Friday, July 29, 2011

Daniel Chavez Moran: For the Children

Daniel Jesus Chavez Moran remembers well the lessons his mother taught him, that is why he seeks to improve the lives of those less fortunate. Toward this goal, Chavez Moran created Fundación Delia Moran A.C. in 2002 to provide assistance to children ages 6 to 12 whose day-to-day life is a constant struggle. The foundation is named in honor of his mother, a great teacher who dedicated her life to helping children combat the destructive combination of ignorance and poverty. It has opened numerous cultural and educational centers to provide these children with medical assistance and opportunities so that they can become healthy, contributing members of the community.

Daniel Chavez Moran was pleased to note in recent news that El Salvador, Spanish for “the savior,” the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America is hosting the 8th Forum of Ministers of Social Development in Latin America.

The meeting is sponsored by the United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization (UNESCO), which reports that the President of El Salvador, H.E. Mr Carlos Mauricio Funes Cartagena, will participate in the opening session, as well as Pilar Álvarez Laso, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Social and Human Sciences. Representatives from Argentina, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Spain, France, Honduras, Uruguay, Panamá, Perú and México will particípate, among others.

One of the expected results of the forum will be the design and implementation of strategic and efficient policies for development involving youth and social inclusion.

Daniel Chavez Moran salutes the efforts of these leaders to exchange ideas on the state of the art of policies for social inclusion in Latin America, a shared goal with the nonprofit Vidanta Foundation Chavez Moran founded in 2005. Read more on Daniel Chavez Moran, and his philanthropic work through the Vidanta Foundation here.

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Chavez Moran: A Public Forum with Mexican President Calderón

Daniel Chavez Moran, philanthropist and founder of the Vidanta Foundation which works with internationally recognized institutions from all across the Americas to promote the study of intra-Latin American relations, recommends a recent video of Mexican President Felipe Calderon Hinojosa at a public forum cosponsored by the Woodrow Wilson Center and the Council of the Americas.

According to the Woodrow Wilson Center, an affiliated institution of the Vidanta Foundation: 

“In his prepared remarks given in English, Calderon stressed the deep economic interdependence that exists between the United States and Mexico and noted that one million U.S. families are employed by Mexican-owned companies. Calderon gave his remarks before a capacity crowd of approximately 600 attendees in the Amphitheater of the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Washington, DC.”

In his address at the forum, which followed a day of meetings with U.S. leaders, including President Barack Obama, President Calderon “stressed the need for shared responsibility between Mexico and the United States in dealing with transnational organized crime groups. He compared organized crime to a ‘cancer’ plaguing Mexico, and highlighted his government's efforts to eradicate it.” 

President Calderon also “called on both countries to do more about migration. He noted that out-migration from Mexico is not good for Mexico and requires that Mexico do more in economic development. He also pledged to sign an immigration bill that would protect the right of migrants in Mexico in the coming weeks once Congress approves it. However, he noted that it was also important to create legal channels for Mexicans and others to come to the United States to work with legal documents.”

Watch the online video here. And for more about the philanthropy of retired businessman Daniel Chavez Moran, the Vidanta Foundation and Mexico’s path to the future, read here.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Daniel Chavez Moran: Latin America Fast-Growing Retail Market

Daniel Chavez Moran and the Vidanta Foundation study the challenges and opportunities faced by the nations of Latin America in the 21st century global economy. A recent article in the Los Angeles Times reinforced the importance of Latin America as a fast-growing retail market in the announced expansion of Netflix, the online film and television subscription service, into Latin America.

“The Los Gatos, Calif., company, which boasts more than 23.6 million subscribers and has become the nation's No. 1 movie rental provider, announced Tuesday that this year it will expand into 43 countries in South America, Central America and the Caribbean but not Cuba. The company did not specify a launch date.

“The news sent Netflix's stock soaring 8% on Tuesday, closing at a record $289.63. That put the company's year-to-date share-price increase at 65%.

“Though reports had previously indicated the company was eyeing a move south, analysts said few on Wall Street had expected it would boldly launch simultaneously throughout the entire region.”

The article continued:

“Netflix's decision to go into Latin America underscores the region's growing importance to Hollywood. In 2010 it was the fastest-growing market for movie ticket sales, according to the Motion Picture Assn. of America. Led by regional powerhouses Brazil and Mexico, total box-office revenue grew 25% last year.”

The Vidanta Foundation is a non-profit institution founded by Daniel Chavez Moran. Among its goals is the generation and spread of awareness of the factors determining the gap in political, economic and social development that holds Latin America back from achieving the standards of economic growth and welfare that characterizes developed countries.

Read more about philanthropist and retired businessman Daniel Chavez Moran and the work of the Vidanta Foundation here

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Chavez Moran Celebrates the Growing Role of Women

As the proud son of a schoolteacher from Mexico who dedicated her life to helping children overcome the destructive combination of ignorance and poverty, Daniel Chavez Moran recommends this article on women in leadership roles in Latin America found in the Wall Street Journal:

“Latin America ranks second only to Nordic Europe in terms of the percentage of women elected to parliamentary-level posts, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, a grouping of legislative bodies world-wide. In countries such as Argentina and Bolivia, two of the most advanced in terms of women in national office, the percentage is well over 30 percent, according to data compiled by International IDEA, an intergovernmental agency that promotes democracy around the world.

“But sociologists and electoral scholars say multiple other factors have combined in recent decades to give women greater say in Latin American politics. For one, women for decades have held significant sway in community issues and grass-roots movements—female leaders and women's groups have fought for democracy and against dictatorships across the continent—even if top offices were held by men.


“As Latin America embraced democracy, toppling traditional parties and eroding once-powerful old-boy networks, new opportunities emerged in recent decades for female leaders, especially considering that female voters account for at least half of the electorate in most countries—and tend to vote for women.”

For more about Mexican philanthropist Daniel Chavez Moran and the Fundación Delia Moran A.C., which continues his mother’s work, read here.  http://daniel-chavez-moran.blogspot.com/2011/02/honoring-his-mothers-work.html

Friday, July 15, 2011

Condolences from Daniel Chavez Moran

Daniel Chavez Moran shares his thoughts and prayers with the families who lost loved ones in Mexico in Tropical Storm Arlene.

From a New York Times article:

“Mexican authorities have confirmed 11 deaths from Tropical Storm Arlene and the aftermath of floods, mudslides and overflowing rivers in central Mexico and Gulf Coast states.

“State civil protection officials say five people in Hidalgo, two young children in Mexico state and a rescue worker and woman in Veracruz were killed. Most died after being buried alive in their homes by mudslides or drowning in heavy currents while trying to cross swollen streams.


“The state officials confirmed the deaths Saturday. They are in addition to two people killed in Tamaulipas on Friday.


“The Atlantic season's first tropical storm dumped heavy rains for two days since Thursday. Weather reports warned of moderate to heavy rains for the rest of the weekend.”


About Daniel Jesus Chavez Moran and his work to improve the lives of the people of Latin America.

Chavez Moran Notes Economic News

Daniel Chavez Moran shares this economic news from the Global Entrepreneur Indicator Business Environment Report, as published in a recent Wall Street Journal article:

“Canadian, Caribbean and Latin-American entrepreneurs have the most positive economic outlook, according to the Global Entrepreneur Indicator Business Environment Report released Friday...More than 90 percent of Canadian entrepreneurs expect improvement in the economy in the coming six months. Nearly three-quarters of entrepreneurs from the Caribbean and Latin America said the same.”


This is good news for the overall economy of Latin America, as the Global Entrepreneur Indicator notes:
“Entrepreneurs and their businesses drive the global business landscape. Tomorrow’s jobs and innovations begin with today’s business owners.”
Other key findings in the report:

  • A large majority of entrepreneurs in the U.S. and Latin America / Caribbean regions have experienced an increase in profits in the past six months.
  • Latin American / Caribbean entrepreneurs lead the pack regarding increases in net profits over the past six months (66%), but only by a very small margin over the U.S. (64%).
  • A much greater proportion of entrepreneurs in the Latin America / Caribbean region have increased their use of debt instruments over the past six months (42%), than those who have either decreased (25%) or maintained (28%) their debt load.
Here's an infographic visually displaying some of this information:



For other recent news of note from philanthropist Daniel Chavez Moran, read here.  

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Daniel Chavez Moran: The Path to Mexico’s Future

Mr. Daniel Chavez Moran, founder of Grupo Vidanta and Fundacion Vidanta
Mr. Daniel Chavez Moran, founder of Grupo Vidanta
Philanthropist Daniel Chavez Moran, credited with the modernization of the tourism industry in Mexico in the 1990s, remains focused on finding the path to the future for his home country and all of Latin America through the scholarly work of the nonprofit Vidanta Foundation which he founded in 2005.


The Foundation recently sponsored an international seminar, “The Bicentennial Opportunity,” in Mexico City in conjunction with the Carolina Foundation of Spain, the Democracia y Desarrollo Foundation of Chile, the Center for Research and Teaching of Economics (CIDE) and the magazine Nexos.


Among the seven books presented that evaluated the history of Argentina, Colombia, Chile and Mexico during the last century, and analyzed the dilemmas and opportunities of the current times, were these two titles on Mexico’s future:


México 2010. El Juicio del Siglo, 2010


Edited by María Amparo Casar and Guadalupe González and published by Taurus, the book brings together six prominent Mexican researchers who analyze the path followed by Mexico between 1910 and 2010. The authors offer essays on: politics, economy, society, international relations, justice and security, and the thought and culture in Mexico. They are: Maria Amparo Casar, Francisco Suarez Davila, Federico Reyes Heroles, José Ramón Cossio, Guadalupe Gonzalez and Hector Aguilar Camin, respectively.


México 2010. Hipotecando el Futuro, Ciudad de México, 2010


Edited by Erika Ruiz Sandoval and published by Taurus, the book contains eights essays writen by: Nicolas Alvarado, Gerardo Esquivel, Silva E. Giorguli Saucedo, Fausto Hernández Trillo, Alejandro Moreno, Erika Ruiz Sandoval, Pedro Salazar Ugarte, Jesus Silva-Herzog Márquez. From a discerning eye, disenchanted and lucid, they present a series of reflections on the path that Mexico could take in the spheres of politics, economics, international relations and culture.

For more information on Daniel Chavez Moran and the publications of the Vidanta Foundation,  read here.  

Monday, July 11, 2011

Chavez Moran: Partnering for Progress

As a retired businessman and now philanthropist, Daniel Chavez Moran recognizes the power of partnerships in pursuing growth strategies. That is why the Vidanta Foundation, founded by Chavez Moran in 2005, works with internationally recognized institutions from all across the Americas to promote the study of intra-Latin American relations, the integration of Latin America with the rest of the world, and the strengthening of democracy and economic opportunity. Affiliated institutions include:

Among these, the Organization of American States is the world’s oldest regional organization dating back to the First International Conference of American States, held in Washington, D.C., from October 1889 to April 1890.  The OAS brings together all 35 independent states of the Americas in order to achieve among its member states “an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence.”   
For more information on the work of Daniel Chavez Moran, read here.  

Daniel Chavez Moran Announces Vidanta Foundation Prize Entries

Daniel Chavez Moran announces more than 200 nominations were submitted for the transformative 2011 Vidanta Foundation Prize for "Contributions to the Reduction of Poverty and Inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean" by the deadline of May 21, 2011. Entries were received from the following countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Spain, United States, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela.

The annual Vidanta Foundation Prize is a joint initiative by the Organization of American States (OAS), the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) and the Vidanta Foundation, the nonprofit organization founded by philanthropist Daniel Jesus Chavez Moran. Its aim is to provide recognition and support for outstanding projects carried out in Latin America and the Caribbean to reduce poverty and inequality, and fight discrimination.

The recipients of the first, second and third place Vidanta Prize will be selected by a jury, meeting on August 26th in Cancun, Mexico, to announce its decision. The jury will be comprised of Mrs. Billie Miller (Barbados), Carmelo Angulo (Spain), Luis Maira (Chile), Julio Maria Sanguinetti (Uruguay) and Ernesto Zedillo (Mexico).

The first place winner of the 2010 Prize, Fundación Mundo Mujer, is a nonprofit organization that aims to improve the quality of life of poor working women and their families, through easy and timely access to credit and other services.

Read more about philanthropist and retired businessman Daniel Chavez Moran and the 2011 Vidanta Foundation Prize here.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

Chavez Moran: Book News of Note


Daniel Chavez Moran recommends this enlightening online video presentation by The Cato Institute, a public policy research organization in Washington, D.C., featuring Francis Fukuyama, editor of “Falling Behind: Explaining the Development Gap Between Latin America and the United States,” a publication supported by the Vidanta Foundation.

From an introduction to the video of the book forum at The Cato Institute:

“During the past 400 years, the development gap between Latin America and British North America dramatically widened. Francis Fukuyama will discuss prominent theories for that divergence – including those that emphasize the roles of natural resources, culture, and geography – and explain how institutions and economic policies are the keys to understanding growth outcomes. At different times, several Latin American countries have narrowed the gap with the United States, and genuine institutional reform has occurred in the past several decades across the region.”

Francis Fukuyama is Professor of International Political Economy, School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

Read more about Daniel Chavez Moran and the Vidanta Foundation’s projects and publications here.  

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Daniel Chavez Moran: U.S.-Latin American Interwoven Relations


Daniel Chavez Moran, Mexican philanthropist and founder of the Vidanta Foundation, recommends this review of the book “Contemporary U.S. - Latin American Relations: Cooperation or Conflict in the 21 Century,” as  published in Foreign Affairs magazine, a publication of the Council on Foreign Relations.

The book is part of a project supported by Daniel Chavez Moran and the Vidanta Foundation to analyze the interwoven relationship between the United States and Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Central America, the Caribbean, Cuba, Peru, Mexico, and Venezuela throughout the present decade. The project's coordinators were: Jorge I. Domínguez of Harvard University, and Rafael Fernández de Castro  of Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico.

“As Latin America becomes more differentiated, with many countries surging ahead while some lag behind, and as the region’s governments veer off in a variety of ideological directions, it is becoming notoriously difficult to generalize about inter-American relations. It is more manageable to speak of U.S. relations country by country. So Domínguez and Fernández de Castro (now Mexican President Felipe Calderón’s national security adviser) have understandably served up a collection of separate – and in each case credible – essays on Argentina (Roberto Russell), Brazil (Monica Hirst), Chile (Claudia Fuentes Julio and Francisco Rojas Aravena), Colombia (Cynthia Arnson and Arlene Tickner), Peru (Cynthia McClintock and Fabián Vallas), and Venezuela (Carlos Romero and Javier Corrales). Cristina Eguizábal and Anthony Maingot ably handle Central America and the Caribbean, respectively. Dominguez’s overview establishes four themes to provide coherence, with partial success: “balancing” against the United States, the rise of China, the breakdown of ideological consensus, and the securitization of U.S. policies. Notwithstanding its emphasis on the George W. Bush years, the volume marvelously responds to the prayers of college professors searching for concise and accessible accounts of contemporary bilateral policies in our hemisphere.”

Read more about Daniel Chavez Moran and the Foundation’s Contemporary Inter-American Relations project here.  

Saturday, July 2, 2011

Chavez Moran on 100 Years of Lessons


Founded by philanthropist Daniel Chavez Moran, the Vidanta Foundation is a non-profit institution whose primary aim is the promotion of social sciences and culture to the benefit of all with a special interest in academia and policy-making. One of the organization’s primary objectives is to promote the field of Latin American studies, and the analysis of Latin American international relations and the strategies for a positive integration of the region in the global world of the XXI Century.

A recent project of the Foundation, the Bicentennial Project, was designed “to provide a critical evaluation of the trajectory followed by Argentina, Colombia, Chile and Mexico over the last hundred years. Its aim is was to identify common aspects as well as the differences that have characterized the historical evolution of these countries from 1910 to 2010.”

The research focused on five key areas: politics, economy, society, international relations, and political thought and culture. The Vidanta Foundation funded over forty studies in association with renowned international universities and academic institutions including:


The seven books published as part of the project were presented at “The Bicentennial: Lessons and Opportunities, 1910-2010" international seminar in Mexico City.

Read more about Daniel Chavez Moran and the Bicentennial Project books here.