A Situation Briefing teleconference on the unfolding political and economic crisis in Venezuela.

Inflation in the socialist nation - among the highest is the world - is spiraling out of control, causing long lines to purchase basic goods at exorbitant prices. Police have clashed with protesters demanding the resignation of President Nicolás Maduro, who has imposed a new government food redistribution system in Caracas that requires locals to acquire food from Socialist Party members in response to pervasive shortages. An election council has begun the process of validating signatures on a petition to recall the president.

What does the crisis mean for the Venezuelan people? The government? The region? The United States? What are the causes of the political crisis and economic recession? What will happen next?

Featuring:

Dr. Dany Bahar, Fellow, Global Economy and Development Program, Brookings Institution

Dany Bahar is a fellow at the Brookings Institution's Global Economy and Development program and an associate at Harvard Center for International Development. His research interests include the role of international knowledge transmission and diffusion on innovation as well as sectoral productivity dynamics. Read more.

Ms. Lisa Viscidi, Program Director, Energy, Climate Change & Extractive Industries, Inter-American Dialogue

Lisa Viscidi is the director of the Energy, Climate Change, and Extractive Industries Program at the Inter-American Dialogue. A specialist in Latin American energy, Viscidi has written numerous reports and articles on energy policy and regulations, oil and gas markets, climate change, social and environmental impacts of natural resources development, and the geopolitics of energy. Read more.

Moderator:

Ms. Nastasha Everheart, Chief Membership Officer, Pacific Council on International Policy

Nastasha Everheart is the Chief Membership Officer at the Pacific Council. She has a Master's degree in Public Diplomacy from the University of Southern California. Prior to that, she studied politics and international relations at the Pontificia Universidad Catolica del Ecuador.