San Antonio, Texas. - The North American Development Bank (NADB) is pleased to present the Border Environmental Forum XXV which will be held on August 17 and 18, 2021 at the Westin Riverwalk Hotel in San Antonio, Texas. Due to the increase in COVID-19 cases in recent weeks, registration has been opened to include an option to view a live-stream of the forum for anyone limited by pandemic restrictions. Registration fee to the Forum is US$200.00.
In this edition of the forum, Green Energy and Binational Integration, discussions will focus on the U.S.-Mexico relationship and regional efforts to develop projects that help improve the environment, climate challenges related to water, current and future financing opportunities, new technologies and how to continue building partnerships that will benefit both countries.
San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and Texas Congressman Joaquin Castro will be the keynote speakers during the luncheon on August 17th. Mayor Nirenberg will present the City of San Antonio’s Climate Action Plan while Congressman Castro will provide an update on green infrastructure from Capitol Hill.
Keynote speakers also include: The Honorable Esteban Moctezuma, Ambassador of Mexico to the U.S.; Norman F. Anderson, President and CEO of CG/LA Infrastructure and author of Vision: Our Strategic Infrastructure Roadmap Forward; and Trinity Lloyd, Energy Transition and Sustainability Leader of Google Cloud, among others.
“We are honored by the high caliber of speakers and panelists that accepted the invitation to participate in this year’s forum,” stated NADB Managing Director Calixto Mateos Hanel. “In this venue, NADB is bringing together experts and innovators on a broad range of environmental topics, whose knowledge and initiatives could be replicated throughout the U.S.-Mexico border region to strengthen efforts to improve the environment and boost its economy in a sustainable and inclusive manner for all residents.”
Mateos added that “the Bank is following all the social distancing protocols put in place by federal and local authorities to provide safe access to all attendees. Under the current circumstances, we understand the importance of extending the scope of the forum to include virtual platforms so that more people may have access to information that could be of great value for border communities interested in developing more sustainable practices for their projects and initiatives.”
Other panelists participating in this two-day event include: Noella De Maina, Consul and Foreign Policy and Diplomacy Services Manager of the Consulate General of Canada in Dallas; Luz María de la Mora Sánchez, Undersecretary of Foreign Trade for the Mexican Ministry of Economy; Pia M. Orrenious, Vice-president and Senior Economist of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas; Janie Barrera, President and CEO of LiftFund; Gerry Schwebel, Dr. Abner Adin, Director and Founder of Adin Holdings, an internationally renowned water reuse expert from Israel; Blas L. Pérez Henríquez, Director of the California Global Energy, Water & Infrastructure Innovation Initiative from Stanford University; Gerry Schwebel, Executive VP of the Corporate International Division at IBC Bank-Laredo; and Dr. Steven Roop, CEO of Freight Shuttle Xpress.
This event was created and hosted by the Texas General Land Office (GLO) in 1994 with the mission of bringing people together from both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border to exchange information about energy, economic development and environmental issues. Throughout its history, NADB has partnered with the Texas GLO and other organizations to grow and promote this event, which was originally centered on energy issues. In 2018, NADB began hosting the forum and, after its cancellation in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, decided to expand it this year to include other environmental issues of relevance to the U.S.-Mexico border region.
This year’s sponsors include Baker McKenzie, Cacheux, Cavazos & Newton, Holland & Knight, Ritch Mueller, Consulate General of Canada and BayWa r.e. Solar, IBC Bank and GEMCO.
For additional information and registration visit https://bit.ly/3i8Gn7c
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