On the morning of Saturday, May 11, in the auditorium of IAE Business School, The School of Politics, Government and International Relations held another graduation ceremony for their Master's degrees. It was about la sixth promotion all with Master's Degree in Public Policy and the second promotions for the Master's degrees in Politics, Law and Environmental Management, and in International Relations.
The ceremony was presided over by the Director of the School of Politics, Government, and International Relations, Dr. Alfonso Santiago, along with the Vice Dean of the Faculty of Law and Director of the Master's Program in Public Policy, Celina Cantú. Also present on the dais were the Director of the Master's Program in International Relations, Sofía Del Carril, and Horacio Payá and Belén Aliciardi, Director and Academic Coordinator, respectively, of the Master's Program in Politics, Law, and Environmental Management.
Fernando Straface, a professor at the School of Government, gave a lecture in which he discussed the three factors that historically, and even today, compete to explain the progress of nations: institutions, geography, and values.
In that regard, Straface stated: “I invite the new master's degree holders to contribute to institutional strengthening by defending democratic systems from a perspective marked by evidence and not by polarization.”
Furthermore, regarding geography, he highlighted its leading role on the global stage, taking into account two key factors: food security and energy security. Both, according to Straface, are conditioned by current armed conflicts and climate change.
Finally, regarding values, he highlighted the rise of polarization, the growth of individualism, and the decline in interpersonal trust between strangers and in cross-cutting institutions such as justice, media, and governments, among other factors.
Subsequently, the gold medal was awarded to Alejo Yaber, from the 2022 cohort of the Master's Program in Public Policy, for achieving a grade point average of 9.23. In addition, two gold medals were awarded to the best Master's theses: Rosario Palacios and Daniel Ricón, both graduates of the Master's Degree in Public Policy.
In conclusion, Alfonso Santiago, director of our School of Government, shared a few words:If these 40 years leave any positive balance in terms of the institutional system, I think that this is not the case in terms of public policies, where economic, social and educational indicators show us notable discontinuities and failures in achieving the objectives set out by our ConstitutionIn that regard, Santiago added: “All of this makes the need for the training of true policymakers, of suitable professionals to internationalize all our public and private organizations, and the training of leaders and managers who know how to harmonize economic development with the demands of environmental protection, even more imperative.”
