Colombia Ambassador to the United States Carolina Barco Isakson will be a keynote speaker at the U.S. Grains Council’s 50th Annual Board of Delegates Meeting July 18-21.

“We are excited to have Ambassador Barco address our members during the Council’s 50th Anniversary Meeting,� said USGC President and CEO Thomas C. Dorr.

“The pending free trade agreement between the United States and Colombia remains an item of significance to the Council and its members. Ms. Barco’s upcoming speech comes at a crucial time as the Council works to educate policy makers on the urgency of ratifying the free trade agreement with Colombia.�

Appointed as Colombia’s Ambassador to the United States in August 2006 by President Alvaro Uribe, Barco has a strong international background having served as Colombia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs between 2002 and 2006. She also worked as the international cooperation adviser to the United Nations Development Program, as researcher at the Universidad de los Andes, and as a Board of Director of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.

Ambassador Barco has a Bachelor’s degree in social and economic sciences and a Master’s degree in business administration and urban and regional planning.