Economics speaker Andres Velasco works at the London School of Economics and Political Science as the School of Public Policy’s Dean. In the past, he was part of the G20 Eminent Persons Group and the Global Panel on the Future of the Multilateral Lending Institutions. Moreover, he was a Global Oceans Commission member.

He ran for president of Chile in 2013. Additionally, between March 2006 to March 2010, he served as Chile’s Minister of Finance. Multiple global publications honored him with the title of Latin American Finance Minister of the Year throughout his tenure. The Economist, the Financial Times, the Wall Street Journal, and Bloomberg all praised his efforts to safeguard Chile’s copper windfall and set up a rainy-day fund.

Speaker Andres Velasco was also a professor at Columbia University, Harvard Kennedy School, and New York University.

Andres Velasco graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in economics and philosophy. He then obtained an M.A. in international relations. Mr. Velasco received his Ph.D. in economics from Columbia University. In addition, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher in political economy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University.

He wrote almost 100 academic articles, two novels, many academic books. Furthermore, Andres served as LACEA’s president from 2005 to 2007. In 2006, the Inter-American Development Bank honored Andres Velasco with an Award for Excellence in Research.

Central banks, governments, and private corporations worldwide have hired him as a consultant. He has worked with the International Monetary Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the World Bank.

Andres is television anchorwoman and journalist Consuelo Saavedra’s husband.