Energy and Sustainability 2015

The 6th International Conference on Energy and Sustainability was held in Medellin, Colombia, organised by the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana (UPB), Colombia and the Wessex Institute (WIT), UK

Disarming charisma? Mayoralty, gender and power in Medellín, Colombia

The ‘Urban Century’ has seen a rise in power of cities, and the emergence of city mayors as significant political actors both nationally and globally. The power of city mayors, which unifies pragmatic, techno-managerial leadership with the authority and legitimacy of public office, invites a reappraisal of the gendered construction of power in the ‘Urban Century’, and the particular notions of hegemonic masculinity that city mayors recreate. This article explores the example of Medellín, Colombia, whose mayor Sergio Fajardo is widely regarded to have stewarded the city's rapid reduction in violence. Fajardo's leadership can be characterised as typical of the phenomenon of smart, cosmopolitan, charismatic mayors who are seen to respond professionally to local needs by making smart investment decisions and attracting international capital. The emergence of a techno-managerial mayor in the city of Medellín, which during the 1990s was the epicentre of Colombia's multi-faceted conflict with the highest homicide rate in the world, represents a fundamental change to the identity and gender of power in a context of violent conflict where legitimate authority in terms of a monopoly on the use of force, was fiercely disputed. I use this example to explore how mayoral power is gendered and how it relates to violence, which is central to liberal theories of leadership and the focus of the feminist critique of them. The possibility that such a character attain power indicates underlying changes in the gendered structure of political space, including the institution of a Sub-Secretariat for Women and formalisation of participation in political process

La sociedad gana o pierde como resultado de la privatizacion? El caso de Colombia

Este trabajo estudia los efectos de la privatización del sector de agua en el bienestar de los consumidores en 46 municipalidades de Colombia. En primer lugar se describe el proceso de privatización. En segundo lugar, el estudio evalúa el impacto de la privatización en el acceso, precio y calidad del agua al igual que los resultados de salud usando metodología de diferencia en diferencias con variación de tiempo (antes y después de la privatización) entre tratamientos y grupos de control (municipalidades privatizadas y no privatizadas)y el control de las características de la familia y de la municipalidad. Los resultados muestran efectos positivos de la privatización, en particular en las áreas urbanas. Hay cuatro resultados importantes: (i) La privatización en las áreas urbanas aumenta el acceso, tiene efectos positivos en la medición de calidad como en la necesidad de tratamiento y el aspecto del agua (i. e. presencia de partículas), y mejora los resultados de salud, como también mejorar la frecuencia del servicio para los bajos quintiles. (ii) La privatización aumenta el precio del agua en los bajos quintiles, aunque estos efectos pueden ser el resultado de la implementación conjunta de privatización y eliminación de subsidios cruzados (iii) En las municipalidades privatizadas con mejores capacidades técnicas gubernamentales hay efectos positivos en el acceso, precios y calidad. (iv) los efectos positivos de la privatización en áreas rurales en la frecuencia del servicio y en los resultados de salud están dominados por el impacto negativo en el acceso y precios. Estos resultados sugieren que los beneficios que se encuentran en las áreas urbanas deben expandirse a las áreas rurales, y que el servicio se debe enfocar más hacia los más pobres.

Adaptive Governance as an Avenue for Delivering Public Purpose in the Wake of Financialization

The demand for infrastructure and utility services is an acute challenge for countries in middle- and low-income countries undergoing high levels of urbanization, demographic shifts, and civil and political reorganization. The demand for utilities occurs alongside a trend toward increased financialization of the local state. A challenge for meeting demand for utility services is the shift toward increased financialization where the delivery of public purpose is challenged. This chapter aims to highlight governing arrangements that aid in understanding how public purpose can be delivered through utilities using the case study of Medellin, Colombia. Through examples of public infrastructure projects and the delivery of water by its utility-company, Empresas Publicas de Medellin, the paper discusses how this company achieved alignment of essential services with public purpose through adaptive governance structures that mitigate adverse effects of financialization and promote the integration of economic, environmental, and social goals. While this case does not propose a transferable model of governance, it highlights arrangements that enable a more mixed, adaptive, and nuanced understanding of how adverse effects associated with total financialization might be abated

Ruta N- promoviendo el ecosistema de innovación de Medellín

L'objectiu d'aquest document és identificar quins factors han contribuït a l'èxit de Ruta N. Ruta N fomentava l'ecosistema d'innovació de Medellín, però fins ara segueix inexplicat com va ocórrer des de la perspectiva interna, quins actors van participar en el procés i quines pràctiques es van fer. Mitjançant la recollida de dades secundàries, entrevistes amb directors directament implicats i visites tècniques que es van fer, apareixen alguns punts importants que poden il·lustrar com es va desenvolupar el projecte i així  poder aplicar aquestes pràctiques i configuracions intencionadament en altres ciutats amb contextos similars.The aim of this paper is to identify which factors have contributed to the success of Ruta N. Ruta N fostered the innovation ecosystem of Medellín, but until now it remains open how it happened from the inside perspective, which actors were involved in the process and which practices were made. Secondary data collection, interviews with directors directly involved and technical visits were made, and some important points emerged from the field that can shed light in order to apply those practices and configurations intentionally in other cities with similar contexts. El objetivo de este documento es identificar qué factores han contribuido al éxito de Ruta N. Ruta N fomento el ecosistema de innovación de Medellín, pero hasta ahora no está explicado cómo esto ha sido posible desde una perspectiva interna, analizando los agentes involucrados en el proceso, y sus prácticas. A través de la recopilación de evidencias secundarias, entrevistes con directores directamente involucrados, y visitas técnicas, se han obtenido conclusiones importantes que pueden ilustrar cómo se ha desarrollado el proyecto, y proporcionar lecciones que puedan aplicarse intencionadamente a otras ciudades con contextos similares

Grabbed urban landscapes : socio-spatial tensions in green infrastructure planning in Medellín

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu MdM-2015-0552 - Digital object identifier for the 'European Research Council' (http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000781) Digital object identifier for 'Horizon 2020' (http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100007601).Cities confronted with unsustainable development and climatic changes are increasingly turning to green infrastructure as an approach for growth and climate risk management. In this context, recent scholarly attention has been paid to gentrification, real-estate speculation and resident displacement in the context of sustainability and green planning in the global North. Yet we know little about the environmental-justice implications of green infrastructure planning in the context of self-built settlements of the global South. To what extent do green infrastructure interventions produce or exacerbate urban socio-spatial inequities in self-built settlements? Through the analysis of a greenbelt project, an emblematic case of green infrastructure planning in Medellín, we argue that, as the Municipality of Medellín is containing and beautifying low-income neighborhoods through grabbing part of their territories and turning them into green landscapes of privilege and pleasure, communities are becoming dispossessed of their greatest assets-location, land and social capital. In the process, community land is transformed into a new form of aesthetically controlled and ordered nature for the middle and upper classes and for tourists. By contrast, communities' planning alternatives reveal how green planning can better address growth and climate risks in tandem with equitable community development

Desarrollo orientado al transporte en la gobernanza metropolitana : comparación entre el contexto colombiano y la experiencia de Corea del Sur

RESUMEN: La presente investigación estudia el proceso y las decisiones políticas que se llevaron a cabo en el Área Metropolitana de Seúl (SMA) para responder a una reorganización territorial asociada a una oferta de transporte público, que resultó en un modelo de desarrollo orientado al transporte (DOT). Se estudia, en paralelo, el marco normativo que rige las áreas metropolitanas en Colombia y su transporte público metropolitano, y la estructuración del sistema de transporte público colectivo metropolitano del Área Metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá (AMVA). El objetivo general de la investigación es comprender el proceso de toma de decisiones territoriales y de políticas de transporte realizadas en el SMA, ejemplo y caso de estudio, para contextualizar una reorganización del sistema de transporte público colectivo en el caso colombiano, específicamente en el AMVA. Los objetivos específicos son identificar los principios reguladores de la planificación territorial y de transporte, las estrategias y los instrumentos utilizados para establecer las decisiones políticas que tienen un carácter vinculante en las entidades operativas del sistema de transporte público colectivo. Palabras clave: Gobierno metropolitano, sistema de transporte, público colectivo, área metropolitana de Seúl, área metropolitana del Valle de Aburrá, modelo DOT.ABSTRACT: This research studies the process and the political decisions that were carried out in the creation of Seoul Metropolitan Area (SMA) in order to respond to a territorial reorganization associated to a public transport supply that resulted in a model of transit-oriented development (TOD). Contemporaneously, the paper studies the normative framework that governs the metropolitan areas in Colombia and its metropolitan public transport, as well as, it studies the structuring of the metropolitan collective public transport system of the Aburrá Valley Metropolitan Area (AVMA). The aim of the research is to understand the process of territorial and transport policy decisions that were held in the SMA, which makes it an example and case of study to contextualize a reorganization of the collective public transportation system in the Colombian case, specifically in the AVMA. The objectives of the research are identifying the regulatory principles of territorial and transport planning, strategies, and instruments used for setting the policy decisions that have a binding character on the operating entities of the collective public transport system. In order to put the characteristics of the AVMA collective public transport bus system in evidence, a comparison between SMA and AVMA was developed. The implications emerged from this comparison are used to generate guidelines through three themes: a) governance; b) financial system and c) operational aspects. The guidelines hope point the reorganization of the public transportation bus system and a future transition to a model of Transport - and People - Oriented Development in the Colombian metropolitan level context. Keywords: Metropolitan governance, collective public transport system, Seoul metropolitan area, Aburrá Valley metropolitan area, TOD mode

‘Money and (dis)connection’: Income inequality and network disadvantage as barriers to sustainable technology adoption

Scholars have highlighted the role of income distribution as a fundamental factor to understand consumption, health, adoption of technologies, social cohesion, democratic stability, and long term economic performance, among other phenomena. Moreover, reducing income inequality was included in the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. However, less attention has been put on the link between differences in household incomes and other pressing sustainability challenges, such as those that depend on massive adoption of new technologies within network industry sectors: telecommunications, waste management, transport, energy and water. Does existent income inequality translate into adoption gaps within these sectors? Is inequality an obstacle for advancing the vision of an inter-connected and more sustainable world? This research explores these questions through seven stand-alone papers, which focus on adoption of broadband internet, municipal recycling and railway passenger transport. Part I of the thesis includes four papers based on publicly available data from traditional mainstream sources. Chapter 1 provides a systematic map of the peer-reviewed literature on the link between income inequality and adoption of the three selected network technologies. Chapter 2 looks at country-level panel data from OECD countries. Chapter 3 analyses cross-sectional data in a broader world-wide sample. Chapter 4 compares borough-level recycling and income distribution in two European cities: London (United Kingdom) and Barcelona (Spain). Part II provides an in-depth analysis of two South American metropolitan areas: Santiago (Chile) and Medellín (Colombia). This part includes three papers (chapters 5, 6 and 7), each one focusing on a specific sector, that employ mixed-methods based on fieldwork conducted in both cities. The main contributions of the thesis are new evidence on the negative effect of income inequality on network technology adoption, and a discussion of the role of formal and informal institutions in this relationship.CONICYT PFCHA/DOCTORADO BECAS CHILE/2016 ‐ 7217012

Larger, diversified and courted : the new triad of local firms of infrastructure in transition ?

International audienceFollowing Jaglin and Verdeil’s argument (2013), this article considers that a certain obsession for energy transition may overlook important transformations of energy systems. A focus on largely understudies local utilities in three very different contexts (Grenoble, Magdeburg, Medellin) reveals important though silent changes that indicate new emerging infrastructure regimes and complete the literature on infrastructure firms