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The Political Economy of Texas–Mexico: Common Bonds, Shared Challenges

Southern Methodist University

Presented by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and the John Goodwin Tower Center for Political Studies at Southern Methodist University

Texas and Mexico are deeply connected: economically, culturally and politically. The Tower Center’s program on Texas–Mexico, in collaboration with the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, sought to better understand this dynamic relationship via a public conference, where scholars and policy experts discussed the region’s common bonds and shared challenges including trade, migration, human capital and energy.

Agenda

Thursday, April 7
Jones Great Hall, Meadows Museum, Southern Methodist University

6:00 p.m.

Reception

6:30 p.m.

Welcome and Dinner
James F. Hollifield
Southern Methodist University

Javier Vélez-Bautista
GRUMA Corp.

Keynote Speaker
The Honorable Claudia Ruiz Massieu

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mexico

8:00 p.m.

Adjourn

Friday, April 8
Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

7:45 a.m.

Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:30 a.m.

Welcome Remarks
Robert S. Kaplan, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

8:45 a.m.

Trade
Moderator: Thomas Osang, Southern Methodist University

Intra-NAFTA Trade and the Increasing Presence of China (1990–2014) | Presentation
Enrique Dussel Peters, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
Wage Convergence and Texas–Mexican Economic Integration | Presentation
Raymond Robertson, Texas A&M University
Trade Flows over the Texas–Mexico Border | Presentation
Fernando Pérez-Cervantes, Banco de México

10:15 a.m.

Break

10:30 a.m.

Energy
Moderator: Jesús Cañas, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

The Energy Industry: Boom to Gloom | Presentation
Mine Yücel, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Mexico’s Energy Sector: Trends and Opportunities | Presentation
Benjamín Torres-Barrón, Baker & McKenzie
Mexico´s Expansion of the Natural Gas Transportation System
David Madero, National Control Center for Natural Gas (CENAGAS)

Noon

Luncheon
Introduction
James F. Hollifield, Southern Methodist University

Moderator: Jesús Velasco, Tarleton State University

Keynote Speaker
The Political and Economic Transformation of Mexico Since NAFTA | Presentation
Stephen Haber, Stanford University

1:30 p.m.

Human Capital and Migration
Moderator: Michael K. McLendon, Baylor University

Demographic Change and Human Capital in Mexico and Texas | Presentation
David Lam, University of Michigan
The End of Mass Migration from Mexico | Presentation
Pia M. Orrenius, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas

3:00 p.m.

Break

3:15 p.m.

A Discussion of Future Challenges
Moderator: James F. Hollifield

Duncan Wood, Mexico Institute, Wilson Center
Stephen Haber
Gerardo Esquivel Hernández, El Colegio de México

4:45 p.m.

Closing Remarks
James F. Hollifield

5:00 p.m.

Adjourn