The Santiago Center has been extremely active in promoting discussion of public policies, both in the international and national contexts. In 2018, it organized a series of programs, including lectures and public presentations by Columbia Aging Center professor Vegard Skirbekk on the impact of robots and automation in the labor market and to analyze its implications for Chile; and Initiative for Policy Dialogue Director Stephany Griffith-Jones reviewed the contribution that development banks have made in terms of promoting economic development as well as the challenges they face today.
Also, Shamus Khan, Chair of Columbia University’s Department of Sociology, visited Chile in May to teach a master-class on "The Economic and Political Power of the Elites;” and Christopher Sabatini, lecturer of international relations and policy at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), visited Chile in late May to participate in a series of events on Latin American politics. Following that, Safwan Masri, Executive Vice President for Columbia Global Centers and Global Development at Columbia University, spoke about the Future of the Middle East in a conference organized by the Foundation.
In early September, three representatives of the center-right governing coalition Chile Vamos participated in a discussion on the identity, ideological stance and political and economic proposals of the new generation of its leaders. The event was organized by the Center in association with Chile’s Harvard Alumni Club and the Harvard’s David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies Regional Office.