Melbourne Latin America Dialogue

Session 1- Welcome and Opening Remarks

MC, Tim Harcourt, The Airport Economist; J.W. Nevile Fellow in Economics, The Australian School of Business, UNSW

Speakers:

Acknowledgement of Country, Aimee McCartney, Ormond College student

Professor Glyn Davis AC, Vice-Chancellor, The University of Melbourne

David Luboff, Chairman, Council on Australia Latin America Relations; Executive Director, Macquarie Funds Group

H.E. Pedro Villagra Delgado, Ambassador of Argentina; Dean of the Latin American Group of Ambassadors

Session 2 - Resources and the Changing Global Balance

Australasia and Latin America share significant technological, sustainability, legal and financing expertise. Today there is a tremendous opportunity to build on this shared expertise by forming mutually beneficial relationships between the regions. This session will expose the drivers and barriers for global collaboration in the South American minerals industry.

Chair:
Professor Michael Crommelin, Zelman Cowen Professor of Law, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne

Speakers:
Rob Grant, Chief Executive Officer, Pacific Hydro Pty Ltd; Director, Council on Australia Latin America Relations
Jonathan Law, Director of the Minerals Down Under Flagship, CSIRO Professor Adrian Pearce, Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne
Professor Doreen Thomas, Melbourne School of Engineering, The University of Melbourne

Session 3 - Opportunities for Strengthening Australia-Latin America Relations

Engage in a vibrant dialogue with prominent voices from the growing community of Latin Americans living in Australia In an increasingly globalized world, there is an arrival of a new generation of Latin Americans in Australia. These new communities play a key role in consolidating the presence and influence of Latin America in our society.

Chair: Dr Raul Sanchez Urribarri, Lecturer, Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences, La Trobe University

Speakers:

H.E. Alberto Fajardo Klappenbach, Ambassador of Uruguay

H.E. Pedro Monzón Barata, Ambassador of Cuba

Dr Victor Del Rio, Director, Red River Strategic Communication

Telmo Languiller MP, Member for Derrimut, Parliament of Victoria

Diego Velasco von-Pilgrimm, Consul-General of Chile in Melbourne

Session 4 - Agriculture and Food Security: Efficiencies in Energy, Water, and Genetic

This session explores the different ways Victoria and Latin America can improve collaboration in the agricultural field. The discussion will focus on: significance of the Latin America--Australia relationship in terms of agriculture and food security; key areas of mutual interest; and any impediments to collaboration.

Chair:
Dr Tony Gregson AM, ATSE

Speakers:
Professor Snow Barlow, FTSE, FAIAST, Professor of Horticulture and Viticulture, Melbourne School of Land and Environment, The University of Melbourne
Professor Andrew Western, Deputy Head, Department of Infrastructure Engineering, The University of Melbourne
Professor Rick Roush, Dean, Melbourne School of Land and Environment, The University of Melbourne
Associate Professor Ruth Nettle, Rural Innovation Research Group, The University of Melbourne

Session 5 - Australian Strategic Relations with Latin America

This session will address different aspects of how Australia might go about engaging Latin America. Attention will be turned to wider strategic questions and specific case studies. Examination of opportunities in the media sector as well as experiences in education and foreign aid will provide ideas of where and how the bilateral relationship might progress.

Chair:
Professor Margaret Gardner, Vice-Chancellor, RMIT University; Chair, COALAR Education Action Group

Speakers:
Dr Sean Burges, School of Politics & International Relations, The Australian National University
John McCarthy, Prime Minister's Special Representative for Latin America, Former Ambassador to Mexico and Current National President of the Australian Institute of International Affairs
Dr John Minns, Director, Australian National Centre for Latin American Studies, The Australian National University
Professor John Sinclair, Honorary Professorial Fellow, The Australian Centre, The University of Melbourne

Session 8 - Engaging Latin America - An Education Perspective

This session provides an overview of the Latin American student market in Victoria. It explores the importance of educational institutional links and an Australian brand in the Latin American market. It also analyses future engagement models for education institutions in the region.

Supported by The State Government of Victoria

Chair:
Marion van Rooden, Executive Director, Labour Markets and International Education, Department of Business and Innovation

Speakers:
Professor Margaret Gardner AO, Vice-Chancellor, RMIT University; Chair, Council on Australia Latin America Relations Education Action Group
Crispin Conroy, Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner to Latin America, Austrade; Consul-General, Bogota, Colombia
Roger Frankel, Honorary Consul of Brazil to Victoria

Session 9 - Latin America in the World

This session will look at some shared experiences, parallels and differences between Latin American and Australia and their relationship to a changing world. The discussion will focus on: the emergence of middle class consumers in Latin American countries; how the region is shaped by its proximity to the US; Brazil's role in the region and global governance; and the shared challenges of China's rise for our economies.

Chair:
Martine Letts, Deputy Director, Lowy Institute for International Policy

Speakers:
Professor Marshall C. Eakin, Professor of Latin American History, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
Dr Adrian H. Hearn, Australian Research Council (ARC) Future Fellow; Social and Political Sciences, Faculty of Arts, The University of Sydney
Associate Professor Amâncio Jorge Silva Nunes de Oliveira, Department of Political Science, University of São Paulo

Session 10 - International Education and Leadership in Languages

This session compares higher education participation and research in Latin America and Australia, focusing on research capacity and university rankings. It shows that Latin America is experiencing a rapid rate of development in higher education. The majority of this development is concentrated in Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Argentina, with Colombia, Venezuela and Cuba emerging at the next level. Language education at tertiary level in Australia is discussed in relation to English (ESL), Spanish and Portuguese.

Chair:
Professor Alfredo Martínez-Expósito, Head, School of Languages and Linguistics, Faculty of Arts, The University of Melbourne

Speakers:
Angel Calderón, Principal Advisor Planning and Research, RMIT University
Professor Simon Marginson, Professor of Higher Education in the Centre for the Study of Higher Education, The University of Melbourne
Dr Wendy Jarvie, Visiting Professor, School of Business, UNSW@Canberra

Session 12 - Opportunities and Challenges for the Australia- Latin America Relationship

This session brings together a multilateral perspective on trade and investment opportunities between Australia and Latin America. It highlights past successes, current challenges, and growth areas for mutual partnerships. The speakers provide expertise on the business environment in Australia and Latin America.

Speakers:
Crispin Conroy, Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner to Latin America, Austrade; Consul-General, Bogota, Colombia
Ronaldo Veirano, Honorary Consul of Australia to Rio de Janeiro
David Luboff, Chairman, Council on Australia Latin America Relations; Executive Director, Macquarie Funds Group

Respondents:
Jose Blanco, Chairman, The Australia- Latin America Business Council
Bernard Wheelahan, Independent Company Director
Cristina Talacko, President, Australia- Brazil Chamber of Commerce and Director, Council of Australia Latin America Relations
Roger Frankel, Honorary Consul of Brazil to Victoria Martine Letts, Deputy Director, Lowy Institute for International Policy

Closing Remarks

Speakers:
Professor Susan Elliott, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Engagement), The University of Melbourne
Professor Alfredo Martínez-Expósito, Head, School of Languages and Linguistics, The University of Melbourne