Research trip to Guatemala

Caption: From front left, around the table: Nicolas Virzi, Director of the Economics Department at the University of Rafael Landivar; Julia Silberman, Tufts 2011; Laurie Gagnon, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, 2008; Kelsi Stine, Tufts 2010; Jose Maria Argueta, 2007/08 INSPIRE Fellow; Hannah Flamm, Tufts 2009; Rachel Brown, Tufts 2010; Julio Zelaya, Economics professor at the University of Rafael Landivar. The students are in one of many interview settings: here, at the university; earlier in the day, at the Presidential Palace, two other universities, and a private sector lobby group. Five members of the Guatemala Group traveled to Guatemala City for in-country interviews with high-level officials in the public, private, and civil society sectors. Among others, the Group members met with representatives of the Vice President’s Office; the Commission for the Reform, Modernization, and Strengthening of the State and its Decentralized Entities (COPRE); the Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations (CACIF); the Institute for Security Studies at the Galileo University; ElPeriodico, a leading national newspaper; the Foundation for the Development of Guatemala (FUNDESA); and the National Association of Natural Resources of the Environment Non-governmental Organizations (ASOREMA). This exploratory trip provided the research group with an insider’s perspective from a range of viewpoints on the political, economic, and social challenges that exist in Guatemala today and historically. It was a particularly interesting time to be in Guatemala as the government changed administrations that week.