The Rodolfo Rivas Project

Season 8, Episode 3 — Victor Do Prado, Former Director of Council and Trade Negotiations Committee at the WTO. Victor do Prado is a Member of the International Advisory Board at CEBRI and a longtime professor at Sciences Po’s Paris School of International Affairs. He is a former Brazilian diplomat and spent many years at the WTO, where he worked closely with DG Pascal Lamy as Deputy Chief of Staff...

Season 8, Episode 2 — Eugene Theodore, Creative Strategist, Author & Photojournalist Welcome to another episode of season eight—and you’re in for a great conversation. My guest today is Eugene Theodore, a man who truly wears many hats: creative strategist, author, and photojournalist. I’ve known Eugene for quite a while, and we’ve talked about recording a podcast together for some time. We finally...

Season 8, Episode 1. — Jennifer DJ Nordquist, Deputy Director General at the WTO. Welcome to the first episode of our eighth season—and you’re in for a real treat. My guest is Deputy Director-General Jennifer Nordquist, who was appointed to her role at the World Trade Organization last year. She brings more than 30 years of experience in economics and public policy to the WTO. Her career includes...

Season 7, Episode 10. — Kelly Ann Shaw, Partner at Akin Gump. I first met Kelly Ann when I was beginning my own work in international trade. At the time, she was my counterpart in the U.S. Delegation, handling disputes and other complex issues. Since then, her career has soared—spanning the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. House of Representatives, and even the White House. We rec...

Season 7, Episode 9. — Sally Bardayán Rivera, Deputy Permanent Representative of the Mission of Panama in Geneva, Switzerland In a remarkably short time, Sally has established herself as one of the most active and respected delegates in Geneva. Her openness, empathy, and collaborative spirit have earned her admiration across missions and institutions. She approaches complex issues with clarity and...

I’ve been attending the Neuchâtel Film Festival for years, and this year, I had the pleasure of attending the screening of Johanna Moder’s Mother’s Baby, a psychological thriller inspired by her own experiences of becoming a mother. In this episode, I sit down with Arne Kohlweyer, the film’s co-writer and a consummate storyteller. Our conversation covers his early fascination with cinema, the path...

Season 7, Episode 7 Aashish Chandorkar, Counsellor with the Mission of India to the World Trade Organization. This episode has been in the pipeline for a while. Still, it was worth the wait, as the conversation I had with Aashish Chandorkar, Counsellor with the Mission of India to the World Trade Organization, was thoughtful, informative, and inspiring. I had a blast discussing Aashish’s career an...

Season 7, Episode 6 Louise Wong, the Secretary General of the Asian Domain Name Dispute Resolution Centre (ADNDRC). I have been a panelist with the ADNDRC for many years, and it was the first center to include me on its roster. I have enjoyed working with them throughout the years, and during the 25th anniversary of the UDRP in Geneva, I had the pleasure of meeting Louise Wong in person. Louise's...

Season 7, Episode 5. Ambassador Gustavo Lunazzi, Argentine Ambassador to Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein & Permanent Representative to the WTO. Ambassador Lunazzi, a consummate diplomat with a long career representing Argentina in the Multilateral Trading System, brings unique insights from his experience in the dispute settlement system. I had heard nothing but good things about...

Season 7, Episode 4. Marco Molina, founder of Molina & Associates, in Geneva, Switzerland. Marco officially becomes my first guest to come back for a second conversation, since a lot has changed since the last time we spoke! In our conversation, we will start where we left off, discussing the informal process Marco facilitated on World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement reform, how he app...

Season 7, Episode 3. Amb. Ronald Saborío, Mission of Costa Rica to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland. I had an insightful conversation with Ambassador Saborío, who has had a long and successful career in trade diplomacy, becoming a reference point in everything to do with the WTO. We dived into a wide range of topics, including the future of international trade and diplomac...

Season 7, Episode 2. Stephen Fevrier, Senior Advisor to the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland. Stephen's career has been deeply intertwined with trade and development, particularly revolving around the WTO. His extensive experience means that if it happened at the WTO, he likely witnessed it firsthand! Hailing from Saint Lucia, a Caribbean gem, Stephen i...

Season 7, Episode 1. Tyesha Turner, J.P., Deputy Permanent Representative of the Mission of Jamaica to the UN in Geneva, Switzerland. To kick off the seventh season of this podcast, I can’t think of a better guest than the impressive and delightful Tyesha. She is my neighbor during long meetings at the WTO, and I am happy to have her as a guest. She had some great stories to tell about her life an...

Season 6, Episode 13. Gustavo Adolfo Guarín Duque, Trade Counsellor at the Mission of Colombia to the World Trade Organization. My guest is another Colombian, the nationality most represented in the show, hence the joke! This is season six's last episode, and I had to close the season with a great guest! Gustavo is a friend and colleague whose story will inspire you. While I count Gustavo as a clo...

Season 6, Episode 12. Andres Veiel, Filmmaker. Andres is a successful filmmaker with a long career stretching back to the early 90’s. I met with him after the screening of his latest film at the Zurich Film Festival, the documentary “Riefenstahl”, which unearths new information on the controversial filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl. During our conversation, we talked about how he got into films and learn...

Season 6, Episode 11. Johanna Hill, Deputy Director General at the WTO. DDG Johanna Hill has been involved with the WTO since its inception and has worked directly with it at various points in her career. Her career in multilateral and bilateral affairs is long, and she has also worked in the private sector. We had an insightful conversation covering a wide range of topics, from her early years in...

Season 6, Episode 10. Ambassador Nadia B. Theodore. Mission of Canada to the WTO. Ambassador Nadia Theodore has been in Geneva for around two years, but she has already made her mark. She is involved in several initiatives, and one of her goals is making the WTO more inclusive and telling the story of the MTS to everyone. And I can say she has really succeeded in that. We had an insightful and fun...

Season 6, Episode 9. Ambassador James Baxter. Mission of Australia to the WTO. Ambassador James Baxter, is a friend of International Trade and Multilateralism who has made his career around the WTO. He is a consummate diplomat who got into Trade and never left. He was posted in Geneva as the Deputy Permanent Representative for the Mission of Australia to the WTO back in 2012, and although he didn’...

Season 6, Episode 8. Jennifer Brant. Founder and Principal at Innovations Insights. Jennifer heads a boutique consulting firm specializing in strategic communications and government affairs. If you work in International Geneva, you may encounter Jennifer. I have been following her career due to its intersection with many of the same topics we work on, and I met her a couple of years ago. Due to he...

Season 6, Episode 7. Dmitry Grozoubinski. Executive Director at Geneva Trade Platform in Geneva. Dmitry wears many hats, including author and overall point of reference for International Trade. If you want to learn more about Trade, you will probably run into him. Before all this, he had a successful career as an Australian Trade Diplomat, where I met him. I found out we are sort of kindred spirit...

Season 6, Episode 6. Pablo M. Bentes is a partner at Baker McKenzie Geneva and heads the firm's global WTO disputes practice. I've known Pablo for a while and I even shared his office while at the WTO's Appellate Body. One of the things I was glad to find there was the sense of camaraderie; it was like a big family. So, we had to talk about that, but I wanted to cover much more than that since Pab...

Season 6, Episode 5. Anna Morawiec Mansfield. Legal Counsel at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). I recently met Anna and was so impressed that I had to invite her to the podcast. Even then, I could not have imagined the amazing conversation we would have. I have been doing this for a while, but a few conversations have really stood out, and this is one of them. Anna's story is a...

Season 6, Episode 4. Marisa Goldsteinis Counsellor at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Marisa Goldstein is an experienced lawyer who has worked in the Legal Affairs Dvision at the WTO for many years, and she has certainly left her mark. I have known her since the beginning of my career in International Trade, and she is a well-known and well-liked figure in the community. We have collaborated a...

Season 6, Episode 3. Ana Laura Lizano is Minister Counsellor at the Permanent Mission of Costa Rica to the World Trade Organization (WTO). This is episode 70 if you are keeping track. I can't believe it has been 70 already! I do these for myself because I love doing them, but it is great to hear when people reach out to say they enjoy them. Thanks to everyone who has reached out; I really apprecia...

Season 6, Episode 2. Miguel Antonio Villamizar Parra. Counsellor Legal Affairs at the World Trade Organization. WTO. Continuing with our second season, I had the pleasure of hosting Miguel Villamizar, who is likely among one of the most well-liked individuals in International Trade. When you meet him, you will know what I am talking about, and after listening to this conversation, you will likely...