Institutions
The University of Texas at Austin
The University of Texas at Austin was established by the state legislature in 1881. In the intervening decades, the central campus has grown from forty to more than 360 acres, while the student body has increased to about 50,000 students. The students attending the university represent both the diverse population of the state of Texas and the full range of contemporary scholarship including more than 170 fields of study and more than 100 different majors. The mission of The University of Texas at Austin is to achieve excellence in the interrelated areas of higher education, graduate education, research and public service, providing superior and comprehensive educational opportunities at the baccalaureate through doctorate, and professional levels. The University of Texas at Austin's academic units include colleges and graduate schools with the following specializations: Architecture, Public Affairs, Business, Liberal Arts, Communication, Natural Sciences, Continuing & Extended Education Division, Nursing, Education, Pharmacy, Engineering, Social Work, Fine Arts, Information, Geosciences and Law.
Centro de Investigación y Docencia Económicas (CIDE)
CIDE is a center of higher education and research that specializes in the social sciences. CIDE, which is financed by public resources, is committed to international quality standards. Its primary objective is to contribute to the development of Mexico through rigorous and relevant knowledge generation and the formation of a new generation of leaders capable of performing responsibly and with creativity in an open and competitive world. CIDE focuses on three main activities: Scientific research; educating deserving leaders at the bachelor's and master's degree level; and the spreading of knowledge that is useful to Society. These activities are accomplished through six academic divisions: Economics, Public Administration, Political Studies, International Studies, History, and Law.
El Colegio de México (COLMEX)
El Colegio de México is a public institution dedicated to research and higher education. It was co-founded on October 8, 1940 by the Federal Government of Mexico, the Central Bank of Mexico, the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and the Fondo de Cultura Económica, with the ultimate goals of conducting research in various areas of the social sciences and humanities; educating professionals, researchers, and university professors; editing of books and magazines on topics related to its activities; and to collaborate with other national and international institutions towards common objectives. To achieve this end, El Colegio de México conducts its research under the auspices of its specialty centers of learning: Historic Studies; Linguistic and Literary Studies; International Studies, Asia and Africa Center; Economic Studies; Urban Demographics and Environmental Studies; and Sociological Studies.
Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM)
ITAM was founded in 1946 by the Asociación Mexicana de Cultura, A.C., an initiative of Mr. Raúl Baillères a distinguished Mexican industrialist, with the goal of serving the community through higher education and research. ITAM is a private, non-denominational, non-profit Mexican institution of higher education. Its mission is to contribute to the comprehensive education of students and to the development of a more free, more just and more prosperous society. In order to carry out its teaching and research objectives, ITAM aspires to the highest levels of academic excellence, while supporting a diversity of ideas and a community characterized by respect for ethnic, cultural and religious differences. ITAM has five academic divisions: Actuarial, Statistics and Mathematics; Administration and Accounting; Economics, Law, and Political Science; General Studies and International Studies; and Engineering.
Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM)
The Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, also known as the ITESM or Tec de Monterrey, was founded in 1943 by a group of Mexican visionaries led by Mr. Eugenio Garza Sada. Today, it is a university system that comprises 33 campuses nationwide and one virtual university that extends the presence of ITESM internationally. In this conference the campus that has actively participated is their Santa Fe Campus in Mexico City. The institutional vision is for Tecnológico de Monterrey to be the most widely recognized educational institution in Latin America due to the leadership exercised by alumni in the private, public, and social sectors, and for the research and technological development it carries out to promote a knowledge-based economy, generate management and business incubators models, improve public administration and public policies, and create innovative models and systems for the sustainable development of the community. The mission of Tecnológico de Monterrey is to form individuals with integrity, ethical standards and a humanistic outlook, who are internationally competitive in their professional fields; at the same time, they will be good citizens committed to the economic, political, social and cultural development of their community and to the sustainable use of natural resources. The academic programs at ITESM are organized around 5 areas: Business Administration and Finance; Health Sciences; Humanities and Social Sciences; Engineering and Architecture; and Information Technology and Electronics.
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)
The principal historical antecedent of UNAM is the Real and Pontifical University of Mexico, inaugurated on January 25, 1553 by the then Viceroy of the New Spain, Luís de Velasco. The university was originally located on San Ildefonso Street in the historic downtown of Mexico City. On September 22, 1910, during the administration of President Porfirio Diaz, the National University of Mexico was officially established by presidential mandate. In the 70s UNAM implemented an ambitious expansion program that resulted in the creation of its five multi-disciplinary units: Acatlán, Aragón, Cuautitlán, Iztacala y Zaragoza, known today as the Faculties of Higher Studies. At the end of 2005, UNAM was internationally recognized as the best university in Latin America, Spain and Portugal (by the English daily The Times), and with a worldwide ranking of 95. This position greatly improved in 2006, when UNAM was ranked at 74. The following entities participate and represent UNAM in this conference:
Centro de Investigaciones Sobre América del Norte (CISAN)
The Center for Research on North America (CISAN) originated in November 1988 as the University Research Program on the United States; three months later the University Council approved its transformation into the Center for Research on the United States (CISEUA). The National Autonomous University of Mexico thus made scientific research in this area a priority given the preeminence of the United States in the world and the importance of our geographical proximity to it.
In August 1993, given the imminent signing of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), university authorities recognized the need to broaden the scope of CISEUA to include knowledge about the dynamics of regional and global integration, including a systematic study of Canada. That was when our institution became the CISAN.
The CISAN's objective is to produce multi- and interdisciplinary research to contribute to knowledge about the United States and Canada and their relations with Mexico, as well as to foster the rigorous study of all three countries using different focuses that will allow for a better understanding of the many aspects of the complex North American reality.
Coordinación de Universidad Abierta y Educación a Distancia (CUAED)
CUAED, which coordinates the distance learning programs at UNAM, represents the social commitment of the university to promote educational equity and increase coverage of quality public higher education.