and innovative non-traditional solutions in developing countries. Since 2012, he has been Programs Coordinator for the International Secretariat for Water, an international non-profit organization based in Montreal.

President and CEO, Wings of Hope – André Franche

André Franche is President and CEO of Wings of Hope. He first came to Peru in 1964, and his commitment to the Peruvian people has grown  ever since. Under his leadership since 2000, Wings of Hope has devoted all its energies and resources to supporting the efforts of Peru’s remote communities whether in the Andes, the Amazon or rural villages on the coast, to gain reliable, sustainable access to clean water.

Organizer & Moderator:

Dr. Christina Romulus initially started her health care career as a physiotherapist, graduated from the University of Ottawa and worked at the Ottawa General Hospital. She then made the jump to medicine and completed her residency and fellowship in Hospital Medicine at the University of British Colombia. She worked in Vancouver for a few years in General Medicine and Medical Aesthetics and moved to Ottawa in 2016. She is now working at the Queensway-Carleton hospital as a hospitalist. She also proudly opened her Medical Aesthetic clinic in 2021. With her impressive medical career spanning over 20 years, Dr. Romulus has held key roles in rural medicine. She has worked in many Canadian northern rural communities including Nunavut and northern British Columbia. She also plays an active role at the International level. She has done medical work in Haiti where she continues to be involved in primary care. Her latest projects are now in Peru, focusing in supporting remote villages to have access to potable water. Currently, she serves as a mentor of Black Med Collective, a mentorship program for black students in the Ottawa community to support and encourage medical education. In addition, she holds an academic appointment with the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa where she teaches medical students. She is devoted to advancing social justice and addressing issues such as gender discrimination and Anti-Black racism in health care. Dr. Romulus speaks French, Spanish, Haitian Creole and is professionally fluent in Italian.