Al Zapanta

Al Zapanta President and CEO, United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce.

"Al Zapanta is responsible for operations in 14 regional offices in the United States and six in Mexico. Zapanta has held numerous presidential appointments, including a White House fellowship in 1973-74 and a Senate-confirmed assistant secretary of the interior for management and administration position from 1976-77. He participated as chairman of infrastructure studies on urban mass transit, rail transportation, the airport airways study, the water conservation initiative, the Trans-Alaska pipeline fraud review, and the Teton Dam disaster audit, and was the department's representative to the National Visitor Center, Intermodal Station in Washington, D.C. Zapanta's military record includes the Silver Star, five Bronze Stars for valor, the Purple Heart and 30 other awards during the Vietnam War.

"He was recently awarded the Joint Service Commendation Medal for Desert Shield/Desert Storm, Restore Hope in Somalia and Restore Democracy in Haiti. His private sector experience includes 18 years as an executive with ARCO, and he retired in 1993 as director for governmental affairs. Zapanta obtained an Associate of Arts degree from East Los Angeles College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Industrial Psychology, a Master of Arts Degree in Public Administration and completed course work for his Doctorate in International Political Economics from The University of Southern California. He graduated from the Harvard Graduate School of Business and the Inter-American Defense College and the National War College in Washington, D.C." 

"U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfield appointed on March 21, 2002 Al Zapanta as Chairman of the Reserve Forces Policy Board (RFPB)." also see


 * Advisory Council (2004), Inter-American Foundation

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