Peruvian Canadian Institute Virtual Summit 2021
The “Virtual Summit 2021”, organized by the Peruvian Canadian Institute of the Huntington University, with the support of the Embassy of Peru in Canada, took place on May 20, 2021, with great success and the attendance of a large audience.
The Virtual Summit 2021, as part of the activities in the framework of the commemoration of the Bicentennial of Peru in Canada, has had special importance for serving as a foundation for a constructive and broad dialogue on matters of social relevance for both of the countries, such as education, inclusive development of our economies, and the value and importance of indigenous peoples.
In addition, three great achievements were obtained with the signing of an MoU between the Huntington University and the Peruvian universities: Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos – UNMSM, Universidad Nacional de Ingenieria – UNI, Universidad Nacional de San Agustín de Arequipa – UNSA; this will allow establishing channels of international cooperation, exchange of knowledge and joint innovation in favor of their communities.
The Summit featured panel discussions and keynote presentations focused on topics such as Education, Indigenous Relations and Economic Development.
The First-panel session – Education – was being hosted by Mary-Liz Warwick. Panel guests were The Hon. Senator Rosa Galvez, Full professor and Chair of the department of civil and water engineering at Universite Laval and Martin Vegas Torres, Lawyer and Masters in Education Coordinator of the Horizontes Rural Secondary Education Program at UNESCO Peru.
The Second-panel session – Indigenous Relations – keynote presenter was Tarcila Rivera Zea, one of the most recognized Indigenous activists in Peru and the world.
Tarcila Rivera is founder and president of CHIRAPAQ (Indigenous association made up of Andean and Amazonians), a former UNPFII (Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues) member and currently a member of the International Commission on the Futures of Education, continental coordinator ECMIA, and founder of FIMI (Network of Indigenous Women leaders from Asia, Africa, Americas, Pacífic, and the Arctic).
The final panel session – Economic Development – was hosted by Paola Torreblanca, Chief Operating Officer and Vice-President at Core Foundation. Panel guests are Miguel Inchauste, Former Minister of Energy and Mines (PERU), and Arturo Ruiz, President of the Peruvian-Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
A PCI Distinguished Fellowship was presented to the Peruvian-Canadian Chamber of Commerce in recognition of outstanding contributions in the area of Economic Development between Peru and Canada.