Former Mayor of Bogota to speak at University of Nairobi
The Institute for Transport and Development Policy, Institute for Development Studies (IDS)*, at the University of Nairobi and the Center for Sustainable Urban Development (CSUD)* at Columbia University’s Earth Institute are honored to invite you to a public lecture by Former Mayor of Bogotá, visionary politician and urban strategist, Enrique Peñalosa.
What is a Good City: Public Space, Transport, and Quality of Life
A talk by Enrique Peñalosa
VENUE: Education Building, Main Campus, University of Nairobi
Friday, October 16, 2009
9AM – 12PM
During his tenure as mayor of Bogotá, Mr. Peñalosa was able to successfully transform a city defined as chaotic and hopeless into a city that is now an international model for urban development. Mr. Peñalosa will discuss how he championed this transformation through various efforts, including increased citizen involvement, creating a new and highly successful bus-based transit system, and turning a dilapidated downtown avenue into a dynamic pedestrian public space. Mr. Peñalosa will share the obstacles experienced, many of which are similar to those facing Nairobi, lessons learned during his tenure as Mayor of Bogotá, as well as the critical elements needed in urban development to achieve a higher quality of life.
So glad to hear this, I wrote my thesis on transportation in Nairobi. Here is a guy (mayor of Bogota) who could be a good example for the mayor of Nairobi. I must mention however that while I was doing my research there, I attended several public meetings among others by Institute of Economic Affairs etc on Transportation planning in Nairobi. I was impressed by attendance and citizen participation. There is really room and desire for proper growth and development in Nairobi.