Dear SSJ-Friends,

We are pleased to invite you to the next GRIPS Forum at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies on June 4.

Date: Monday, 4th June, 2012
Time: 16:40-18:10
Venue: GRIPS　Sokairo Hall, 1st Floor
Speaker: Ambassador Claude Heller, Ambassador of Mexico to Japan
Theme: “Priorities of the Mexican presidency of the G20”
Language: English, (Japanese simultaneous interpretation provided)
Fee: Attending the GRIPS Forum is free of charge but prior registration is recommended

Abstract:
The global financial and economic situation requires a major response from the international community and the
G20 has risen to become the preeminent forum to discuss these challenges. This year’s G20 Summit will take place in Los Cabos, Mexico. It will be the first time a Latin American country hosts the G20, a region that has encountered economic crisis in the past but has overcome them successfully. Last year Latin America registered a 4.6% growth and is one of the most dynamic regions in the world. The priorities under the Mexican presidency include economic stabilization, strengthening the financial system and improving the international financial architecture, as well as issues like food security and green growth that concern both developed and emerging economies. Current events in Europe and other regions represent great challenges to the international economic agenda and for global governance.

Speakers’ Profile:
Ambassador Claude Heller holds a B. A. degree in International Affairs from El Colegio de México; he also has a Masters degree in History and International Affairs from the Institute of International High Studies of Geneva, Switzerland.

Ambassador Heller is a career diplomat. He joined the Mexican Foreign Service in May 1980 and was promoted to Ambassador in October 1988. He was appointed Ambassador of Mexico to Japan on September 2011 and presented Letters of Credentials on November 29th of the same year.

>From April 2007 until August 2011 he served as the
Permanent Representative of Mexico to the United Nations (UN). Ambassador Heller chaired the Security Council of the United Nations during April 2009 and June 2010. During his tenure he chaired several Committees.
He has been Ambassador of Mexico to France and Permanent Representative of Mexico to the Organization of Economic Cooperation Development (OECD) (2001-2007); Permanent Representative of Mexico to the Organization of American States (OAS) (1998-2001); Ambassador of Mexico to Cuba (1995-1998); Ambassador of Mexico to Austria and Permanent Representative of Mexico to the International Organizations (OI) (1992-1995); Ambassador of Mexico to Switzerland (1989-1991); and head of Political Affairs at the Embassy of Mexico in the United States (1982-1983).

In the Secretary of Foreign Affairs he has served in several positions including Chief of Staff; Advisor to the Secretary of Foreign Affairs; Director General for the United Nations; among others.

Ambassador Heller has chaired Mexican delegations in numerous international meetings, in the negotiation process of Contadora Group and within the United Nations and other international organizations. He is author of several books and articles on international policy and Mexican foreign policy and international relations at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, El Colegio de México and other higher education institutions.

For registration and inquiries, please contact:
GRIPS Forum
Email: gripsforum[at]grips.ac.jp
Tel: 03-6439-6037
Fax: 03-6439-6030

Please register by 1st June (Fri) 2012
＊If you are arriving by a private car, please let us know the car information (type, color, and number) in advance so that we can register it for campus entry permission.

For Access & Map to the GRIPS campus: http://www.grips.ac.jp/about/access.html
National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies (GRIPS)
7-22-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8677