Hello todo mundo! My name is Andres Lombana-Bermudez and I am an interdisciplinary researcher/designer. I am a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society and a research associate with the Connected Learning Research Network. I work at the intersection of youth, technology, and learning, and I am interested in issues of equity, participation, public space, and civic engagement. My background is a mix of social sciences, humanities, and media arts. I bring to the co-design studio my skills as media producer and designer, as well as my experience in qualitative methods, particularly ethnography.

For this introduction I would like to share a picture of the Ciclovia Bogotana since I feel identified by it. La Ciclovia is interesting example of participatory use of public space that consists in restricting (for a few hours on Sundays and holidays) the use of some streets to only pedestrians, runners, and cyclists. I was raised in Bogota, Colombia, where the model of Ciclovia initially started, and, as I grew up and participated on it, I saw how it developed and expanded to different parts of the city. Today the Ciclovia model has been adopted by many cities around the world. My favorite aspect of this participatory use of public space is that involves people of all ages moving through urban space. I took the photograph below in my last visit to my hometown in January.