2009 Program Report

We are pleased to present this summary of the Inter-American Dialogue’s work in 2009.

This year the Dialogue released A Second Chance: U.S. Policy in the Americas, a 10-point agenda for a new US policy in the hemisphere based on the insights and recommendations that emerged from the 2008 Sol M. Linowitz Forum. Designed to guide the Obama administration through the most important challenges in the Western Hemisphere, the report called for a redirection of US policies to better align them with regional concerns and priorities. The report emphasized that the highest priority challenge for the United States and every other country in the Americas would be the slumping world economy and its social and political fallout.

Early in 2009 the Dialogue launched its new working group on energy policy and politics in Latin America. Working closely with the Inter-American Development Bank, this group of some 20 energy experts and political and economic analysts met twice to discuss cross cutting issues in energy policy and develop constructive ideas and approaches for addressing them.

The Dialogue also took on the highly charged issue of US drug policy in the Americas. With support from the Open Society Institute and the Alvar-Alice Foundation, the project is designed to contribute to a rethinking of US anti-drug policy in Latin America. It convened a politically diverse network of organizations and experts to help establish a point of reference for alternative policy directions. The project produced a final report and a major conference on Capitol Hill.

Download the complete report below.

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