The top oil producing countries in Latin America are all having elections this year. How will political changes in Brazil, Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela affect their oil output, and does this matter for the United States? Most importantly, will a new government in Mexico reverse course or slow roll broader energy reforms?  Expert Lisa Viscidi of the Inter-American Dialogue explains the details.

Are Mexico and the United States growing apart, or are they growing together? Mexico expert Andrew Selee, president of the Migration Policy Institute, discusses his new book, Vanishing Frontiers: The Forces Driving Mexico and the United States Together. He talks about counterintuitive trends such as Mexican investment in the U.S., a new attitude towards history among younger Mexicans, and border communities drawing closer for purely practical reasons.

After one of the lowest participations in Venezuela’s Electoral history, and widely seen as fraudulent, the U.S. and other like-minded countries are not recognizing the results of May 20th Venezuela’s presidential elections. Unfortunately for the people of Venezuela, the on-the-ground humanitarian and economic crisis will only likely to exacerbate, triggering further humanitarian and security threats to the region. During this 35 West Special Spanish Episode, CSIS Associate Fellow Moises Rendon sits down with Venezuelan opposition leader Julio Borges and CSIS Senior Associate Gustavo Tarre to discuss the post-election political dynamics of the Venezuelan crisis, what the Maduro victory means for the future of Venezuela and the international community, and how the international community can best respond.

for many U.S. states and Canadian provinces. The U.S. currently gets 45% of its crude oil from Canada, about 1 ½ times more than from all of the OPEC countries combined. In a joint podcast, economic driver with Canada is now worth $95 billion annually and is a significant energy tradeOur 35 West and Energy 360 dive into the details of our cross-border energy trade, how it may or may not be affected by NAFTA turmoil, and what lies ahead. Andrew Stanley of CSIS and Christopher Sands from the School of Advanced International Studies expertly run the numbers for Richard, and he pretends to understand them.

The Car Wash scandal triggered investigations that uncovered dirt on dozens of politicians and companies in Brazil and abroad. Brian Winter, editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly, compares Car Wash to other corruption scandals and updates us on a growing anti-corruption movement in Latin America. Sarah Baumunk lightens the mood by explaining how inflation affects every day life in Argentina.

As Venezuela endures an upcoming presidential election on May 20th, widely seen as illegitimate, the U.S. and other like-minded countries are considering further sanctions on the Maduro regime. In a joint production of the Financial Integrity Network and CSIS, Juan Zarate sits down with Moises Rendon, Jose Luis Stein, and David Murray to discuss the effectiveness of sanctions on Venezuela and the opportunities ahead.

The security situation in Mexico remains grim, and is a major theme of Mexico’s presidential campaign. David Shedd, former director of the Defense Intelligence Agency, long time CIA professional, and Latin American expert, assesses the state of the drug war, the scope of US-Mexico security cooperation, and the future direction of Mexico’s war against the cartels. On Big Little News, Sarah explains how to steal over $1 million of fajitas, and in the process creates a new meme.

How do entire economies become more innovative?  Jackson Streeter, an expert on technology transfer, maps the ecosystem of innovation. Strong intellectual property rights, investments in research and development, a risk-taking mentality, and seed funding are all necessary parts. Can they be nurtured and developed in Latin America? Sarah’s Big Little News is the rise of marriage fraud in Costa Rica.