Agenda

Argentina - UK

Trade Mission

A Taste of Excellence

9.30 am

10.00 am

10.15 am

11.30 am

12.30 pm

Registration and Networking Coffee

Event Opening Panel

Panel: Launch Trade Mission ‘A Taste Of Excellence’

Cocktail Reception

Event Closure

Opening Panel

Mariana Plaza | Charge d’Affaires a.i. | Argentine Embassy

With a distinguished career in the Argentine Foreign Service since 2005, Mariana Plaza brings a wealth ​of experience to her current role. Her trajectory has spanned key positions like Chief of Cabinet for the ​Deputy Foreign Secretary and overseas postings, including the Argentine Embassy in Kenya. Notably, ​she has been instrumental in shaping Argentina's international strategy and cultivating extensive ​relationships across diverse sectors. Plaza holds a BA in International Relations from the Universidad ​del Salvador.

Javier Alvarez | Chairman | The British Argentine Chamber of Commerce

Javier Alvarez is an Agricultural Engineer with an MA in Environmental Politics and Globalisation from ​Kings College, UK. Javier co-founded in 1992 Fundacion Habitat & Desarrollo which became a large ​national NGO, and he later worked for a British Foundation in charge of projects in Africa. He became ​executive director of the BACC in 2007 and have been part of the Board since then. In 2012 Javier ​joined Andes Energia plc board: later renamed: Phoenix Global Resources plc., where he was Director ​until 2020.

Javier is Chairman of Andina plc, Managing Director at Integra Capital, member of the Board of the ​Council of Foreign Chambers of Commerce CFCC, and Chairman of the BACC.

Maita Barrenechea | Director of International Relations | Destino Argentina

Maita Barrenechea is a renowned figure in the luxury, experiential, and sustainable travel industry ​with over 40 years of experience. She has received numerous global awards and is the founder and ​director of MAI 10 leading travel company. She is former Chairman of Destino Argentina and serves in ​various tourism councils and advisory boards, and actively promotes Argentina as a travel ​destination of excellence. Maita also advises on tourism investment projects to develop South ​America's hospitality industry.

Irene Mia

Irene Mia is Senior Fellow for Latin America and Conflict, Security and ​Development, leading the IISS research programme on Latin American ​security, governance and geo-economics, as well as directing the Conflict, ​Security and Development research programme. She is the Editor of the IISS ​Armed Conflict Survey flagship publication. Before joining the IISS she ​worked at the Economist Group and the World Economic Forum, writing and ​speaking extensively on issues related to national competitiveness, ​geopolitics, trade and development and Global South (notably Latin ​America) as well as advising governments and the corporate sector on ​related issues.

Irene holds an MA in Latin American studies from the Institute for Latin ​American Studies, London University, and a PhD in international economic ​and trade law from L. Bocconi. She is also a member of the board of trustees ​of Canning House, and a member of the advisory board of the Global South ​Unit at the London School of Economics

Susana Balbo

Susana Balbo is an Argentine winemaker with a vast career spanning nearly ​40 years in the wine industry. A pioneer in the export of Argentine wines, she ​is recognized both nationally and internationally. She graduated cum laude ​in enology in 1981, becoming the country's first female winemaker. ​Throughout her career, she has held various roles, from winemaker at ​various wineries, consultant, to founding her own winery. She has been ​awarded numerous prizes and is known as "the Queen of Torrontés" due to ​her exceptional work with this varietal. Her winery, Susana Balbo, is among ​the most prominent Argentine producers, and its wines are internationally ​recognized.

There are few people in Argentina who aren't familiar with the name Susana ​Balbo. Since her graduation in 1981, Balbo has blazed a trail in viticulture and ​beyond, establishing one of the country's most successful wineries, dabbling ​in politics (she was elected to one term in the Argentine National Congress), ​and serving as the first Latin American woman to chair the W20 Summit (an ​advisory board to the Group of Twenty economic forum).

She and her daughter, Ana Lovaglio Balbo, have opened a wellness-centric ​boutique hotel, the first in their budding hospitality empire, set within their ​family's former home in the leafy Mendoza suburb of Chacras de Coria. The ​hotel offers an intimate access to one of Argentina's leading winemaking ​families in a soulful, art-filled setting.

Maita Barrenechea

Maita Barrenechea is a pioneering entrepreneur and an expert in luxury, ​experiential, and sustainable travel. She has devoted over 40 years to the ​advancement of luxury tourism, earning international recognition and ​becoming a key figure in the travel industry. She has received numerous ​global awards and earned the title of "The Travel Goddess" due to her ​expertise.

Maita is a member of the World Travel & Tourism Council, the Advisory ​Board of the Ministry of Tourism of Argentina, and the Argentine Chamber of ​Tourism. She served as the Chairman of Destino Argentina, a private non-​profit luxury travel association aimed at promoting Argentina as a ​destination. She also sits on the board of trustees of cultural institutions such ​as the Museum of Modern Art of Buenos Aires and the Museum of Latin ​American Art MALBA.

Maita founded and directs MAI 10, one of the world's leading luxury, ​experiential, and sustainable travel companies, and Pirqa, dedicated to the ​development of unknown jewels in a sustainable manner and helping local ​communities. She is the creator of Argentina's Sustainable Pledge. She plays ​a pivotal role in promoting Argentina as a travel destination of excellence, ​constantly traveling the world, delivering lectures at prestigious forums. ​Maita also advises on tourism investment projects to further develop South ​America's hospitality industry, including luxury hotels, wine lodges, tented ​camps, and river cruises.