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Confronting COVID-19 in Latin American Cities

PAST EVENT VIDEO
Panel
Former mayors from Rio de Janeiro, Santiago, and Quito shared their insights on Latin American cities' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic and their recommendations for recovery.
Speakers
Claudio Orrego
Eduardo Paes
Mauricio Rodas
Juliana Kerr
Event Date

About This Event

With urban density, deep socio-economic inequities, and weak public healthcare infrastructure, experts predict Latin America will be particularly hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The virus is spreading quickly in the region, particularly in Brazil, Chile, and Ecuador. Latin America already faces glaring health disparities, with over 50% of the population unable to access health care. Heavily reliant on tourism and commodity exports, the economic response and recovery may be resource-limited. National responses to COVID-19 have varied, including denial of the severity of the virus, forcing mayors to make hard choices about how to keep their residents safe. What lessons should Latin American cities adopt from the rest of the world to survive this pandemic? Former mayors from Rio de Janeiro, Santiago, and Quito share their insights on Latin American cities' responses, their biggest concerns, and their recommendations for the path to recovery.

About the Speakers
Distinguished Fellow, Global Cities
Council expert Claudio Orrego
Claudio Orrego is a distinguished fellow for the Global Cities team at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs. From March 2014 through March 2018, he was the governor of the Metropolitan Region of Santiago, and prior to that, he was elected as the presidential candidate for the Christian Democrat party.
Council expert Claudio Orrego
Eduardo Paes
Former Mayor, City of Rio de Janeiro
Eduardo Paes served as mayor of Rio de Janeiro from 2009 to 2016. During his second term, he was elected chairman of the C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group in 2013 and was championed for hosting the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. He has dedicated his entire career to public service, beginning in 1993 when appointed deputy mayor of the Jacarepaguá and Barra districts in Rio at the age of twenty-three.
Distinguished Fellow, Global Cities
Council expert Mauricio Rodas
Mauricio Rodas, a fellow at the Council, founded and served as the Executive Director of Ethos Public Policy Lab, a think tank based in Mexico that went on to be ranked among the most influential in Latin America. In 2013 he ran for president of Ecuador and was then elected as mayor of Quito. He was named one of the 100 Worlds' Most Influential People on Climate Action in 2019 by "Apolitical."
Council expert Mauricio Rodas
Juliana Kerr
Senior Program Director - Migration, The Walder Foundation
Juliana Kerr is the senior program director of migration at the Walder Foundation, and the former director of Global Cities at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.