Medina champions Colombia

Pedro Medina (Interdisciplinary ’82, Darden ’86) will tell you that his native country of Colombia is the best-kept secret in the world. Besides being the world’s largest producer of emeralds, frogs, birds, carnations and orchids, Colombia is also home to the oldest democracy in Latin America, and its sons and daughters — authors like Gabriel Garcia Marquez, who won the Nobel Prize, and scientists like Manuel Elkin Patarroyo, who discovered the vaccine against malaria — have left a visible mark on the world community.

Unfortunately, most of the world sees Colombia as a land of drug cartels and guerrilla warfare, Medina told U.Va. students, faculty and alumni at a public talk last April. And while these charges are not unwarranted, he said, there are signs of change. For example, after drug lord Pablo Escobar was killed by government security forces in December 1993, the Colombian cocaine business began to fragment, although it remains profitable -- a fact supported by the PBS documentary, “Frontline: DrugWars.” Furthermore, Medina added, while the Colombian guerrilla movement still exists, it has lost most of its local support and internal credibility.

To begin the process of restoring Colombia’s reputation, Medina has helped launch Yo Creo En Colombia, or “I Believe in Colombia.” The project’s mission is to teach Colombians how to speak well about their country and to act on its behalf. “The challenge for us is to reeducate the Colombian people, who can then help to change the perceptions of other people,” said Medina.

Pablo Davis, a U.Va. assistant dean of students who works with Hispanic/Latino and Latin American students and alumni, believes the initiative can’t help but succeed with Medina at the helm. “Pedro Medina is a person with a tremendous ability to translate vision into practical reality.”

Recently, Medina stepped down from full-time management of his own company, McDonald’s Colombia, to devote more time to other interests. Besides heading Yo Creo En Colombia, he is a fellow at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. “I felt it was now time to move from success to significance,” he said.