On Thursday, April 9, at 9:00 a.m. ET, the Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center will host the Global Prosperity Forum at the Atlantic Council’s global headquarters in Washington, DC. With the US reshaping its approach to foreign assistance and international investment, this year’s Forum will highlight new approaches to advancing democracy and prosperity across the world.
Headlined by a #ACFrontPage on US commercial diplomacy strategies with Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau, The Forum will feature discussions about development finance, democracy assistance, global entrepreneurship policy, country spotlights on Iran and Venezuela, and more. Speakers include leaders and experts shaping the international development landscape.
New policy: In-person attendees will be required to show photo ID upon arrival, and no on-site registration will be permitted.
Please complete the form below to register for this event.
NOTE: Due to limited seating capacity, registration for the morning sessions is now closed. You can still use the form below to register for the afternoon sessions, which begin at 2:00 p.m. ET, and you are welcome to attend our reception after the event.
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speakers
Agenda
9:00–9:05 a.m. | Welcoming remarks
Speakers
James Mazzarella
Senior Director, Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
Michael Fisch
Founder and CEO,
American Securities;
Chairman, Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
9:05–10:00 a.m. | AC Front Page: Christopher Landau on commercial diplomacy to advance US interests worldwide
Featuring
Christopher Landau
Deputy Secretary of State,
US Department of State
Moderated by
Frederick Kempe
President and CEO,
Atlantic Council
10:00–11:00 a.m. | Achieving strategic objectives through investment and development finance
Speakers
Colin Buckley
Managing Director and General Counsel,
British International Investment
Dan Petrie
Acting Chief of Staff,
Millennium Challenge Corporation
Bethany Aquilina Brez
Vice President, Office of Foreign Policy,
US International Development Finance Corporation
Jake Cusack
Co-founder and Managing Director,
CrossBoundary Group
Moderated by
Kimberly Reed
Distinguished Fellow, Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
11:15–11:45 a.m. | The future of democracy assistance
Speakers
Dan Twining
President,
International Republican Institute
Melissa Ford Maldonado
Director, Western Hemisphere Initiative,
America First Policy Institute
Moderated by
Patrick Quirk
Senior Advisor, Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
11:45–12:45 p.m. | From evidence to reform: Kicking off the Entrepreneurship Policy Initiative
Speakers
Greg Wolcott
Director, Individual Freedom and Free Markets,
John Templeton Foundation
Dan Barnes
Managing Director, Selection and Accountability,
Millennium Challenge Corporation
Adriana Vicentini
CEO,
MEG Inteligencia de Datos
Patrick McLaughlin
Research Fellow, Hoover Institution,
Stanford University
Moderated by
Moussa Traoré
Director, Entrepreneurship Policy Initiative,
Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
2:00–2:45 p.m. | Winning hearts and markets? China’s reach in the Global South
Speakers
Joseph Asunka
CEO,
Afrobarometer
Melanie Hart
Senior Director, Global China Hub,
Atlantic Council
Ho-fung Hung
Henry M. and Elizabeth P. Wiesenfeld Professor in Political Economy,
Johns Hopkins University
Moderated by
Jeremy Mark
Nonresident Senior Fellow, GeoEconomics Center,
Atlantic Council
2:00–2:45 p.m. | Iran country spotlight: War, human rights, and the path to a better future
Featuring
Holly Dagres
Libitzky Family Senior Fellow, Viterbi Program on Iran and US Policy,
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Moderated by
Nate Swanson
Director, Iran Strategy Project, Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs,
Atlantic Council
2:00–2:45 p.m. | Economic statecraft or development: Does the distinction still hold?
Speakers
Conor Savoy
Visiting Fellow,
Center for Global Development
Cindy Huang
Non-Resident Fellow,
Center for Global Development
Geoffrey Pyatt
Senior Managing Director, Energy and Critical Minerals
McLarty Associates
Moderated by
Adva Saldinger
Senior Reporter,
Devex
3:00–3:30 p.m. | Responsible mining in the critical minerals sector
Speakers
Tom Haslett
Director, Energy and Critical Minerals Policy,
US International Development Finance Corporation
Alan Carroll
Deputy Director, Government Affairs,
KoBold Metals
Moderated by
Kyeh Kim
COO,
Fulcrum Ventures
3:00–3:30 p.m. | Venezuela country spotlight: Navigating political and economic transition
Featuring
Rafael De La Cruz
Director,
Office of Maria Corina Machado and the President-elect
Edmundo González Urrutia in the United States
Moderated by
Daniel P. Erikson
Senior Advisor,
Covington and Burling;
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center,
Atlantic Council
3:00–3:30 p.m. | Supporting strategic trade corridors in the Middle East
Speakers
Alina Romanowski
Distinguished Fellow, Iraq Initiative, Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative,
Atlantic Council
Wa’el Alzayat
Executive Director,
US-Syria Business Council
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Syria Project, Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs,
Atlantic Council
Moderated by
Allison Minor
Director, Project on Middle East Integration, Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs,
Atlantic Council
3:45–4:15 p.m. | Toward a modern era of development cooperation
Speakers
Rania Al-Mashat
Former Minister of Planning, Economic Development and International Cooperation,
Arab Republic of Egypt
Vera Songwe
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Africa Growth Initiative,
Brookings Institution;
Founder and Chairwoman,
The Liquidity and Sustainability Facility
Moderated by
Alexia LaTortue
Head of Secretariat,
Future of Development Cooperation Coalition
3:45–4:15 p.m. | Syria country spotlight: The need for a ‘rules-first’ reset
Featuring
Ibrahim Al-Assil
Senior Research Fellow, Middle East Initiative,
Harvard Kennedy School;
Nonresident Senior Fellow, Syria Project,
Atlantic Council
Moderated by
Nour Dabboussi
Associate Director, MENA Futures Lab, Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs,
Atlantic Council
3:45–4:15 p.m. | Using energy security compacts to promote growth
Speakers
Quill Robinson
Senior Professional Staff Member, House Foreign Affairs Committee,
US House of Representatives
Chris Avila
Energy and Environment Legislative Assistant,
Office of Senator Chris Coons
Moderated by
Katie Auth
Deputy Executive Director,
Energy for Growth Hub
4:30–5:00 p.m. | Non-kinetic approaches to countering cartels
Speakers
Noy Villalobos
Chief Programs Officer,
Creative Associates International
Connor Pfeiffer
Senior Director, Government Relations,
FDD Action
Moderated by
Patrick Quirk
Senior Advisor, Freedom and Prosperity Center,
Atlantic Council
4:30–5:00 p.m. | Tunisia country spotlight: Building institutions for long-term stability
Featuring
Ameni Mehrez
Assistant Professor, Government Department,
College of William & Mary;
Nonresident Fellow, Middle East Initiative,
Harvard Kennedy School
Moderated by
Nour Dabboussi
Associate Director, MENA Futures Lab, Rafik Hariri Center and Middle East Programs,
Atlantic Council
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The Freedom and Prosperity Center aims to increase the prosperity of the poor and marginalized in developing countries and to explore the nature of the relationship between freedom and prosperity in both developing and developed nations.
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