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| Home । About Us । Intermediate Level of Government । Security Sector Reform । Representative and Participatory Democracy । Local Economic Development । Afro-Colombian Issues । Culture and Arts । News । Events । Photo Gallery । Contact Us |
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About Us The Colombia Program was founded in 1998 by Miguel Ceballos and Arturo Valenzuela, under a grant of USAID's Office of Transitional Initiatives. Gerard Martin joined as Research Director in 1999, Rocio Mariño as Research Associate in 2001, and Martha Llerena as Financial Administrator in 2001. Since 1998, the Program has permanently offered work to 2 student assistants, who operate as part of the Colombia Program team. In July 2005, Gerard Martin assumed the direction of the Program, with Rocio Mariño as Program Manager, while Miguel Ceballos returned to Colombia to assume other professional challenges. Erika Vargas joined the team in November 2006 as Research Associate, and Camilia Payan replaced Rocio Marino as Program Manager in April 2007. Between 1998 and 2000, the Colombia Program worked with grants of USAID on the project, "Internal War and Democratic Governance: Elements for a Resolution of Crisis Provoked by Situations of Internal Conflict and Promotion of Democracy". The main topics of research and analysis were: (i) the agendas and proposals of the parties involved in the Colombian internal armed conflict; (ii) the public channels and instruments of citizen participation and local institutional empowerment; and (iii) the development of a model of rural towns and medium-sized cities as poles of institutional strengthening, public services delivery and sub-regional development in relation to economic reactivation and promotion of alternative and sustainable development. Between 2001 and 2005, under a cooperative agreement with USAID, the Program focused its activities on four central research and technical assistance objectives of "strengthening local governance towards deepening democracy and enhancing citizen security". The Program opened three offices in Colombia in order to develop research and technical assistance: in Cali (in alliance with the Cali Chamber of Commerce- 2001-2003), in Medellín (in alliance with the Government of the Department of Antioquia 2004-2005) and in Bogotá (in alliance with the Javeriana University 2003 to March 2006). The Program used innovative desk and field research, strategic partnerships with a variety of public and private institutions and by developing workshops and field trip missions. Research and technical assistance focused in particular on (i) providing analysis and assistance to the Government of Colombia - in particular Presidency, Ministry of Interior and Justice and the National School of Public Administration -ESAP- towards designing and implementing a national policy to strengthen the institutional capacity of city councils in Colombia; (ii) supporting the Government of Colombia -GOC - in particular Presidency, Ministry of Interior and Justice, the Ministry of Defense and the National Police in designing and implementing a national strategy to enhance the capacity of mayors and governors to design and direct citizen security policies in their respective jurisdictions; (iii) technical assistance to national and subnational public and private stakeholders in developing and implementing operational schemes to enhance economic chains and cluster development. In 2001, with an additional grant of NED, Miguel Ceballos and Gerard Martin assessed the quality of Participatory Democracy in Colombia, and published the book "Participación y fortalecimiento institucional a nivel local en Colombia",.Between 2002-2003, Gerard Martin and Miguel Ceballos directed a study contracted by the City of Bogotá on lessons learned with citizen security and citizen culture in Bogotá over the period 1995-2003, and published the book "Bogota: anatomía de una transformación. Políticas de seguridad ciudadana: 1995-2003". During second semester of 2005 the Colombia Program implemented a project for the International Organization of Migrations, IOM-Colombia (with funding from USAID) to provide intensive Technical Assistance to the Colombian towns with high level of demobilized population (Turbo, Apartadó, Chigorodó, Carepa, Monteria, Cucuta, Ocaña and Buenaventura) towards enhancing various components of their citizen security policies. In 2006, the Program entered in a partnership with ARD (Vermont), for a winning bid on the USAID RFP "Áreas de Desarrollo Alternativo a nivel Municipal" or "Areas for Municipal-level Alternative Development" (ADAM), that focuses on 100 municipalities in Colombia, all confronting specific challenges, as selected by Colombia's Presidential Programa "Acción Social" and USAID. Activities under the ADAM program that will be implemented by Colombian public and private agencies under technical assistance of Georgetown's Colombia Program over the period 2006-2010, are focused on:
Teaching At Georgetown University The Center for Latin American Studies at the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service offers "Strengthening Local Governance in Latin America" for students interested in issues affecting the local dimension of democratic governance in Latin America. The course, provided by Gerard Martin, is designed to highlight the local level of public administration, which is too often forgotten in academic and political analysis of contemporary Latin America. Among the issues that students will explore as related to the sub-national level are issues and reforms related to deepening democracy, representative democracy, municipal policies to promote security and crime prevention, and strategies to generate local economic development. During the course, and for their papers and presentations, students work on a specific city of their choice, and write their papers from specific points of view (as mayor, president of city council, member of neighborhood association, director of Chamber of Commerce etc.). At Javeriana University Georgetown's Center for Latin American Studies, through the Colombia Program has helped the Javeriana University in Bogotá create a Specialization in Local Governance. This Specialization is now providing a Local Governace Certificate, in which members of the Colombia Program staff teach occasionally, sharing lessons learned with local governance work, thus contributing to making local governance a core class at Javeriana's Political Ciences Faculty. Workshop Series At Georgetown University The Colombia Program has offered over the years Workshops and Seminars on campus. With funding from the USAID/ADAM program, starting in 2007, a workshops series called Local Government and Democracy will feature debates and analysis in relation to topics the Colombia Program currently works on in Colombia - in particular on aspects related to local government, city councils, citizenship, democracy, culture, and citizen. At Javeriana University In coordination with the workshops that take place on campus at Georgetown, the Colombia Program will also promote, and also with funding from the USAID/ADAM program, and starting 2007, a similar workshops series called Local Government and Democracy, and on similar topics. These workshops will be co-organized with Facultad de Ciencias Políticas de la Javeriana, and co-organized with Colombia's Ministry of Interior's newly created Center for Political Studies. Some of these workshops will also be brought to Javeriana's Cali based campus. Colombia Hoy: Culture and Politics The Colombia Program is working on creating for 2007 a series of Art and Culture oriented workshops, to create a better understanding and knowledge of policies, programs and activities in this field, including as related to the conflict and effects it has had on the country Our Offices The Colombia Program has fully staffed and equipped office in Bogotá, Colombia at the Javeriana University, under an agreement with Javeriana University. The Colombia Program has 3 full time staff in Washington, D.C. and 7 full time staff in Colombia. Office in Washington DC:
Office in Bogotá at Javeriana University: The Colombia Program has a fully staffed and equipped office in Bogotá, Colombia at the Javeriana University, under a contract with Javeriana University, while it also implements activities under contracts with other universities, independent consultants, and NGOs.
Our Staff At Georgetown University
At Javeriana University
Our Former Staff At Georgetown University
Student Assistants
Michael Bodakowski (Fall 2007) Chris Hale (Spring 2007); Paola Castro (Fall 2006, Spring 2007, Fall 2007); Peter S. Knight (Spring 2006, Summer 2005, Fall 2005); Juliana Garcia (Spring 2006, Fall 2005, Fall 2004); Jennifer Ponard (Winter/Spring, 2005);Melinda St. Louis (Winter/Spring, 2005); Lise Baillargeon (Spring, Fall 2004); Ben Kincaid, (Fall 2003, Spring 2004); Beatriz Hernandez, (Fall 2001- Spring 2004); Nicolas Nannetti, (Fall 2002 - Fall 2003); M.Cristina Escudero, (Fall-Spring 2003); Miguel Guzmán, (Spring-Fall 2002); Vanessa Nordyke, (Spring 2002); Daniel Vázquez, (Spring -Summer 2002); Elfia Salihu, (Fall 2001); Jeffrey Villaveces, (1999-2000); Jesse Levinson, (1999-2000) and Gilel Soifer, (1998-1999) At Javeriana University
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Colombia Program, GU | 3300 Whitehaven Street N.W. Suite 3100 Washington DC | 202.687.1971 | colombiaprogram@georgetown.edu
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