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Enrique Peñalosa Londoño (born 30 September 1954) is a Colombian politician. He was
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
of
Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...
from 1998 until 2001 and elected again in 2015 for the 2016–2019 term.


Early life and education

Peñalosa was born in Washington, DC, to Cecilia Londoño and former Minister of Agriculture and permanent ambassador for Colombia to the UN. During his childhood, Peñalosa studied at
Gimnasio Campestre The Gimnasio Campestre is an all-male, elite-traditional Pre-K to 11th grade private school located in Bogotá, Colombia. Origin It was founded in 1946 by Alfonso Casas Morales, and its educational legacy has prepared several generations of "g ...
and the Colegio Refous. His family moved to the United States when he was 15 years old for his father's work as the ambassador of Colombia to the UN. He attended
Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...
through a partial
football scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on their ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United States and ...
, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and History. He has also worked as a journalist and consultant on urban and transportation policy. In 2009, Peñalosa was elected president of the
board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...
of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), a non-profit organization headquartered in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
. Peñalosa resigned from the ITDP board in 2015 upon his election.


Entry into politics

Peñalosa began his political life by attending youth groups of followers of the liberal
presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...
candidate
Luis Carlos Galan Luis is a given name. It is the Spanish form of the originally Germanic name or . Other Iberian Romance languages have comparable forms: (with an accent mark on the i) in Portuguese and Galician, in Aragonese and Catalan, while is archaic ...
in Bogotá while working for the state-owned water supply company, '' Empresa de Acueducto de Bogotá
EAAB
''. He later supported Julio César Sánchez, a Cundinamarca local political chief, who in return helped him get elected as that department's deputy. In 1986 he was chosen by president
Virgilio Barco Virgilio Barco Vargas (17 September 1921 – 20 May 1997) was a Colombian politician and civil engineer who served as the 27th President of Colombia serving from 7 August 1986 to 7 August 1990. Early life Barco was born in Cúcuta in the Nor ...
, a friend of his father, as an economic advisor. In 1990, he ran for the
congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
without the support of any politician and got elected with 22,000 votes. He only remained in that position for a year because the Colombian Congress was closed on the eve of the new
Colombian Constitution The Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 (), is the Constitution of the Republic of Colombia. It was promulgated in Constitutional Gazette number 114 on Sunday, July 7, 1991, and is also known as the Constitution of Human Rights. It re ...
. However, in those 12 months, he presented many initiatives and managed to pass a reform law, a notable accomplishment for a freshman congressman. In 1991, he decided to run for mayor of Bogotá with the same tactics he had used to gain his seat in Congress, without the support of any politicians, just by face-to-face contact while touring the city walking, biking or riding on public transportation. He ran against
Jaime Castro Castro Jaime Castro Castro (28 March 1938) is a Colombian lawyer and politician, who served as Mayor of Bogotá from 1992 to 1994. A Liberal Party politician, he served as Minister of Government under President Belisario Betancur Cuartas, and as Mi ...
, who ultimately won the election. In 1994, Peñalosa ran for a second time against
Antanas Mockus Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the Un ...
, who defeated him by a large margin.


Mayor of Bogotá (1998–2000)

In 1997, he ran a third time, now facing
Carlos Moreno de Caro Carlos Moreno de Caro (born March 24, 1946) is a Colombian politician. He is the founder of the Let the Moreno play movement party, and has served as both Member to the Chamber of Representatives and Senate of Colombia, as Ambassador of Colom ...
, winning by a close margin of votes. Peñalosa received from Mayor Mockus a city in good fiscal condition and with a District Council that was mostly independent. Enrique's brother,
Gil Peñalosa Guillermo Penalosa (born ) is a Canadian urbanist who was the runner-up in the 2022 Toronto mayoral election to Mayor John Tory. Originally from Colombia, he was Bogotá's commissioner of parks and recreation from 1995 to 1998 and oversaw the p ...
, served as Commissioner of Parks under Mayor Mockus. Peñalosa included many of his political friends in his cabinet, including longtime friend Carlos Alberto Sandoval, who had worked with him in Barco's presidency, whom he appointed as Secretary of Economy, and Gilma Jiménez in the Family Welfare Institute. During his mayorship he developed five
megaproject A megaproject is an extremely large-scale construction and investment project. A more general definition is "Megaprojects are temporary endeavours (i.e. projects) characterised by: large investment commitment, vast complexity (especially in org ...
s: the bank of lands, the District's system of Parks (including the Bogotá's Bike Paths Network), the District's system of libraries, the
Transmilenio TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and Soacha, a neighbouring city. The system opened to the public in December 2000. As of 2024, 12 lines totalling run throughout the city. It is pa ...
mass transit system, and road construction and maintenance. The impact of Peñalosa and
Antanas Mockus Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the Un ...
on the development of Bogotá is described in a documentary film released in October 2009 with the title ''Bogotá Change''. It is promoted as being "the story of two charismatic mayors, Antanas Mockus and Enrique Peñalosa who, with unorthodox methods, in less than 10 years turned one of the world's most dangerous, violent and corrupt capitals into a model city. Mockus and Peñalosa along with key members of their staff as first hand witnesses, the film uncovers the ideas, philosophies and strategies that underlie the changes in Bogotá and which are now being exported to cities worldwide". Throughout the first half of his time as mayor, Peñalosa underwent very low approval ratings, even surviving a
recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of office has ended. Recalls ...
process mid-term. As public infrastructure projects started to progress, his popularity increased very significantly, such that by the end of his term his approval ratings were some of the highest of any Bogotá mayor in recorded history.


Controversy during his first term

According to most public analysts in Colombia, Peñalosa was the third in a series of three mayors who significantly improved the public conditions in the city of
Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...
in the late 1990s. Mayor Jaime Castro finished his term with low popularity, but was able to reform the city's financial structures. This led to a period of budgetary surpluses, which continued during
Antanas Mockus Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the Un ...
' term. Mockus began an important change in Bogotá's civic culture with his Cultura Ciudadana (Citizen Culture) campaign, which encouraged civic behavior and strived to create a sense of belonging for the inhabitants of the city. Peñalosa's six biggest policy actions during his first period as mayor included the relocation of informal vendors who occupied the public zones and streets, the improvement of all the city parks and the construction of several new ones, the construction of major public libraries and large public schools in the poorest areas in the city, the renovation of important avenues such as the 15th Avenue and
Autopista Norte Autopista Norte, also called Autopista paseo de los libertadores (Way of the Liberators Highway), is a major road in Bogotá, Colombia, running through the northern part of the city to its southern end at Avenida Caracas. Names The road was o ...
, the removal of cars from sidewalks by raising them and installing
bollard A bollard is a sturdy, short, vertical post. The term originally referred to a post on a ship or quay used principally for mooring boats. In modern usage, it also refers to posts installed to control road traffic and posts designed to pre ...
s, and starting construction of the first
Mass Transit System Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...
in Bogotá, the heavy BRT called
TransMilenio TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and Soacha, a neighbouring city. The system opened to the public in December 2000. As of 2024, 12 lines totalling run throughout the city. It is pa ...
, whose construction started under Peñalosa to be finished under
Antanas Mockus Aurelijus Rūtenis Antanas Mockus Šivickas (; born 25 March 1952) is a Colombian mathematician, philosopher, and politician. He has a master's degree in philosophy from the National University of Colombia, and a Honoris Causa PhD from the Un ...
's second term (2001–2003). Some of his policies were unpopular with certain political groups within the city. Among these were his intent to buy the Country Club of Bogotá to build a public park, which brought him in conflict with some of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Northern Bogotá. He also faced problems when he installed bollards along some avenues in highly congested sectors to prevent cars from parking on the sidewalk in front of the buildings and shops. Peñalosa also lost popularity, but improved the city's mobility, by introducing the Pico y Placa, a restriction on the
rush hour A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English, Indian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice e ...
circulation of private vehicles. (Pico y placa roughly translates to "rush hour and license plate"; during
rush hour A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English, Indian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice e ...
licence plates ending with a given number couldn't circulate on specific days of the week, four ending numbers each day, thus about 40% of the vehicles). The construction of the city's first "Cicloruta" (translation for "Bike route or Bike way"), which are two-way roads that run along some of the city's main avenues, was another great development of the city as an invitation for people to avoid using private
motor vehicle A motor vehicle, also known as a motorized vehicle, automotive vehicle, automobile, or road vehicle, is a self-propelled land vehicle, commonly wheeled, that does not operate on railway track, rails (such as trains or trams), does not fly (such ...
s, and to provide a cheap and healthy transportation route for those who didn't have access to one. Their construction brought some controversy at first, as the Cicloruta's corridors crossed in front of private houses where in the majority of the cases space was taken from their front sidewalk without their consent and with no remuneration. The legal property documents weren't edited either, which meant that whoever owned the house in front of the sidewalk where the Cicloruta was built, was its actual owner and had to pay taxes on it. For his activities in promoting public transportation, bike use and public space in urban areas in his first term in office, Peñalosa was awarded several international sustainability and urban planning awards, and was selected as a distinguished guest in urban policy studies at
NYU New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a non-denominational all-male institutio ...
.


Candidate for a second term as Mayor

Although he was a possible candidate for the 2010 Colombian presidential election and led the Por el Pais que Queremos Foundation (PPQ), Spanish for "For the Country we Want", he chose to run again for mayor in 2007. He was defeated by
Alternative Democratic Pole The Alternative Democratic Pole ( Spanish: ''Polo Democrático Alternativo'' or PDA) is a left-wing, democratic socialist and camilist political party in Colombia, active from 2005 to the present. In 2022 it was successful at the polls and fo ...
candidate Samuel Moreno by 15 percentage points. In 2011, Peñalosa decided to run his candidacy again for the Bogotá city hall, but this time, as the official candidate for the Colombian
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
. He lost the election to
Gustavo Petro Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
who won the mayoral race with 32% of the vote against 25% for Peñalosa. In 2015 he won the mayoral elections with 33 percent of the vote, defeating former labour minister
Rafael Pardo Rueda Rafael Pardo Rueda (born 26 November 1953) is a Colombian politician. A Liberal party politician and economist, he has previously served as the 1st Minister of Labour of Colombia serving in the Administration of President Juan Manuel Santos Cal ...
.


Presidential candidate

Peñalosa ran for elections in the 2014 presidential election. He represented the
Green Party A green party is a formally organized political party based on the principles of green politics, such as environmentalism and social justice. Green party platforms typically embrace Social democracy, social democratic economic policies and fo ...
and his vice presidential candidate was Isabel Segovia, a former Vice Minister of Education.


Mayor of Bogotá (2016–2019)

Enrique Peñalosa was elected mayor of Bogotá a second time on October 25, 2015, where he won with 906,052 votes and 33.1 percent of the electorate. Even before taking office for his 2016–2019 term, Peñalosa was subject to low approval ratings similar to those in the first half of his first term as mayor. In 2015 and onwards, politics in Bogotá was deeply polarized between Peñalosa's center-right policies and leftist populist policies, represented by former mayor
Gustavo Petro Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
. Peñalosa was the first center-right candidate to be elected as mayor after 12 years of leftist populist politicians in office, with Luis Eduardo Garzon (2004–2007),
Samuel Moreno Rojas Samuel Gustavo Moreno Rojas (11 February 1960 – 10 February 2023) was a Colombian lawyer and politician, son of former congress of Colombia, congressman and former president of Colombia, presidential candidate María Eugenia Rojas Correa, gr ...
(2008–2011) and
Gustavo Petro Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
(2012–2015). His principal policy proposals in his second administration include the construction of Bogota's first
rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...
line, to be complemented by several new BRT corridors following
Transmilenio TransMilenio is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that serves Bogotá, the capital of Colombia, and Soacha, a neighbouring city. The system opened to the public in December 2000. As of 2024, 12 lines totalling run throughout the city. It is pa ...
's early 2000 plan - including in landmark avenues such as 7th, 68th and Boyacá Avenues; the construction of 30 public schools and 6 public hospitals; the implementation of 1,500 surveillance cameras to prevent petty crime; the construction of large highways and avenues such as Avenida Longitudinal de Occidente and Tintal-Alsacia-Constitución; selling all public participation in Empresa de Telefonos de Bogotá (ETB); and the expansion of Bogotá's metropolitan area in its northern edges, in areas currently occupied by the Thomas Van Der Hammen
natural reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologi ...
. Peñalosa has been in controversy with several interest groups for these proposals -specifically environmental, education, and health citizen groups, as well as his political opponents from leftist groups strong in the city. As of late 2017, a
recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of office has ended. Recalls ...
attempt on Peñalosa is being spearheaded by ETB's unions (who oppose privatization) and
Gustavo Petro Gustavo Francisco Petro Urrego (; born 19 April 1960) is a Colombian politician who is the 34th and current president of Colombia since 2022. Upon inauguration, he became the Pink tide, first left-wing president in the History of Colombia, recen ...
's political group, supported by other citizen groups. On 27 October 2019,
Claudia López Hernández Claudia may refer to: People Ancient Romans *Any woman from the Roman Claudia gens * Claudia (vestal), a Vestal Virgin who protected her father Appius Claudius Pulcher in 143 BC * Claudia Augusta (63–63 AD), infant daughter of Nero by his secon ...
, a member of the Green Alliance Party, was elected to succeed Peñalosa as mayor of Bogotá. Democratic Center candidate
Miguel Uribe Turbay Miguel Uribe Turbay (born 28 January 1986) is a Colombian politician serving as a member of the Senate of Colombia since 2022. A conservative critic of incumbent president Gustavo Petro, he is seeking the Democratic Centre's nomination for th ...
, who served as Peñalosa's Secretary-General, came in fourth place during the election.


Graduate degrees scandal

Penalosa's critics have recently claimed that he has repeatedly misstated his professional graduate studies throughout his career. Peñalosa claims he earned a
Diplôme d'études supérieures spécialisées Diplôme d'études supérieures spécialisées (, DESS) was an old diploma in France, which is no longer awarded. It completed a fifth year of higher education aimed at professional practice. It could be chosen after one had got a . This diploma ...
(DESS) at the
University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...
. In response to these allegations, he has claimed that this DESS title has been repeatedly misinterpreted as a
PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...
. Further investigation into his studies revealed that he earned a graduate degree in Government Affairs at the University of Paris II, and later earning a DESS at the
Institut international d’administration publique An institute is an organizational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes ca ...
(also known as ''
École nationale de la France d'outre-mer The Colonial School (, also known colloquially as ) was a French public higher education institution or Grandes écoles, grande école, created in Paris in 1889 to provide training for public servants and administrators of the French colonial emp ...
''), which in 2002 was merged into
École nationale d'administration The (; ENA; ) was a French ''grande école'', created in 1945 by the then Provisional Government of the French Republic, provisional chief of government Charles de Gaulle and principal co-author of the Constitution of France, 1958 Constitution M ...
. The scandal was triggered in 2016 by an opinion article published in the Colombian newspaper ''
El Espectador ''El Espectador'' () is a nationally circulated Colombian newspaper founded by Fidel Cano Gutiérrez in 1887 in Medellín and published since 1915 in Bogotá. It was initially published twice a week, 500 issues each, but some years later became ...
'', which reported in April 2016 that Peñalosa did not hold a doctoral degree as had been widely reported by several sources, including in the personal profile section in several of his published books. Opinion writers in ''El Espectador'' discovered that Peñalosa did not hold a doctoral degree, after contacting the University of Paris, which confirmed that it did not offer any academic program that would grant a PhD in Public Administration. The magazine ''
Semana ''Semana'' (Spanish: ''Week'') is a weekly magazine in Colombia. History ''Semana'' was founded in 1946 by Alberto Lleras Camargo (who would become president of Colombia in 1958) and that folded in 1961. It was relaunched by journalist in ...
'' also reported that during the swearing-in ceremony of the Mayor in January 2016, a leaflet had been circulated among news media that presented Peñalosa as a PhD of Public Administration, which the mayor dismissed as typing errors by someone in his team. According to an opposition group actively promoting Peñalosa's 2015 election to be recalled, Peñalosa has been misrepresenting his graduate degrees for 35 years. The group denounced that in an interview with the Brazilian newspaper ''
O Globo ''O Globo'' (, ''The Globe'') is a Brazilian newspaper based in Rio de Janeiro. ''O Globo'' is the leading daily newspaper in the country and the most prominent print publication in the Grupo Globo media conglomerate. Founded by journalist Ir ...
'', Peñalosa had directly stated that he held a PhD in public administration; however, only the edited interview was ever published, and given the differences between the Spanish and Portuguese languages, other proof of this statement remained unverified, including a direct statement from the lead reporter of said interview. Peñalosa himself has repeatedly claimed that he has never mentioned in public that he has a PhD degree, and that he firmly believes that his two graduate degrees earned in France are equivalent to master's degrees in the Colombian education system, while stating that his political opponents are actively trying to tarnish his academic credentials with unsubstantiated attacks while promoting his election to be recalled. In his first term as mayor, Peñalosa also went through a significant
recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of office has ended. Recalls ...
attempt by his political opponents. According to Peñalosa's official public curriculum vitae presented to Colombian authorities when elected as mayor, Peñalosa holds a bachelor's degree in economics and history (Earned in May, 1977), a master's in government affairs (earned in September, 1979) and a "third cycle graduate title in Public Management", referring to the DESS title (Earned in September, 1980).


Awards

* Simón Bolívar Journalism Award 1986 for his economy related journalism section in ''
El Espectador ''El Espectador'' () is a nationally circulated Colombian newspaper founded by Fidel Cano Gutiérrez in 1887 in Medellín and published since 1915 in Bogotá. It was initially published twice a week, 500 issues each, but some years later became ...
'' newspaper. * Simón Bolívar Journalism Award 1990 for his documentary ''Capitalismo, la mejor opción''.


Bibliography


Books

* ''Capitalismo: ¿La mejor opción?'' * Democracia y Capitalismo: retos para el próximo siglo


Documentaries

* Capitalismo, la mejor opción (documentary) (1990)


Articles

He has written articles for '' El Tiempo'', '' Nueva Frontera'', '' Economía Colombiana'', '' Carta Financiera'' and '' Revista Diners''.


Conferences

* Holcim Forum 2007 of the Holcim Foundation,


References

*


External links

* * * *
CV page in English

Institute for Transportation and Development Policy
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Penalosa, Enrique 1954 births Colombian Liberal Party politicians Duke University Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alumni Living people Mayors of Bogotá Members of the Chamber of Representatives of Colombia Politicians from Washington, D.C. Colombian urban planners Sustainable transport pioneers