Jorge Castaneda

Jorge Castañeda Gutman is a public intellectual in Latin America, recognized for his career in diplomacy, academia, and political writing. As a political scientist and writer, his work focuses on Mexican and Latin American politics, comparative politics, and U.S.-Mexican and U.S.-Latin American relations. Castañeda holds a Bachelor of Arts from Princeton University and the Université de Paris-I (Panthéon-Sorbonne), a Master of Arts from the École Pratique des Hautes Études, and a doctorate in economic history from the Université de Paris-I.

Castañeda served as Foreign Minister of Mexico, contributing to the end of one-party rule in the country. During his tenure, he advocated for comprehensive immigration reform with the United States, emphasizing the need to address amnesty and guest worker programs together. After his service as Foreign Minister, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed him to the United Nations Commission on the Private Sector and Development, co-chaired by Prime Minister Paul Martin of Canada and former President Ernesto Zedillo of Mexico.

Castañeda is the author of more than 15 books, including "Limits to Friendship: The United States and Mexico" (with Robert Pastor), "Utopia Unarmed: The Latin American Left after the Cold War," "The Mexican Shock," "Compañero: The Life and Death of Che Guevara," "Perpetuating Power: How Mexican Presidents Were Chosen," "Ex-Mex: From Migrants to Immigrants," "Mañana Forever? Mexico and the Mexicans," and "America Through Foreign Eyes." "Utopia Unarmed" examines the evolution of left-leaning politics in Latin America, highlighting the shift from politics rooted in the Cuban Revolution to those based on social movements and elections.

Castañeda was appointed Global Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Latin American Studies at New York University, where he taught for an extended period, and also taught at Sciences Po in Paris. He has held faculty positions at Mexico's National Autonomous University, the University of California at Berkeley, Princeton University, and the University of Cambridge. He served as a senior associate at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and received a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation research and writing grant.

Castañeda has been elected Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and International Member of the American Philosophical Society. He served on the board of Human Rights Watch. As a columnist for Revista Nexos, El País, and The New York Times, Castañeda provides analysis on hemispheric affairs, democracy, migration, and U.S.-Latin American relations.