Diego Area

President and CEO of Global Americans

Diego Area is the President and CEO of Global Americans, a nonpartisan think tank dedicated to reimagining U.S.–Latin America relations. Under his leadership, GA connects the private sector, governments, and the U.S. Latino community to expand investment, strengthen democracy, and foster hemispheric cooperation.

He previously spent six years at the Atlantic Council’s Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center, where he led strategic development and partnerships with Fortune 500 companies, foundations, and governments, advancing cooperation on energy, trade, technology, health, and great power competition.

Before coming to the U.S., Diego served as campaign manager in the 2015 parliamentary elections, he led the strategy that flipped a pro-Maduro district in Caracas, Venezuela. Before that, as director of social development, Diego launched programs providing over 1,200 scholarships, childcare for 2,500 children, dispute resolution in high-crime areas, and microloans for young entrepreneurs.

His work has earned him George Washington University’s Guardian of Democracy award and a fellowship with the National Endowment for Democracy. He holds a master’s in political management from George Washington University and a bachelor’s in political science from the
Universidad Central de Venezuela.