Registration Information

Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco’s March 2005 trade mission to Cuba highlights the interest Southern states have in increased trade and interaction with close geographic neighbor Cuba. Cuba was Louisiana and other Southern states’ top export market prior to the imposition of the embargo in 1960. Forty-five years later, these Southern communities remain blocked from this important natural trading partner.

To better inform this growing audience and to hear from new voices on the U.S. Cuba policy debate, the 2005 National Summit on Cuba will be held at the Mobile Convention Center and Spring Hill College on Friday, June 10-11 in Mobile, Alabama.

The Mobile Summit will present diverse, nationally recognized speakers on current U.S.- Cuba commercial relations and policy. While this Summit will focus on the impact of the U.S.-Cuba estrangement on the American South and present fresh data on past and potential future trade, we will also educate our audience on the broader factors inherent in the ongoing policy debate. Past Summits have provided audiences with a lively learning experience and exchange.

AGENDA

FRIDAY, JUNE 10, 2005
Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile Convention Center
8:00 Continental Breakfast / Registration at Mobile Convention Center
8:45 Call to Order
John Loggia, Summit Coordinator, World Policy Institute
Welcoming Statement
Mobile Mayor Michael Dow
9:00 PERSPECTIVES ON THE U.S. CUBA RELATIONSHIP
Moderator: Sonny Callahan, former U.S. Representative, Alabama
A Brief History of U.S.- Cuba Relations
Wayne Smith, PhD, former Chief of the U.S. Interests Section in Havana; Senior Fellow, Center for International Policy
Goals and Methods: The Bush Administration Approach
Ambassador Vicki Huddleston, Retired, Former Chief of the U.S. Interests Section, Havana 1999 - 2002
Congress and U.S. Government Restrictions on Travel to Cuba
U.S. Representative Jeff Flake (R-AZ) House Cuba Working Group
Changing Dynamics of the Cuban American Community
Alfredo Duran, Esq., Cuban Committee for Democracy; Bay of Pigs Veteran
Politics of the Pro-Embargo Lobby
Tony Martinez Esq., Latin America Working Group
Cuba and U.S. National Security
General Edward Atkeson, U.S. Army (ret.)
Senior Fellow, Institute of Land Warfare, Association of the U.S. Army
Cuba Policy and U.S. Leadership in a Changing Latin America
The Honorable William D. Rogers, former Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs, Vice Chair, Kissinger Associates
10:30 CUBA AND THE AMERICAN SOUTH
Moderator: Winthrop M. Hallett III, President, Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce
Southern Agriculture and Cuba
Ron Sparks, Commissioner of Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries
The Economic Impact on the South
Semoon Chang, PhD, Director, Center for Business and Economic Research, University of South Alabama
Challenges and Opportunities for the State of Florida
Tim Lynch, PhD, Director, Center for Economic Forecasting and Analysis,
Florida State University
John Parke Wright, Florida Cuba Business Council
Cuba and Mississippi’s Future
Don Allee, Mississippi Trade Development Council
Lloyd Moore, Mississippi Black Farmers and Agriculturists
The 2001 Texas State Resolution Calling for Normalized Trade With Cuba and Developing a Memorandum of Understanding
Ruben Bonilla, Chairman, Corpus Christi Port Authority
The Special Case of Louisiana
Michael Olivier, Secretary of Economic Development, Louisiana
12:00 BREAK FOR LUNCH
12:45 INTRODUCTION
Lissa Weinmann, Senior Fellow, World Policy Institute
12:50 LUNCHEON SPEAKER
Ann Louise Bardach, Journalist and Author of best-selling book:
Cuba Confidential: Love and Vengeance in Miami and Havana
1:30 NEW COMMERCIAL RELATIONS WITH CUBA
Moderator: Buffy Donlon, Cuba Trade Coalition
Who is Doing Business With Cuba and Why
Kirby Jones, President, U.S.-Cuba Trade Association
A Cuban Perspective on Trade with the U.S.
Pedro Alvarez, Chairman, Alimport, Cuba (via teleconferencing)
Ports, Shippers and Our Cuban Counterparts
Maria Conchita Mendez, Port of Mobile
Jay Brickman, Crowley Liner Services, Jacksonville, Florida
2:30 THE REALITY OF CUBA TODAY
Moderator: Jay Higginbotham, Mobile Municipal Archive
Cuba’s Economic Performance and Trends for the Future
Emily Morris, Country Editor, Economist Intelligence Unit, London
The Tourism Industry
Miguel Figueras, Senior Advisor, Cuban Ministry of Tourism
(via teleconferencing)
Joint Ventures: New Developments in Cuban Mining and Oil Exploration
Rafael Tenreyro, CUPET (Cuban Petroleum Corporation, via Havana feed)
Eloise Linger, PhD, State University of New York
Medical Industry, Biotechnology and Healthcare in Cuba
Peter Bourne, Chairman, Medical Education in Cooperation with Cuba (MEDICC); former Special Health Adviser to President Carter
4:00 A CONSERVATIVE ALTERNATIVE TO THE BUSH POLICY
Philip Peters, Vice President, Lexington Institute; Advisor, U.S. House of Representatives Cuba Working Group; former U.S. State Department Official under President Reagan
4:30 CONCLUSION / THANKS
Members of the Mobile Summit Planning Committee
5:00 RECEPTION FOR ALL SUMMIT ATTENDEES
Wintzell’s Oyster House, 605 Dauphin Street, short trolley available,
Buffet Dinner Served, hosted by the Cuba Trade Coalition

 
DAY TWO

The second day of National Summit programming on Saturday,June 11, 2005 will be held at at historic Spring Hill College in Mobile,where attendees will explore the human dimensions of U.S. Cuba relations, starting with morning panels on religion in Cuba and how politics impacts the free exchange and expression of faith. Afternoon panels will present on the rich history of relations between the U.S. South and Cuba. Several cultural events, including music, art
exhibits and other activities are being planned planned in conjunction with the Mobile Summit, check website updates for details and additional summit Supporters.

SATURDAY, JUNE 11, 2005
CUBA : RELIGION AND THE CONTEXT OF HUMAN VALUES
Byrne Memorial Hall, Spring Hill College 4000 Dauphin Street, Mobile
(Shuttle service available starting 8:30 am from Riverview Plaza lobby)
9:00 Invocation
Mobile Archbishop Oscar Lipscomb
9:15 RELIGION AND HUMAN VALUES IN CUBA TODAY
Dr. Patricia Harkins-Pierre, PhD, University of the Virgin Islands
Elder Nell Johnston, St. Charles Ave. Presbyterian Church, New Orleans
10:00 THE MEANING OF ELIAN (the little boy found at sea)
Rev. Dr. Joan Campbell Brown, Director of Religion, Chautauqua Institute,
Former General Secretary, National Council of Churches of Christ of the USA
10:45 HEALING THE BROKEN CUBAN FAMILY
Siliva Wilhelm, President, Cuban American Commission on Family Rights
11:15 THE MORAL UNDERPINNINGS OF ENGAGEMENT
Dr. Albert Pennybacker, Director, Clergy Leadership Network11:30 Lunch at Spring Hill College Restaurant (cash lunch)
1:00 HISTORICAL TIES BETWEEN THE GULF COAST AND CUBA
Moderator: Fr. Christopher Viscardi, Chair, Department of Theology,
Spring Hill College
Romualdo González, Historian, New Orleans, Louisiana
Lawrence Clayton, PhD, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa
Robert Schaefer, PhD, University of Mobile
2:30 HISTORICAL TOUR OF MOBILE / FORT CONDE
Jay Higginbotham, Mobile Municipal Archives
3:15 MUSEUM OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, tour led by George Ewert, Director

Formal program ends at 4:30 pm.

Speaker Biographies

Registration Information: Admission $100 includes two-day seminar participation, breakfast and lunch on Friday and a Friday evening reception with buffet dinner and cultural event.

Student Rate: $35 with valid student ID

To Register: Make check payable to:
World Policy Institute:Mobile Summit 2005
Mail to: World Policy Institute: Mobile Summit 2005
New School University
66 Fifth Avenue,Suite 900
New York, New York 10011
Phone: Call 212.229.5808 ext 4268. Follow line secure prompt for credit card

Fax: Send Fax Registration Form to 212 229 5579

ARTHUR R. OUTLAW
MOBILE CONVENTION CENTER
One South Water Street
Mobile Alabama 36602

SPRING HILL COLLEGE
4000 Dauphin Street
Mobile, Alabama 36608

cubaed@newschool.edu
www.nationalsummitoncuba.org
www.worldpolicy.org/projects/uscuba/

The Official Hotel for the National Summit on Cuba is the Riverview Plaza Hotel 64 South Water St., Mobile, Alabama 36602. For reservations please call (251) 438 4000 after April 15 for rooms held for the National Summit on Cuba. Room rate is $129.

List of other hotels in Mobile

National Summit on Cuba Archive

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