The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands partnered with the Wilson Center’s Latin American Program from April 19–21, 2022, to host a meeting in advance of the Ninth Summit of the Americas. Officials from 13 Latin American and Caribbean countries, five U.S. government agencies, two multilateral development banks, and seven private sector companies explored opportunities for nearshoring and renewable energy investments in the region.

Participants gathered at the historic Sunnylands estate in Rancho Mirage, California, to discuss policy options for accelerating and expanding global value chain investments, as well as strategies for fostering the renewable energy transition. These issues are critical to creating more reliable supply chains and making progress toward climate goals.

Additionally, Sunnylands was pleased to welcome two extraordinary leaders from Southern California, Rep. Raul Ruiz and Los Angeles Deputy Mayor for International Affairs, Amb. Nina Hachigian (ret.), as special dinner guests to discuss perspectives from the U.S. Congress, Summit of the Americas preparations, and local diplomacy.

The United States will host the Ninth Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles from June 6-10, 2022, with a focus on “Building a Sustainable, Resilient, and Equitable Future” for the Western Hemisphere. The Summit of the Americas is the only hemisphere-wide convening of heads of state from the countries of North, South, and Central America and the Caribbean.  The Summit occurs every three years, and was only held once before in the United States. The Summit has four pillars: promoting a green and equitable recovery, building strong and inclusive democracies, improving pandemic response and resilience, and addressing the root causes of irregular migration.

The organizers of the pre-meeting, in collaboration with the Partnership for Central America, will issue a report to share their conclusions and recommendations on nearshoring and the renewable energy transition with key decision makers to inform Summit outcomes and commitments.

Nearshoring and renewable energy were the two main topics of discussion at the Summit of the Americas Premeeting at Sunnylands in April 2022.

For more information:

Benjamin Gedan; Deputy Director, Wilson Center Latin American Program
Benjamin.gedan@wilsoncenter.org

Cynthia Arnson; Director, Wilson Center Latin American Program
Cynthia.arnson@wilsoncenter.org

Jeffrey Phillips; Policy Director, The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands
jphillips@sunnylands.org

Ken Chavez; Director of Community & Media Relations, The Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands
kchavez@sunnylands.org