Presented by ProColombia
Thirty years ago, Medellín only made international headlines in reference to drug-related violence. But throughout the past decade, Colombia’s second city has earned a streak of positive stories and superlatives. It has been called the Silicon Valley of South America, the most innovative city in the world, and the world’s smartest city. As it looks to a post-pandemic future, it is hoping for yet another accolade: South America’s first “eco-city.”
To do this, the city is working on a bold plan that involves cutting carbon emissions, expanding green transportation options, and creating a more harmonious balance with the surrounding ecosystems. The timing isn't coincidental: Medellín hopes an infrastructure push can also kickstart an economy devastated by the coronavirus pandemic. Despite early praise for Colombia’s management of the pandemic, case numbers have gone up since the summer; Colombia currently sits in the top 10 countries by confirmed cases, according to the WHO.
The city’s mayor, Daniel Quintero, a 40-year-old former software developer, hopes this eco-focused initiative will set Medellín on a path to recovery—but those on the ground, like tour operators, are imagining a wider path to sustainability that focuses on community growth.
If tourism is relatively new in Colombia, it is in its infancy in Medellín. Still, in the past decade, as visitors to Colombia have set their sites beyond Cartagena, Medellín has seen an uptick in visitors. More recently, those visitors are attracted by not just the growing number of bars and restaurants in the affluent El Poblado neighborhood, but also by the communities on the city’s outskirts, once ravaged by drug violence. The narrative of transformation is one of the stories tourists want to hear. And the newness of tourism in Medellín means the opportunities for continuing change are great.
“Medellín has a history of reinventing itself, of having deep resilience," Mayor Quintero told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in June.
Sustainability as a path forward
As part of the administration’s plan to turn Medellin into an eco-city, it has set a target of cutting carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2030. That would involve doubling the number of interconnected public transportation lines to 26 by 2030, expanding bike lanes by 50 percent in three years, plus adding 50,000 electric bikes available for rent to the public.
While it is true that better infrastructure only makes a city more accessible and attractive to tourists, those on the ground say sustainability efforts must prioritize locals. “Sustainable tourism in a city, if well developed, can be a competitive advantage,” says Helena Rey de Assis, tourism program officer, at the United Nations Environment Programme. “You have this idea of beautifying a city—but sustainability means that infrastructure isn’t just for tourists; it’s also good for citizens.”
Those who work in the travel industry say their concerns for sustainability extend beyond bike lanes and public parks, though those improvements are no doubt important. Creating a sustainable tourism model that doesn't leave Colombians reliant on international visitors is key to surviving the pandemic, and future crises—which is why those on the ground are taking cues from the city's eco-plans, and building upon them with sustainable efforts of their own.
It's all about community
Impulse Travel is a Colombian tour company that works across the country. In Medellín, they have forged partnerships with community-based organizations like Unión Latina, which offers dance, music, and theater programming in the low-income neighborhood of Manrique. “They offer an alternative for youth, to not get involved with gangs,” Rodrigo Atuesta, CEO of Impulse Travel says. “It’s an impact strategy that Medellín has found and perfected.”
Classes for travelers, organized with partners like Impulse, help fund the programs that have sparked Medellín’s transformation. Many of the people in these low-income communities have navigated their way out of drug-related crime through community-based organizations. But these organizations are now struggling without tourists, and the future is uncertain when that money dries up.
“We need to keep these community-based projects alive, regardless of the crisis,” says Atuesta. “We don’t really know what will happen with tourism, but we want these communities to be able to count on their projects regardless of whether or not there is tourism.”
While Medellín doesn’t have all the answers, it is laying bare the challenges faced by emerging destinations around the world. How it respond may show neighboring and equally tourism-reliant countries a path forward.
“We are learning,” says Dur Montoya, director of La Peace Hub, which supports community art organizations in Medellín with everything from grant applications to mental health services, the latter of which is more important than ever. “Sustainability isn’t just about the environment. Tourism has the power to change the dynamic of a neighborhood if it isn’t done right.”
Defining the new normal
That resilience is on full display with a number of organizations that once depended on tourism, as they pivot to virtual classes and events. Unión Latina has been offering dance classes—and even hosted an entire salsa festival—online. Corporación Mangle, a capoeira organization in the neighborhood of Moravia, once the city dump, is also offering online classes. In neither case are they making up for all the lost revenue, but it’s a start.
As city administrators plan for a green infrastructure boom, it is organizations like these that are really defining the future of sustainable travel. The first step, Atuesta says, is cooperation within the tourism industry—and what he has seen already is encouraging. Besides running Impulse Travel, Atuesta is chairman of Acotur (the Association of Responsible Tourism), a collective of 120 different tour operators in Colombia devoted to fostering sustainable tourism.
“What I saw with COVID-19 was that the whole tourism ecosystem started to get together in a way that I had never seen before,” Atuesta says. While Impulse Travel started by appealing to past travelers for donations, that only goes so far. Now, the company is focused on its community partners, helping them seek out alternative revenue streams. It is an attempt to make sure those communities are still there when the tourists come back.
