But behind each stem lies a story of a cross-border partnership that’s only grown stronger with time alongside demand, even among heightened tariffs.

This Mother’s Day season, Avianca Cargo celebrated a major milestone in that story. The Colombian-based carrier transported over 20,100 tons of fresh flowers from Colombia and Ecuador to markets in the U.S. and Europe. Marking a 15% increase over last year, setting a new record for the airline. 

Numbers that not only speak to the impressive logistical growth, but the deeper impact it has in connecting cultures, with 80% of all cut flowers sold in the U.S. imported, primarily from Colombia. Linking farms and families, fields and florists, and deepening the relationship between Colombia and the United States, with each shipment.

Avianca Cargo operated 300 dedicated flights for this year’s Mother’s Day rush, with the bulk of blossoms flowing through Miami International Airport. From there, the flowers continued on to retailers and distribution centers across the country, eventually landing in the hands of sons, daughters, husbands and grandchildren eager to make a gesture of appreciation.

Diogo Elias, CEO of Avianca Cargo, noted this as a collective effort between everyone involved in the process who pulled together. “Mother’s Day is one of the most meaningful times of the year for the flower industry. Thanks to all our key stakeholders and clients, we recognize each of these 20,100 tons as a shared achievement.” he said.

To handle the seasonal spike, Avianca doubled its cargo capacity, kept its terminals running around the clock, and leaned on decades of experience moving perishables. More than 150,000 tons of flowers passed through the airline’s network in 2024 alone, with Miami receiving over 85% of that volume. For this year’s spring bloom, Avianca also expanded its local team by 30%, a strategic move to help maintain quality control and ensure on-time delivery.

“Nine out of every 10 flowers imported into the U.S. arrive through MIA. And Avianca’s record season is helping us hit new highs for cargo volume overall,” shared Miami International Airport Director and CEO Ralph Cutié.

Beyond the numbers, flowers aren’t just an export for Latin America, and an import for the regions across the world that receive them. They are also a bridge. A connection between the Andes and American homes. Between a farmer in Bogotá and a florist in Boston. Between a first-time father gifting a new mother a dozen roses on her very first Mother’s Day.

The post Avianca Cargo’s Biggest Bloom Yet: Supplying Sky-High Demand for Flowers on Mother’s Day appeared first on The Bogotá Post.

Global Shapers, started by the World Economic Forum to be a community of active changemakers across hubs throughout the globe, has selected Stiven Cartagena to be its next Curator for Medellin.

He will be responsible for leading the organization’s community, welcoming new Shapers, curating insights from the WEF, and shaping the organization’s public image. 

Cartagena is the Editor at Contxto and Geektime en Espanol, and is a frequent contributor to Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazine.

He has also served as a Judge at Techstars Startup Weekend.

Solangy Correa was named Vice Curator and Silvia Rojas Impact Officer.

Global Shapers’ mission is to inspire, empower and connect leaders to reach their full potential, amplify emerging voices in decision-making, and positively shape their communities and the world. Each year the World Economic Forum (WEF) invites these hub leaders to the Global Shapers Annual Summit in Geneva, Switzerland.

WEF was started by Klaus Schwab and is an international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank.

The organization was founded in 1971.

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International tourism in Colombia reached record highs in 2023 with 5.86 million non-resident visitors, having grown by 24.3% since 2022 according to BBVA. 

This is set to get a further boost this summer as Qatar Airways expands its presence in Latin America with a new connection between Doha’s Hamad International Airport and Bogotá’s El Dorado International Airport. 

Meanwhile, the introduction of the renewable two-year digital nomad visa in 2022 has proven extremely popular, helping to bring around 8,300 digital nomads to the city of Medellin each month alone. 

Overall this has led to a significant rise in international visitors, revenues, and employment. At the same time, it’s important to address challenges in infrastructure and connectivity to unlock the full economic potential that international visitors bring. 

Whether the reason for visiting Colombia is work, vacation or a combination of the two, one thing is certain: Travel in 2025 demands mobile connectivity. 

The need for eSIMS and mobile connectivity in Colombia 

Roaming charges when abroad can add to the cost of a trip significantly. While savvy travelers used to rely on local SIM cards, many of them have switched to a more modern and convenient solution in the form of eSIMs.

These are essentially online, digital SIM cards. This means visitors to Colombia no longer need to waste time looking for a store or worry about losing their original SIM card while on the road. 

Although Colombia has a wide range of reliable local service providers such as Claro, Movistar and Tigo, taking out a local data plan can be time-consuming and complicated for international visitors. 

Further, while WiFi is reliable within Colombia’s cities and urban areas, this isn’t the case in rural areas where mobile connectivity is essential. This is a particular challenge for the digital nomad community who need reliable internet access at all times. 

Here, eSIMs mean that digital nomads can tether to mobile data when working from the beach or in a remote town. It also offers a more reliable alternative to public WiFi networks in places like Medellin or Bogota, keeping tourists connected as they explore the sights of the city.

eSIMs offer ultimate choice and flexibility. For example, Google Maps uses 5MB per hour; social media: 50MB per hour; internet browsing: 50MB per hour; streaming music: 100MB per hour and SD video: 1GB per hour.

These guidelines allow users to pick the ideal data package that aligns with the activities and duration of the visit. This means that tourists aren’t locked into long-term contracts and digital nomads can easily switch their packages when heading to a new destination. 

Sim Local: the global eSIM provider 

The Bogota Post has named Sim Local its #1 eSIM provider in Colombia based on its quality of service, customer feedback and reputation in the market, including the company’s strong partnerships with local telecom providers in the country.

Sim Local is the leading global eSIM provider and, having been founded in 2011, the company was one of the first movers in this fast-growing market. 

Having helped more than 3.5 million connections, the London and Dublin-based company remains one of the most popular. Sim Local is a top choice for travelers seeking affordable eSIM options, available in more than 150 countries. 

Sim Local plans are tailored to suit any journey—from fast, reliable, single-country coverage to multi-destination plans that automatically connect tourists to the best local networks as they cross borders, all at some of the most affordable prices on the market. 

For Colombia, the availability of Sim Local and its eSIM offering means that the rising number of international travelers can enjoy uninterrupted mobile connectivity from the moment they touch down and throughout the duration of their stay. 

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Publicize, a PR company for technology startups and Fortune 1000 enterprises with offices in Medellin, Colombia and Barcelona, Spain, has announced that executive Catalina Carvajal has been promoted to Vice President.

Carvajal, who is from Colombia, earlier served as a Senior Account Manager, helping to support companies across an array of industries.

She is a Media Advisor at Horasis, one of the world’s most recognized international thinktanks.

Carvajal is also a Contributor at Inc. Magazine.

She is a graduate of Hult International Business School, and is originally from Cali, Colombia.

From its offices in Medellín and Barcelona, Publicize works to help startups, enterprises and growing businesses achieve media exposure using digital PR services, thought leadership, social media and other marketing strategies.

The company’s mission is to help startups and technology enterprises leverage digital PR for growth.

Publicize was founded in 2014.

This article includes an Espacio portfolio company

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Colombia continues to play an active role in innovation in the region, with its government recently announcing that it will contribute 50 billion pesos, or approximately $12.6 million USD, to the construction of an AI center in its capital of Bogotá. The new center will be operated and managed by SENA, the country’s national training service.

In addition, with the country earlier declaring that it will place $30 billion pesos of capital into the science, technology, and innovation sectors—it seems that it’s only a matter of time before it’s cemented as an important international hub for entrepreneurship and innovation.

Beyond Colombia, Latin America has become an important benchmark for innovation and entrepreneurship, with this being particularly evident in Brazil, Chile and Mexico, where the number of technology startups has almost tripled in the last five years.

According to a recent StartupBlink report, the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Latin America has experienced exponential growth, with the region today boasting more than 15,000 technology companies, an increase of 35% from the prior year.

These companies, and the individuals leading them, are also increasingly making waves and playing an important role in international markets. From Pereira to Patagonia, here are 15 international innovation leaders to watch in 2025.

Mike Hoey

Mike Hoey is the Founder and Owner of Source Meridian, a software development company that specializes in life science, big data, business intelligence and machine learning solutions running on commercial clouds.

One of the large tech employers in Colombia, the company’s mission is to provide its customers with early access to cutting-edge technologies, helping their clients to maintain their competitive advantages in the marketplace.

Source Meridian includes a staff of international software engineers and data scientists and has offices in the US and Colombia. Its Founder Mike Hoey has long been praised for his mentorship to colleagues.

Francisco (Paco) Solsona

Francisco (Paco) Solsona is Head of Accelerator & Startup Ecosystem, SpLATAM at Google, and he has long been recognized for playing a key role in the region’s tech ecosystem.

According to Contxto, Google has 24 acceleration programs distributed worldwide, with Latin America playing an important role in these programs. A total of 283 startups and developers from their programs are from the region, or 25% of the global total.

Solsona, who was earlier the regional leader of Google for Developers in Latin America, earlier expressed pride in the role that LatAm startups have played since the program’s inception in 2016, saying in an interview, “Latin American startups have been part of Google’s acceleration programs since the first Google office in Mountain View, California, in 2016. We started with national and regional programs in 2018, first in Brazil, followed by Mexico, and the rest of the region. We are proud of all the companies that trusted us over the years and started our programs to connect with the best of Google: our people, technology, and global network of mentors and allies.”

Maria Yepes

Maria Yepes is a leader on the marketing team at Sim Local, which is a global pioneer in travel SIM card and eSIM retail that quickly expanded throughout Colombia and Latin America this past year. The company provides local SIM cards and eSIM Profiles direct to customers through its retail stores, kiosks, vending machines, mobile app, and eShop.

Throughout her career Yepes has demonstrated the ability to grow and increase sales through innovative strategies, leading to important projects for Fortune 500 companies, and design demand generation processes. The culmination of her and the team’s work resulted in Sim Local, which is headquartered in Dublin and London, being named to Deloitte’s 50 Fast Growing Companies list.

Loreanne Garcia

Loreanne Garcia, an Endeavor entrepreneur, is the co-founder and Chief People Officer of Kavak.com, a disruptive solution looking to change how pre-owned cars are bought and sold in the auto industry.

With a valuation of $8.7 billion, Kavak is one of the largest tech startups in Mexico and across Latin America.

Garcia has her MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.

Antoine Valentone

Antoine Valentone is the VP of Customer Success at Prezent, which is an AI storytelling platform for enterprises that is making waves in the communication industry across Latin America. Valentone helps to lead customer success at the organization, which boasts over 100 Fortune 2000 clients.

He is also an active advisor and mentor across organizations in Latin America, including at the Universidad de Los Andes, one of Colombia’s leading universities, and FGV in Brazil.

He is Co-Host of the podcast Think Deeply, Speak Simply, and is a Contributor at Entrepreneur Magazine.

Mariana Costa Checa

Mariana Costa Checa is the Co-Founder of Laboratoria+, a technology company from Peru that provides free online boot camps to women interested in learning Web Development and UX Design.

The organization is focused on shaping a more diverse and inclusive digital economy, which opens opportunities for each woman to develop her potential and, in this way, transform the future of Latin America.

The startup has seen great success with leaders, including Barack Obama and Mark Zuckerberg praising Mariana Costa’s work.

Ximena Aleman

Ximena Aleman, is the Co-CEO and co-founder of Prometeo, the largest open banking platform in Latin America.

Founded in 2018 when Aleman noticed that data was still the sole property of financial institutions, she and her team set out a mission to democratize data so it could be securely shared. Today the platform is capable of A2A payments, creating and access to 100% digital products, and inter-accounts transactions. 

Aleman’s work is helping to ensure that Prometeo becomes the next Uruguayan tech unicorn in the years ahead.

Matan Libis

Matan Libis is the VP of Product at SQream, a data acceleration platform increasingly expanding into Spanish-speaking markets that helps enterprises address the soaring costs of AI. According to a company press release from the company, its technology handles data 2X faster and at 1/2 of the cost of platforms such as Snowflake.

Libis is a senior executive with extensive leadership experience in SaaS for enterprises, specializing in deep tech, cloud solutions, GPU-accelerated technology, AI/ML, CV, and 3D.

According to a recent interview of his in The Latin Times, “The VP also added that globally, the skills gap is closing between data engineers and scientists. ‘Now we have the data engineers creating the data, and the scientists are creating the models,’ said Libis. ‘You’re going to be able to use Python to do that engineering, and you’re going to be able to use FQL to train your models.’ Last year, data science-related roles were some of the most sought-after for companies to fill, with markets like Brazil and Mexico leading the region, according to Forbes.”

Philipp Petrescu

Philipp Petrescu, recently named a Judge at Puerto Rico’s prestigious Parallel18 accelerator, is the Global Head of Innovation and Design at Ness Digital Engineering. Ness is a global full-lifecycle digital transformation company that is pioneering Intelligent Engineering, which looks to increase the velocity at which products move through release cycles by eliminating waste, and that leverages the power of data, AI and intelligence to improve engineering productivity.

According to the United Nations, AI is forecasted to contribute up to 5.4 percent of Latin America’s GDP by 2030. 

Based in Berlin, Germany, Petrescu is also the Co-Founder of MVP Factory, which enables companies of all sizes to build and scale top technology products. He earlier was the Co-Founder of Lendico, a Rocket Internet company.

Felipe Chávez Cortés

Felipe Chávez Cortés is the CEO and co-founder of Kiwibot, which is the largest last-mile robotic network in America.

Kiwibot has had remarkable growth in recent years, with offices in Medellín, Colombia; California, USA, and Taipei, Taiwan.

Per TechCrunch, this past quarter the company also acquired Nickelytics for $25 million. Founded in 2019, the Tampa-based firm specializes in car-wrap advertising.

Cortés was earlier named to MIT’s Technology Innovators under 35 list.

Camilo Martinez

Camilo Martinez is the CEO and Co-Founder of Leal, which has quickly become a major force in Latin America’s retail technology landscape with its more than 7 million users and 1000 partnerships across 8 countries.

The company’s product leverages AI to enhance data management and marketing automation, enabling it to boost partner sales and customer lifetime value.

Martinez has his MBA from Kellogg School of Management and earlier worked in investment banking at Bancolombia.

Alan Gongora 

Alan Gongora is the Managing Partner at Langon Law Group, a law firm with offices in the United States and Colombia. His firm works with enterprises across North and South America.

He is also the General Counsel at ‘WISH’ by Wuauu Inc. WISH is a unique service designed to provide consumers with a price bargaining system via a mobile device, also helping retailers to sell their backstock inventory quickly. 

Alan is an alumni of Harvard Law School.

Daniela Restrepo

Daniela Restrepo is a Principal at Publicize, a PR company for technology startups and Fortune 1000 enterprises with offices in Medellin, Colombia and Barcelona.

She is a Mentor at Founder Institute, a Contributor at Entrepreneur Magazine, SocialGeek and Pulzo, and is a frequent speaker at conferences such as TechBeach. Last year she was recognized by Kienyke as a Judge at Colombia’s National Digital Journalism Award.

Restrepo is a graduate of Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, with a degree in social communications and PR.

Sergio Chavez

Sergio Chavez is the Global Head of Partnerships at Sastrify, which is an all-in-one platform for buying, managing, and renewing SaaS subscriptions at scale. This past year the company raised $32 Million in its Series B funding round in order to scale its next generation software procurement platform.

Additionally, Chavez is the Founder of MEXpreneurs, which is an impressive community that was started to help Mexican tech startup founders globally to succeed.

He is also the Co-Host of the MEXpreneurs Podcast.

Carl Newton

Carl Newton is the Allshore Lead at Slalom Consulting, which announced its expansion into Colombia this past month.

According to Contxto, the enterprise’s expansion represents a positive impact for the local technology landscape, as the company plans to hire more than 500 professionals in Latin America by 2025. It also highlights Colombia as an emerging market in the region.

This article includes clients of an Espacio portfolio company

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“The system collapses too often,” says Andrea at my local drugstore, “and it’s a really fastidious process to get the money back.” She is explaining why she is refusing payments made via the Nequí platform.

Founded by Bancolombia in 2016, Nequí was originally a way to give unbanked people a leg up into the formal financial system. Unlike traditional banks, it didn’t require going into bank branches, nor a lengthy list of documents to register. It was also digitally native.

This is part of a wider trend known as neobanking. These are less banks as you may know them and instead fintech. They offer fewer services and tend to focus on previously unbanked people outside the traditional financial landscape.

The big beast of the Latin American scene, Brazil’s Nubank, is already here in Bogotá and winning over thousands of people with its offers. Chief among them is the promise of high interest rates on ordinary accounts. That still runs around 8% APR, and was closer to 12% at first.

Nequí alone has some 20 million regular users – about half Colombia’s adult population. Three quarters of those are 45 or under, with the majority under 25. It’s no exaggeration to say that these platforms have completely changed the financial landscape of the country.

However, 80% of day-to-day purchases in Colombia are still made using cash. There are all kinds of reasons why the establishment would like that to be reduced, chief among them the fight against fraud and corruption.

This is part of a wider trend in Colombia to move towards a more modern banking system and break up the powerful and conservative banking blocs. Last year, the central bank (Banco de la República) brought in the Bre-B system of inter-bank transferrals to make them immediate rather being delayed often up to three working days. Banks are slowly moving onto it.

Why are some establishments rejecting the apps?

Put simply, it’s a lot of hassle for them and not always reliable. Like many tech companies, fintech operations are generally more focused on disruption than creation, meaning that they do not prioritise ongoing customer care.

Neither do they use their own infrastructure, relying instead on the existing systems – which is one of the key points of failure. Even in central Bogotá, both electrical and telecommunication connections can be extremely ropey.

For the electrics, there is the ever present threat of severe storms affecting things, as well as criminal groups cutting cables to extract the copper – more widespread than you might assume.

For the internet connection there is that, plus the added effect of extreme strain on the system. There are eight million odd people in Bogotá, most of which are heavy mobile phone users. It’s somewhat of a miracle we ever have signal.

More controllable for the fintech companies is their end, but they have problems there too. Server space is necessary to handle all this data, and a never ending stream of tiny payments requires a lot of processing power. A team of developers is needed to fix gremlins in the system.

For companies constantly looking to cut costs to stay competitive – few of the neobanks offer low-risk, high-return instruments such as mortgages – the temptation is always there to skip investing in emergency mitigation measures.

Even a simple money transfer requires a fair bit of coverage – there needs to be power at both the banking and retailing ends, as well as internet access at both points and space on the server to handle it all.

Added to this is growing concern over the potential for estafas, or scams. These are not commonplace yet on these platforms, but that’s largely a product of novelty. The more widespread the apps become, so too will an industry of fraudsters and scammers pop up.

How common is cashless payment in Colombia?

These payment systems are not simply found in flashy neighbourhoods – you are in fact more likely to pay via Nequí for a fruit juice in somewhere like the Honda plaza de mercado. It can be done via QR code or as a sort of mini-transferral.

That’s really the key to these new payment methods – they offer a democratization of payment methods through the one thing that almost all Colombians have nowadays: their phone. The same is true of cash, of course, but that can be fiddly and more theft-prone. After all, you can’t block your cash.

Through these platforms, you also have the chance to take out micro- or even nano-credits, avoiding the need to use informal gota a gota loans. These have grown in popularity recently and are simply put, traditional loan sharks with exorbitant rates of interest and credible threats of violence if payments are not met.

Bitcoin has yet to truly take off, but undeniably lies on the horizon. Medellín has a fair few places that will accept it and some parts of Bogotá will as well. It remains a novelty for the time being, but a chronically weak peso means that many are looking for alternative forms of keeping money.

Will cashless payment in Colombia grow?

Undoubtedly. There are serious issues to get over, but the rest of the world is trending heavily towards cashlessness and there is no reason to imagine that Colombia will not go exactly the same way.

As the popularity of cashless payment in Colombia rockets, it’s starting to put more and more pressure on a lot of interconnected systems. There have long been gripes over successive governments refusing to invest in infrastructure and this is simply one more symptom of chronic underfunding.

However, this is a house that Colombia simply has to get in order. The future is clearly cashless and it is already causing friction in the hospitality industry. Many foreign tourists simply cannot understand why cash is still a thing and are irritated by having to withdraw and cart around notes and coins.

It’s likely that the country will switch to a more traditional form of cashlessness, with digital QR codes already being retired by Nequí in favour of migrating people towards their new Visa card (digital and/or physical). These are usually seen as more stable and reliable.

So cashlessness is coming, even if it might be slow to arrive fully. Just like the paperless office, the future often seems like it’s never going to be here until suddenly one day it is.

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In fact, Crunchbase reported in 2023 for the second consecutive year, that the region is among the fastest-shrinking for venture capital funding, experiencing a sharp 84% decline since 2021’s record-setting levels in seed capital through growth-stage investments. 

Experts have noted that markets in the region may be further impacted after the U.S. Federal Reserve announced an interest cut rate of 0.5% in September. In this, rates are placed from 4.75% and 5% and may lead to increased risk perceptions for foreign investment in Latin America. 

Start-ups, however, have appealed to new platforms to access capital. Last year, 30% of Latin American start-ups turned to crowdfunding, intermediaries between donors and beneficiaries, to raise capital, according to Mordor Intelligence’s 2024 report. 

Arkangeles is the first online platform to make start-up and alternative finance investing accessible to Latin America, with a secondary market exchange to enhance liquidity to private investors. 

“One of the biggest aims for Arkangeles in Mexico and Latin America is to allow people with less assets to diversify their investment as millionaires do, while having the same return opportunities,” Arkangeles CEO Luis X Barrios told Entrepreneur. 

Founded in 2017 in Mexico, Arkangeles allows for safe, quick and efficient investments to private companies from 5,000 Mexican Pesos ($259 USD), with the purpose of maximizing returns. For start-ups, this means access to capital, in addition to support for managing investment campaigns and advice from world-leading experts. 

Arkangeles’s committee carefully selects the start-ups they work with considering factors like viability, opportunity cost and scalability, and both investors and entrepreneurs have access to the company’s online platform through which they can manage their investment and calls for funding. 

The democratization that crowdfunding promotes for the investment industry mitigates the dependence on great investors. However, there is also a generational component to this rising trend: Millennials and Gen Z are drawn to businesses that have a social impact, as noted by Nasdaq. 

Because crowdfunding platforms are more flexible and cover a broader range of multi-stage entrepreneurs, in addition to fostering a sense of ownership, shared purpose and active participation, younger investors are more drawn to them.

In turn, young investors are moving away from the stock market and betting on alternative investment platforms.

This article includes a client of an Espacio portfolio company

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Each episode of the podcast will highlight opportunities for developers in Colombia –and across the globe– to grow and connect with professionals transforming the industry.

According to the company, “If you’re passionate about innovation and want to learn from others who share your enthusiasm, this is the place for you.”

Hosted by Hugo Rodríguez, Sebastián Osorno and Yeison Ortiz, the series premiered on October 7, with each episode to feature tech leaders and innovators.

Hugo Rodríguez is a software architect and team lead at Source Meridian with more than a decade of experience. Sebastián Osorno is a business intelligence developer at Source Meridian responsible for conceptualizing and developing analytics solutions for US healthcare data. 

Yeison Ortiz is a data engineer at the respective company.

Through conversations about the tech industry, the podcast will showcase how individuals can thrive in today’s rapidly changing environment.

La Hora de Tech will be available on Spotify, with new episodes released. You can listen to the first episode here.

Source Meridian, founded and led by Mike Hoey, is a software company focused on life science and health tech with offices throughout Colombia and the United States.

This article includes a client of an Espacio portfolio company

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The summit will be the organization’s first time in South America. 

Renato Casagrande, Governor of Espírito Santo, will be a speaker at the meeting, in addition to a host of international leaders. Richard Branson and United Nations Secretary General António Guterres highlight the impressive roster of prior Horasis attendees.

Sessions on South America will include “Fostering South American Unity (CESAN)”, among others.

South American encompasses a huge array of natural resources that need careful management agreed by the whole. By careful bridge building – physical and political – the nations can come together to enjoy coherent growth by helping each other. How to maintain the diversity of cultures and habitats while lifting
their poor above the UN minimum limits? How to create pan-nation trade corridors across South America? What are the best development sectors to quickly benefit all within the continent?

The two-day Horasis conference, to be attended by more than 400 hundred international leaders, will be held in Vitória, and will emphasize the city’s role in building bridges between the North and South America.

“Our world faces unparalleled stress today. Now is the time for leaders to come together,” said Horasis Founder and Chairman Dr. Frank-Jürgen Richter in a statement. “Only by working together will we be able to inspire our future, and address unprecedented environmental and economic challenges.”

The summit comes amidst a number of challenges hitting the region. According to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), El Niño and long-term climate change dramatically hit Latin America last year.

The organization’s state of climate report confirmed that 2023 was the warmest year on record in the region. Sea level continued to rise at a higher rate than the global average, threatening coastal areas. 

Said WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo, “Unfortunately, 2023 was a year of record climatic hazards in Latin America and the Caribbean. El Niño conditions during the second half of 2023 contributed to a record warm year and exacerbated many extreme events. This combined with rising temperatures and more frequent and extreme hazards due to human-induced climate change.”

The city of Vitória, Brazil is an innovator in environmental, social, and governance (ESG), and is looking to play a central leadership role in this space.

Horasis summits have become some of the most influential high-level global gatherings in the world, with each event bringing together governments, international organizations, and business leaders to offer solutions to global challenges.

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Global airline alliance Sky Team made public its new partnership with rail operator Trenitalia to offer passengers travel options when arriving in Italy. Currently 14 SkyTeam member airlines, including Virgin Atlantic, ITA, Air France and Delta, fly to Italy from global markets.

Said Patrick Roux, CEO at SkyTeam, “We are delighted to join forces with Trenitalia as our second non-airline partner, strengthening SkyTeam’s intermodal travel strategy by offering more high-quality, high-speed rail connections – supporting our mission to future-proof travel.”  

Dominic Purvis, SVP Product and Customer Experience at LATAM Airlines, is also set to speak at the global festival.

This month the Latin American airline’s shares were listed on the Colombian Stock Exchange, with the airline having a network spanning 144 destinations in 27 countries and being the only airline group in the Americas to be part of the Dow Jones World Sustainability Index.

The news follows LATAM Airlines announcement that it would be expanding its presence in the North American market, adding a new daily route between Orlando and Bogota.

LATAM currently operates between Bogota and Miami, however it also plans to expand its network in the United States.

World Aviation Festival also announced that Sim Local is the exclusive eSIM partner of the conference. Sim Local, based in Dublin and London, was founded in 2011 by Killian Whelan.

The organization has a presence in more than 100 airports across the globe, and continues to be a leader in the growing eSIM space.

According to Polaris Market Research, the global eSIM market is expected to grow to $9.45 billion in 2024, and will reach $16.69 billion by 2032. 

The World Aviation Festival is the leading conference and exhibition for the global aviation industry. In 2024 the event is expected to bring more than 5,000 executives to the city of Amsterdam. Tracks at the festival include AI/ML, IT, retail, sustainability, marketing, payments, airport TeX, IFEC, loyalty and customer experience.

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