Cuban ambassador to the US to speak at Rice’s Baker Institute April 12

MEDIA ADVISORY

David Ruth
david@rice.edu
713-348-6327

Jeff Falk
jfalk@rice.edu
713-348-6775

Cuban ambassador to the US to speak at Rice’s Baker Institute April 12

HOUSTON – (April 6, 2016) – José Ramón Cabañas Rodríguez, Cuba’s first ambassador to the United States in more than 50 years, will speak on “The Future of U.S.-Cuba Relations” at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy April 12.

The Baker Institute Director’s Lecture Series is free to Baker Institute Roundtable members and Rice students, faculty and staff. Registration is required. Admission costs $20 for the general public. For more information or to register, go to http://bakerinstitute.org/events/1785.

Who: José Ramón Cabañas Rodríguez, Cuban ambassador to the U.S.

The Baker Institute’s director, Ambassador Edward Djerejian, will give welcoming and introductory remarks.

What: Director’s Lecture Series presentation on “The Future of U.S.-Cuba Relations.”

When: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 12. (A reception begins at 5:30.)

Where: Rice University, Baker Hall, Doré Commons, 6100 Main St.

Rodríguez was appointed Cuba’s ambassador to the U.S. in September 2015. A veteran diplomat who had led the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, D.C., since November 2012, he is Cuba’s first ambassador to the U.S. in more than 50 years. His previous experience includes service as the deputy minister for foreign affairs (2009-2012). Between 2001 and 2005, he was Cuba’s ambassador to Austria, with accreditation in Croatia and Slovenia. He has also served as the permanent representative to the International Organizations in Vienna. Prior to that, he occupied various high-level positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, including director of the Division of Cuban Residents Abroad (1994-1998), deputy director of the North American Affairs Division (1993) and second and third secretary at the Cuban Embassy in Ottawa (1990-1993). Currently he is also a senior professor at the Raúl Roa García Higher Institute for International Relations in Havana.

The Director’s Lecture Series was created and endowed by Edward and Françoise Djerejian to provide a specific forum for Baker Institute Roundtable members and Rice faculty, staff and students to engage in the most relevant and pressing issues faced today.

Members of the news media who want to attend should RSVP to Jeff Falk, associate director of national media relations at Rice, at jfalk@rice.edu or 713-348-6775.

For a map of Rice University’s campus with parking information, go to www.rice.edu/maps. Media are advised to park in the Central Campus Garage.

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Founded in 1993, Rice University’s Baker Institute ranks among the top five university-affiliated think tanks in the world. As a premier nonpartisan think tank, the institute conducts research on domestic and foreign policy issues with the goal of bridging the gap between the theory and practice of public policy. The institute’s strong track record of achievement reflects the work of its endowed fellows, Rice University faculty scholars and staff, coupled with its outreach to the Rice student body through fellow-taught classes — including a public policy course — and student leadership and internship programs. Learn more about the institute at www.bakerinstitute.org or on the institute’s blog, http://blogs.chron.com/bakerblog.