Medellin, Colombia: From Kidnapping Capital to Renaissance City
In the first Rising Voices podcast we visited Bangladesh, where the Nari Jibon center is teaching young women in Dhaka to express themselves by participating in the online conversation. This week we are changing the format and releasing this podcast in two separate parts.
First we become acquainted with Medellín, Colombia; its violent past, its current tenuous peace, and the mathematician mayor who is comissioning gigantic modernist libraries in the city's most impoverished neighborhoods.
In the second part of this podcast, which will be published later in the week, we'll focus on the HiperBarrio project and learn how a few motivated Medellin bloggers are headed to the hills of their city to teach the tools of citizen media to working class youth.
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In today's podcast we speak with:
- Hector Aristizabal, Director of the ImaginAction theater group.
- Adam Isacson, senior associate of the Center for International Policy in Washington, DC.
- Aldo Civico, Director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution at Columbia University in New York City.
- Juliana Rincón, blogger, Global Voices author, and co-founder of Medallo Bloguero.
The introductory background music is “Madrugada a la Gil Evans” by the Paloseco Brazz Orchestra and was found on ccMixter. The closing song, “Del Cielo Que Nos Robaron” is by Colombian trova musician and blogger, Lizardo Carvajal. It was released under a Creative Commons 2.5 license as part of the iSummit 2006 DVD.
As promised in the podcast, here is a YouTube video of Medellin's MetroCable:
It is also worth reading Andres Duque's thoughts on the MetroCable and how it has helped transform Medellin.
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14 comments
Such a wonderful podcast. Thanks and congrats, David. Looking forward to hearing about hiperbarrio.
Hola –
I have traveled to Medellin, Colombia three times this year after discovering what a great city it was after my first trip in March, 2007. I decided to return to see if what I experienced on my first visit was just a fluke. It was not a dream! Again, as my trips progressed, I came to the conclusion that Medellin is truly a magical city. And most importantly, the Paisa’s are very warm and inviting to travelers visiting their country.
Over the past several months I have been sharing with all my friends and families my experiences and many have considered booking a flight to Medellin, based on my collection of pictures alone. Of which I have over 3000 photos of Medellin, Colombia!!
I’ve dedicated my blog to my travels in Medellin http://medellin-colombia.blogspot.com I invite you to browse my photos.
Colombia is Passion!!