Successful Citizen Security Initiatives in Bogotá, Medellín, 
and Cali,Colombia:  Are They Sustainable and Replicable?

Thursday, November 29, 2012

9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Sixth Floor Board Room
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C.

Improvements in citizen security in Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali, Colombia have been widely celebrated and these cities have become models of “best practices” for combatting crime and violence in urban areas worldwide.  What explains these success stories and why have there been some setbacks?  A distinguished group of analysts and practitioners will identify the key policy initiatives undertaken at the municipal and national level in order to assess the sustainability of security gains and whether they are replicable in other settings.

9:00-9:15 a.m.:  Introductory Remarks                                                                                                      
            Cynthia J. Arnson, Director, Latin American Program

9:15 – 11:00 a.m.: Panel I – What Has Happened and Why?

Dr. Rodrigo Guerrero, Mayor of Cali
Jorge Giraldo Ramírez, Universidad  EAFIT, Medellín
Ariel Ávila, Corporación Arco Iris, Bogotá

11:15 – 1:00 p.m.: Panel II – Cross-Cutting Views: Lessons Learned, Sustainability, and Replicability

Aldo Civico, Rutgers University
Nathalie Alvarado, Inter-American Development Bank
María Victoria Llorente, Fundación Ideas para la Paz