David J. Rothkopf
Moderator

David J. Rothkopf is President and CEO of Garten Rothkopf, an international advisory firm specializing in emerging markets and risk management investment services. A major focus of Garten Rothkopf's work is new trends in emerging markets investments, particularly Asian investments in Latin America, and the growth of alternative energy. Garten Rothkopf's study "A Blueprint for Green Energy in the Americas", produced for the IDB, is considered the definitive study of global trends in biofuels worldwide. Mr. Rothkopf is a visiting scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he produced his most recent book, Running the World: The Inside Story of the National Security Council and the Architects of American Power, a behind-the-scenes story of how foreign policy is made in the White House. His next book, Superclass, due in 2008, will look at global elites and how they are shaping and being shaped by globalization. Mr. Rothkopf is a member of the advisory board of the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Johns Hopkins/Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the Center for Global Development. Prior to founding Garten Rothkopf, Mr. Rothkopf was chairman, CEO and co-founder of Intellibridge Corporation, a leading provider of international analysis and open-source intelligence for the U.S. national security community and selected corporations. Mr. Rothkopf has served as managing director of Kissinger Associates, the international advisory firm founded and chaired by former U.S. Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger. Previously, Mr. Rothkopf served as Acting U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade. He joined the Clinton Administration in 1993 as Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Policy Development.

1. As you consider the long-term plans for Mexico, how central are questions of climate change, energy security and the development of alternative energy resources?
2. Do you believe these issues have grown in importance to Mexico's people, business community and political leadership over the past several years? What accounts for this? Are they being viewed in a fundamentally new way or much as they have been in the past?
3. How important will international cooperation be in helping Mexico address the challenges associated with these issues? Cooperation within NAFTA? Broader cooperation throughout the hemisphere? Work with multilateral organizations such as the IDB? Are there specific areas where you feel more can or should be done?
4. There is increasing talk that environmental issues will play a bigger role in trade policy. Do you feel this is a healthy trend? Do you have any concerns?
5. Experts from the technology, investment and policy communities surveyed by the IDB have indicated that as important as these issues are, there are big hurdles to overcome, such as a lack of knowledge regarding new technologies. Do you think the IDB can play a constructive role in helping policymakers get up to speed on the "green revolution" and the choices associated with it?
6. Are there areas in which you feel policymakers are moving too quickly and in which more study is needed? Likewise, are there areas in which you think we need to move more rapidly?