North American forum
forum nord-americain
foro de america del norte

Purpose and History

The North American Forum is a community of Canadian, Mexican and American thought leaders, whose purpose is to advance a shared vision of North America, and to contribute to improved relations among the three neighbors. They come together annually to explore the interactions among the mutually reinforcing goals of security, prosperity and enhanced quality of life. The purpose of the NAF is to create the political and conceptual basis for increased cooperation among countries and across sectors. The NAF identifies actions that governments and private actors can take to help build societal resilience so that the three countries can avoid shocks when possible—be they natural or man-made—and withstand and rebound from shocks when necessary. NAF members are selected based on their commitment to the NAF’s goals and their ability to effect positive change.

Presiding over the forum are three Co-Chairs: former Mexican Finance Minister Pedro Aspe, former Alberta Premier Peter Lougheed and 19th Secretary of Defense William J. Perry. Secretary Perry assumed the US Chairmanship at the end of 2009 after the seminal leadership of former Secretary of State George P. Shultz. While, tri-national in scope and design, the agenda each year is shaped by the organizing country. The World Affairs Council of Northern California has served as the Secretariat for the North American Forum since the inaugural meeting which took place in October 2005 in Sonoma, California. Subsequent meetings rotate among the three countries.

• Inaugural North American Forum - 2005
• 2nd Annual North American Forum - 2006
• 3rd Annual North American Forum - 2007 
• 4th Annual North American Forum - 2008 
• 5th Annual North American Forum - 2009 

participants and outputs

A core group of participants from Mexico, Canada and the United States are invited each year, along with experts able to contribute to that year’s agenda.  While this core group is comprised of non-governmental actors, by and large, they have feed-back loops to their respective governments.  Senior representatives of the three governments are also among those invited.  While these experts are drawn from all sectors, including the media, the majority of the meetings are held off-the-record, following the Chatham House rule.  Beginning in 2008, some sessions with keynote addresses by elected public officials have been opened to the press.

Reflecting the growing strength of the NAF, the caliber of participants has risen each year. Changes in political leadership in Mexico, Canada and the United States are also mirrored in the delegations from each country.  The diversity of participants and the increasing quality of the discussions ensures that the North American Forum will continue to tackle complex tri-national issues.

The Co-Chairs do not intend to make public pronouncements advocating specific policy approaches on the NAF’s behalf.  Rather the outputs of the NAF will be ideas and approaches that are individually pursued by participants at their own initiative and in their own name.

annual meetings of the north american forum

2005 (October 19-21), Sonoma, California, United States

A Resilient North America: Security Prosperity and Quality of Life in a Global Perspective.  The inaugural meeting in California set the goal—developing societal resilience in the face of strategic challenges, focusing on the close linkages among security, prosperity and quality of life.

2006 (September 12-14), Banff, Alberta, Canada

Continental Prosperity in the New Security Environment.  This meeting turned to a more extensive exploration of the relationships among security, prosperity and migration, and the goal of greater energy independence.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Peter Pace

2007 (October 12-14), Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico

North American Cooperation and Community.  This meeting focused on demographic trends, migration and development, and regional approaches to addressing climate change.

NAF Co-Chairmen George P. Shultz and Pedro Aspe

2008 (June 15-17), Washington DC, United States

Toward a More Resilient North America.  Having completed a full rotation of the forum among the three countries, the forum took stock of progress made among the three governments and in the private sector.  Discussion focused on the ways in which a new US administration might approach such core issues as energy policy, climate change, trade, immigration, the demand side of the drug trade, the flows of arms, and the security challenges.

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates speech                 Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte

2009 (October 4-6), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

Beyond the Crisis: Forging a More Resilient North America.  Building on progress to-date, the 2009 meeting of the forum focused on the immediate responses to the global economic crisis, as well as two critical issues: energy and the environment on the one hand, and transnational crime, arms and drug trafficking on the other.