The commune 13 of Medellín has been a place of transformation and social resilience that has become one of the iconic references of the city and that in turn has been cataloged worldwide as a must-see territory of Colombia in which the drive and friendliness of its inhabitants tell an innovative story in which development and social change has been evident for circular economic evolution in the territory through meaningful entrepreneurial initiatives. In this way, and as part of compliance with the María Cano innovation and entrepreneurship policy, specifically as an object of accompaniment, advice and intermediation in which intentional actions are addressed that allow taking advantage of the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystems and it is this interest In particular, in which the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit and the Faculty of Business Sciences of the University identify the Comuna Project Foundation, a non-profit entity that for more than 5 years has been working on behalf of the community of this territory promoting projects of social impact Through one of its strategies called social innovation laboratory for education in Comuna 13 of Medellín, in which the search for innovative ideas for community development is carried out, which was born in order to increase the free training offer in the territory to improve the living conditions of its inhabitants and thus build more posi tives for the new generations living in this area.

The Social Innovation Laboratory is linked to an innovation ecosystem made up of various sectors, articulated to the SDGs – Sustainable Development Goals (4. Quality education, 5. Gender equality, 8. Decent work and economic growth, 10. Reduction of inequalities and 17. Alliances for the objectives and in the same way to the National Development Plan Pact for Colombia, Pact for Equity 2019-2022 and for which in turn “they will be duly included and mainstreamed in the United Departmental Development Plan 2020-2023 and the future Medellín Government Plan 2020 – 2023. The program (Education, Art and Culture for commune 13) will be governed by the guidelines proposed by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and the international guidelines for the proper construction and measurement of social impact indicators. From there, their projects arise, favoring quality, promoting economic growth, fostering intra-entrepreneurship and generating a circular economy.

Similarly, during the visit, the Coordinator of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Unit, Sara Melguizo Tamayo, and professor Ana Isabel Páramo Uribe from the Business Administration program had the opportunity to meet and share the Fundación Territorio Amaí, a non-profit organization that seeks to create better opportunities for women and girls to achieve gender equality with inclusive and quality education.

With the visit and tour, it was possible to identify and learn about good practices in social innovation and educational innovation, in which the María Cano University Foundation can be linked through its academic, research and extension axes and thus consolidate future actions with meaning and impacts on the territory.

We invite you to know a little more about these two entities that opened their doors to us to learn about these valuable and transformative initiatives:

Comuna Project: https://www.comunaproject.org/
Amaí Territory Foundation: https://www.territorioamai.org/