May 11, 2018

More than 100 business, government, and nonprofit leaders from Atlanta visited San Diego during their 2018 LINK Trip to explore regional issues and solutions and learn how San Diego is tackling similar issues as Atlanta, from housing affordability to traffic congestion. The LINK delegation first visited San Diego in 2001 when the region was abuzz with the introduction of Bus Rapid Transit. This week they had the opportunity to see how BRT has expanded throughout the city and learn how San Diego has become a global leader in transportation technology and smart city infrastructure.

Chamber President Jerry Sanders provided opening remarks at the group’s welcoming reception on May 9^th. Delegates also heard from Paola Avila, Chamber VP of International Business Affairs, who shared an overview of the Cali-Baja binational region, how the economic, business, and cultural relationship was born and has been strengthened through the years, and current and potential opportunities and barriers for cross-border collaboration.

May 11, 2018

Last year, the Chamber supported the City of San Diego’s application to obtain a grant as part of the 2017 Gateways for Growth Challenge by New American Economy. This program offers qualifying cities financial and planning support to create a multiyear strategic plan to help immigrants adapt and prosper in their communities.

As a result, Welcoming San Diego is a multi-sector effort to advance civic, social and economic integration of immigrants and refugees, who envision a vibrant, inclusive and safe binational region that attracts families and businesses from around the world and that all San Diegans can flourish in. The coalition is organizing community forums to help craft San Diego’s strategic plan on immigrant and refugee integration. Kenia Zamarripa, Chamber Director of International Business Affairs, will help facilitate one of the workshops. Topics of discussion include civic engagement, economic and educational opportunity, and access to services, safe and connected communities.

These forums are hosted by San Diego Unified School Districts and are free, however, registration is encouraged:

• Thursday, May 17th 5-7pm@ Morse High School (6905 Skyline Dr, 92114)
• Thursday, May 24th 5-7 pm@ San Ysdro Civic Center (212 W Park Ave, 92173)

May 11, 2018

California and Baja California have long worked together to create a vibrant, interdependent economy that is a model for binational cooperation. That economy could not exist and thrive without a key resource: water.  The border communities are fortunate to have the Colorado River that delivers water reliably and at a reasonable cost for municipal, industrial and agricultural uses. Working within the framework of the 1944 Water Treaty, the U.S. and Mexico work cooperatively to ensure that the Colorado River continues to provide a reliable water supply to the border region.

This will be the topic at the Chamber’s upcoming Cross-Border Business Forum on Wednesday, May 30^th, from 10:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Chamber. The speakers will discuss the importance of the Colorado River to the border region and detail the efforts in the U.S. and Mexico to maximize water reliability and prepare for climate change impacts. To register, please click here.

May 11, 2018

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded $326,776 in grants to fund four environmental projects along the U.S.-Mexico Border of California and Baja California. These projects aim to increase understanding of binational air shed data, assess transboundary wastewater spill impacts, improve waste management, and reduce plastic bag pollution. Funds will be matched by an additional $318, 813 from the recipient organizations such as The University of Washington, who will assess and prioritize sources of particulate matter through the installation of air quality monitors; and Scripps Institution of Oceanography, which will study transboundary wastewater spill impacts along the Pacific coastline between Punta Bandera and Imperial Beach. The assessment will lead to more accurate and timely beach advisories and quantify the extent of the February 2017 wastewater spill in the San Diego/Tijuana region.

Two additional projects seek to prevent transboundary waste from entering the Pacific Ocean, Tijuana River Estuary and New River. These projects will increase the use of reusable bags, reduce plastic bag marine debris, promote recycling and improve waste management along the U.S.- Mexico border.

The Chamber submitted letters in support and advocated for the inclusion of $10 million in funds in the federal budget for the EPA’s U.S.-Mexico Border Water Infrastructure Program. We appreciate the support of our Congressional Delegation in securing the necessary funds to protect the community’s public health and the environment through essential drinking water and wastewater projects that were otherwise financially unfeasible for the area.

According to the EPA, these grants will fund projects aiming to mitigate health and environmental risks, advance economic development, and provide clean water and air for families living in the region. The funds were awarded in partnership with the North American Development Bank under the U.S.-Mexico Border 2020 environmental program and the selected projects address the program’s goals. For more information on the Border 2020 Program, please visit: www.epa.gov/border2020.

May 11, 2018

Chamber VP Paola Avila, serving as Border Trade Alliance Chair, and The Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute, invite you to the fifth annual high-level “Building a Competitive U.S.-Mexico Border” conference, which will focus on improving border management in order to strengthen the competitiveness of both the United States and Mexico. Specific emphasis will be placed on a cooperative bilateral framework, NAFTA, binational economic development, and the need for efforts that simultaneously support security and efficiency in border management.

The conference will take place June 13^th from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Wilson Center located at 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington D.C., 20004.

For event details and/or to register, please click here.

May 11, 2018

Cabinet-level negotiators from Mexico, Canada, and the U.S. have been meeting again in Washington in an attempt to reach an agreement this month before elections in both the U.S. and Mexico. After eight months of negotiation rounds, several contentious issues must be resolved including the U.S. demand for strict rules of origin, seasonal barriers to agriculture trade, U.S. efforts to open Canada’s dairy industry to foreign competition, the future of the agreement’s dispute-resolution mechanism and the U.S. proposal for a sunset clause that calls for renegotiations every five years.

Mexican Minister of Economy, Idelfonso Guajardo, has pressed to continue working on all pending issues to keep moving towards an agreement. However, the U.S. has announced a plan to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico by June 1^st if an agreement is not reached by then.