Citizen insecurity is one of the most urgent challenges facing the Americas today. Rising levels of violence, the increasing complexity of organized crime, and persistent gender-based violence demand coordinated, strategic, and data-driven responses. Amid this hemisphere-wide crisis, Mexico offers important lessons. From innovative subnational initiatives to bilateral security cooperation with the United States, Mexico’s experiences provide valuable insights for countries across the region.
This two-panel virtual conference will explore both domestic and cross-border dimensions of citizen security. The first panel will examine how local-level policies in Mexico respond to the diverse manifestations of violence across its regions, and how these strategies interact with national security frameworks. Panelists will reflect on the lessons learned from subnational initiatives, underscoring the importance of context-specific approaches and the limitations of uniform, top-down solutions in addressing dynamic local realities.
The second panel will turn to the critical security relationship between Mexico and the United States. While a border separates the two countries, the security challenges they face—arms trafficking, drug flows, migration, and transnational criminal networks—transcend it. Addressing these shared threats requires trust, collaboration, and mutual responsibility. This discussion will unpack the pressures each country faces and explore what a coordinated, effective response to citizen insecurity might look like. Panelists will identify shared priorities and consider the structural dimensions that a truly regional approach must address.
Join us on Thursday, September 4, from 10:15 AM – 12:45 PM ET for a timely and critical conversation with experts from both Mexico and the United States.
Follow this event on X (formerly Twitter) at @The_Dialogue
This event will be held in English and will have simultaneous interpretation into Spanish via Zoom.
OPENING REMARKS
REBECCA BILL CHAVEZ
President & CEO, Inter-American Dialogue (@RebeccaBillChav)
Panel I
MODERATOR
DAIRA ARANA AGUILAR
Founder and Director, Global Thought Mexico (@Daira_Arana)
SPEAKERS
JUAN MAURO GONZALEZ MARTINEZ
Secretary of Security and Peace, State of Guanajuato (@MauroGonzalezMa)
FRANCISCO RIVAS
Director, Observatorio Nacional Ciudadano (@frarivasCoL)
ALEJANDRO GONZALEZ CUSSI
Former Citizen Security Commissioner of Morelia and Colima & Founder, Cussi Estudio Jurídico (@agCussi)
Panel II
MODERATOR
MARÍA TERESA MARTÍNEZ TRUJILLO
Research Professor, Tecnológico de Monterrey (@TereMartinez)
SPEAKERS
MARK JOHNSON
Deputy Chief of Mission, U.S. Embassy in Mexico
CECILIA FARFÁN-MÉNDEZ
Head of the North American Observatory at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (@farfan_cc)
SAMANTHA PEREZ DAVILA
Peace and Security Editor, Nexos (@ysamanthap)
CLOSING REMARKS
LILA ABED
Director of the Mexico Program, Inter-American Dialogue (@Lilaabed)
