Strategies to Build Competitive Advantage in a Changing Global Landscape.
This open webinar is designed for WTC Members and Free Zone operators looking to develop and strengthen their Foreign Direct Investment strategies, and to position their territories as world-class business destinations.
It brings both ecosystems together to explore how their collaboration, anchored in the prestige and global reach of the WTC network, creates a uniquely powerful platform to attract and retain international investment.
Attendees will gain practical insights into how Free Zones can design and activate FDI strategies tailored to their competitive positioning, regulatory environment, and sector focus, and how WTC Members can act as connectors, facilitators, and partners in that investment journey.
The panel brings together three complementary vantage points. Erika Magder, Executive Vice President – Global Sales at ResearchFDI and an international FDI expert in Free Zone investment promotion, will share proven frameworks, market intelligence, and strategic tools that both WTCs and Free Zones can apply immediately. Martín Ibarra, CEO of Araújo Ibarra International Business Consultants, who has spent decades designing and restructuring free zone, foreign trade, and investment regimes across Latin America, Asia, and Africa, will address what actually makes a regime attractive to a foreign investor: fiscal benefits, legal certainty, and ease of entry. Melissa Miller, Director of WTC Kansas City, will bring the view from inside a working World Trade Center: how a WTC generates investor leads, delivers soft-landing services, and turns a global network into results for companies on the ground.
The session is moderated by Crystal Edn, Executive Director – Member Services at the World Trade Centers Association, who will connect the discussion to what the global WTC network makes possible for its members, and how Free Zones and WTCs can work through it together.
Monday, October 19, 2026 | 09:00 (UTC−5) | 16:00 (CEST, UTC+2) | Zoom Webinar
Free to attend and open to WTC Members, Free Zone operators, and their business networks.
