René A. Alarcón (Ex-officio)

René Alarcón, a native of Ecuador, is a second-year Masters of Public Policy student. His policy interests include international trade, business development, public/private collaboration and renewable energy finance. In 2000, Alarcón joined the U.S. Department of Agriculture's overseas office in Ecuador while finishing an engineering degree in business administration at the Catholic University of Quito. Serving in several capacities, he worked to increase trade and improve diplomatic relations between the United States and Ecuador. Working with three different U.S. ambassadors, Alarcón made significant contributions to develop Ecuador's productive and export capacity in the agricultural sector.

He served on the board of the multi-million dollar USDA/PL-480 program which financed and supervised over one hundred and sixty rural development and capacity building programs throughout Ecuador. He also served on the project selection board of the ACDI/VOCA Success Alliance project, which aimed to train and provide technical assistance to 21,000 Ecuadorian cocoa bean farmers. Alarcón arrived in North Carolina with his wife, Shaina, in 2008 to begin his master’s degree.

Class on the Sanford Building Lawn
Class on the Sanford Building Lawn