HACIA XXIX FEATURED SPEAKERS

FRANCISCO SAGASTI

Former President of Peru

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Opening Ceremonies Speaker

Dr. Sagasti served as President of Peru from November 2020 to July 2021. Previously, he earned a degree in Industrial Engineering from the National University of Engineering in Lima, Peru. He obtained his Master’s degree (MSc) in Industrial Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University, and his Doctorate (Ph.D.) in Operational Research and Social Systems Sciences from the University of Pennsylvania. In Peru, he founded and was the Executive Director at GRADE, an advisor to the Ministers of Industry, Foreign Affairs, and Education as well as advisor to the President of the Council of Ministers and the National Planning Institute. He has served as professor and visiting lecturer at many universities, including the IE Business School in Madrid, Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania, and Universidad para la Paz in Costa Rica. He has been a member of the National Council of Science and Technology; principal investigator emeritus of the Foro Nacional Internacional; and strategy consultant to international organizations, government agencies, and private entities. Additionally, he has been the President of the Board of Directors of the Science and Technology Program, and been a member of various other boards, including  the Board of Governors of the Canadian International Development Research Centre (IDRC), the International Advisory Council of the Lemelson Foundation, and the Board of the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

 He has published more than 25 books and he has authored more than 150 academic papers.

LUIS TORO UTILLANO

Senior Legal Officer

at the Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs (Organization of American States)

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Closing Ceremonies Speaker

Luis Toro Utillano is a senior legal officer at the Department of International Law of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs.  He provides advisory services on international law issues to OAS organs, such as the Permanent Council, the Juridical and Political Affairs Commission, and the Inter-American Juridical Committee. He is the treaty officer, and as such he oversees all actions concerning the deposit of inter-American legal instruments. He has served as a legal advisor to the Working Groups in charge of the adoption of instruments and plans of action in matters regarding people with disabilities, fight against corruption, racism and all forms of discrimination, on the rights of the elderly as well as indigenous peoples, among others.  He has organized capacity building and training events about the inter-American System in different member States and has participated in workshops and conferences in academic institutions as well as national and international governmental organizations, both within the inter-American system and the United Nations. Moreover, he has published articles on various aspects of the inter-American system and the work of the OAS. He received his LL.B. at the School of Law of the Université de Montreal in Canada (Faculté de Droit).  He holds an LL.M. from the Washington College of Law (American University) and a Bachelor in Political Sciences, B.Sc. (Université de Montreal). He is fluent in all OAS languages.