Astrid Salazar

Director of Investment Promotion

Tamaulipas State Government

Biography:

Ms. Salazar holds a B.A. in International Relations from Monterrey Institute of Higher Education, with specializations in International Law from Comillas Pontifical University in Spain, and in Negotiation and Protocol from European Business School in Switzerland. 

In 2016 she led the ProMexico Tamaulipas Office, Promotion Agency within the Ministry of Economy in charge of Mexico’s Trade and Investment. In this position she promoted Tamaulipas to attract FDI, as well as to detonate exports and the internationalization of the state’s enterprises across the globe. 

In 2018 she was selected as Mexico’s representative for the International Leadership Visitor Program (IVLP) led by the US State Department in the Global Economic Cooperation project. 

Currently she coordinates Tamaulipas’ strategies for attraction of national and foreign investment as Investment Promotion Director in the Secretary of Economic Development at the State Government. “

Nicole Griensewic

Executive Director

Region Nine Development Commission in Minnesota

Biografy:

Griensewic has served as Executive Director of Region Nine Development Commission since 2012. As executive director, Griensewic has made it a priority to foster collaboration and engagement by sharing Region Nine’s story both regionally and globally. Griensewic is an active board and committee member for multiple organizations throughout Minnesota. Griensewic is the immediate past President of the Greater Minnesota Partnership, and is the first female to chair the Executive Committee for the University of Minnesota’s Center for Transportation Studies, where she served as chair of the Governance Committee. Griensewic also served as secretary of Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota’s Governing Board of Directors and chaired the Governance Committee and currently serves as an advisory board member for South Central College’s Center for Agriculture. She serves on the executive committee for the MACS Board, Minnesotans for the American Community Survey Board of Directors and represents the Midwest on the National Assoc. of Development Orgs.’s (NADO) Board of Directors.

Griensewic is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and has completed course work through Harvard’s Kennedy School’s Executive Education. She received the 2017 Outstanding Recent Alumnus Award from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Her professional background includes extensive private sector and non-profit leadership experience.