{"id":264601,"date":"2025-09-29T19:38:19","date_gmt":"2025-09-29T19:38:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/264601\/"},"modified":"2025-09-29T19:38:19","modified_gmt":"2025-09-29T19:38:19","slug":"roundtable-discussion-in-spanish-held-at-climate-week-nyc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/264601\/","title":{"rendered":"Roundtable discussion in Spanish held at Climate Week NYC"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Carlos Roa, VoLo Foundation<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

At last week\u2019s\u00a0Climate Week NYC<\/a>, the Spanish-language roundtable discussion \u201cClimate Crossroads: Impacts and Action\u201d was held on the first day. Convened by\u00a0Climate Group<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Climate Power in Action<\/a>, the discussion brought\u00a0together prominent leaders from different sectors to reflect before a group of journalists on the challenges and opportunities of climate action, with a special focus on Latino communities in the United States.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The panel included Thais\u00a0Lopez\u00a0Vogel, co-founder and trustee of VoLo Foundation; renowned meteorologist John Morales; Port of Long Beach Director Mario Cordero; Ricardo\u00a0Javier Torres Hern\u00e1ndez, deputy secretary of the government of the Mexican state of\u00a0Quer\u00e9taro; and Nespresso North America CEO Alfonso Gonz\u00e1lez Loeschen. The panel was moderated by Antonieta C\u00e1diz, executive director of Climate Power in Action, and \u00c1ngela Barranco, executive director of Climate Group North America.<\/p>\n

The philanthropic perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"ThaisThais Lopez Vogel, co-founder and trustee of VoLo Foundation, speaks during the Spanish-language roundtable discussion \u201cClimate Crossroads: Impacts and Action\u201d at Climate Week NYC. (JC Campos photo)<\/p>\n

Thais\u00a0Lopez\u00a0Vogel emphasized that philanthropy must remain focused on the goal, regardless of changes in administration or policy. \u201cOur commitment is to clean air, resilient communities and the transition to clean energy. We believe in science, in reliable data and in the need to\u00a0bring knowledge\u00a0to the people,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For the\u00a0co-founder\u00a0and trustee of VoLo Foundation, philanthropy is not only an economic resource, but also a strategic tool capable of opening paths, taking bold\u00a0risks and\u00a0supporting frontline communities.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe cannot depend solely on the government. Local action, universities, community leaders and private organizations are key to preparing and educating communities for what is to come,\u201d she said, also calling for a message of optimism to be conveyed to the younger generations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ports and green jobs<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

From an infrastructure perspective, Mario Cordero explained how the Inflation Reduction Act enabled historic investments in ports to reduce emissions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He\u00a0recalled\u00a0Long Beach, the largest container port in the\u00a0United States\u00a0in Southern California, pioneered its Green Port Policy 20 years ago and\u00a0assured the\u00a0energy transition in ports not only means cleaner\u00a0air but\u00a0also green jobs and new economic opportunities.\u00a0He said they are always open to engaging with new partners\u00a0who\u00a0will enable them to advance these goals.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The scientific and regulatory challenge<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Meteorologist John Morales drew attention to the recent elimination of 31 environmental regulations in the United States. He recalled that, in the past, the country was a global leader: \u201cThe Paris Agreement was achieved when the\u00a0U.S. sat\u00a0at the table.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the country that has emitted the most greenhouse gases in history, and the world watches what we do or don\u2019t do. The dismantling of regulations is a hard blow, but the rest of the world continues to move forward,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He\u00a0noted Europe\u00a0and China are\u00a0moving forward\u00a0on the path to sustainable energy. Even so, Morales emphasized\u00a0progress\u00a0in renewable alternatives and social pressure offer reasons for hope.<\/p>\n

Lessons from Mexico\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Deputy Secretary Ricardo Javier Torres Hern\u00e1ndez explained the case of Quer\u00e9taro, an industrialized state\u00a0that has had to face the dilemma of maintaining its competitiveness without losing sight of the energy transition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It is the second most economically complex state in Mexico and generates 2.5% of the country\u2019s GDP.\u00a0Its progress in effective climate policies is therefore an example to follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He pointed out that although dependence on fossil fuels persists, state policies have encouraged\u00a0private participation\u00a0and projects for electrification and waste management. \u201cThe challenge is to balance growing demand, such as\u00a0the one\u00a0generated by data centers, with a cleaner energy matrix,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The role of the private sector<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

From the business world, Alfonso Gonz\u00e1lez Loeschen shared the experience of Nespresso, which has committed to reducing emissions from its value chain by 75% by 2030. \u201cSustainability must be integrated across the board into business\u00a0strategy.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

He stressed the importance of integrating sustainability into the heart of the business, building strategic partnerships and working hand in hand with 160,000 coffee farmers in 13 countries. \u201cSustainability is not just an environmental goal, it is about ensuring the future of coffee and the communities that produce it,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

His formula: \u201cBig ambitions, clear objectives and transparent measurement.\u201d He concluded by highlighting the importance of partnerships: \u201cWe cannot do it alone.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

A necessary conversation<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

The roundtable, which brought together journalists from Latino media outlets in different states, sought to broaden the scope of the climate debate within the Hispanic community in the U.S., highlighting the role of the media as a bridge to bring information to frontline audiences.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The dialogue made it clear that, although the climate challenges are enormous, from the vulnerability of communities to political ups and downs, there are also multiple paths for action.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Philanthropy, science, state policies and private companies have complementary roles that are enhanced when they work together. As the panelists agreed, the key is not to lose focus: moving toward more resilient communities is imperative to achieving a future where sustainability is the cornerstone of economic and social progress.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Carlos Roa is senior press and PR director for VoLo Foundation. VoLo Foundation is a\u00a0financial supporter<\/a>\u00a0of The Invading Sea.\u00a0This piece was originally published at https:\/\/volofoundation.org\/news\/roundtable-discussion-in-spanish-kicks-off-climate-week-nyc\/<\/a>. Banner image: Another image of Thais Lopez Voge; at the panel discussion (JC Campos photo).<\/p>\n

Sign up for The Invading Sea newsletter by visiting here<\/a>. To support The Invading Sea, click here<\/a> to make a donation. If you are interested in submitting an opinion piece to The Invading Sea, email Editor Nathan Crabbe at ncrabbe@fau.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Carlos Roa, VoLo Foundation At last week\u2019s\u00a0Climate Week NYC, the Spanish-language roundtable discussion \u201cClimate Crossroads: Impacts and…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":264602,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,36895,26137,126958,5173,138224,2222,138225,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,256,138226,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,138227],"class_list":{"0":"post-264601","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-climate-action","10":"tag-climate-science","11":"tag-climate-week-nyc","12":"tag-infrastructure","13":"tag-latino-communities","14":"tag-mexico","15":"tag-nespresso","16":"tag-new-york","17":"tag-new-york-city","18":"tag-newyork","19":"tag-newyorkcity","20":"tag-ny","21":"tag-nyc","22":"tag-philanthropy","23":"tag-thais-lopez-vogel","24":"tag-united-states","25":"tag-united-states-of-america","26":"tag-unitedstates","27":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","28":"tag-us","29":"tag-usa","30":"tag-volo-foundation"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115289280275597316","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=264601"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264601\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/264602"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=264601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=264601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=264601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}