The Empresa de Desarrollo Urbano (Company of Urban Development) is the fundamental pillar of Medellin’s Municipal Administration for the execution of public programs on urban management. Its mission is to develop comprehensive and crosscutting projects that ensure the well being of the population, generating social, economic and environmental value in the territories. All initiatives are implemented based on the concept of Pedagogical Urbanism: a perspective grounded on the collective building of the city that emphasizes the direct participation of those benefited by the inclusive policies and the consolidation of networks and synergies among the neighborhoods.

• 31 thousand square meters of urban gardens
• 174 workshops and coaching sessions
• 7 Unidades de Vida Articulada – neighborhood centers for the promotion of sports, culture and community participation.
• Metropolitan green belt around the city borders
• 3 university campus

The initiative has been recognized in 2015 by the Ethisphere Institute as one of the most ethical companies of the world, based on their good practices, leadership, innovation, and citizen communication.

The inclusive policies developed by the initiative in Medellin have been replicated in many cities around the world. By 2015, one of the most prominent projects of EDU, the Circunvalar Garden, part of a metropolitan green belt for the integral transformation of the city borders, was internationally recognized as a sustainable good practice replicable in any territory.  

Citizens must become agents of change in their own environment in order to build more humane cities. 

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