Alumni Letter of Support

March 1, 2013

Dear colleagues,
For a long time, Colombians have attended to University College London, one of the best universities in the world. However, few people from the UCL community know about the beauty and potential of this South American country, principally owing to negative media coverage - news related to the armed conflict or drugs trafficking are the main stories that people hear about. The UCL Colombian Society aims to change the image of the country; it is not only representing Colombia, but also creating a space in UCL, London and across the United Kingdom, where qualified opinions about Colombia are generated.

This is the beginning of an important project that will change the UCL experience for prospective UCL Colombian students and the UCL community as a whole. Through the Colombia UCL Society, people in the UK will know more about Colombia and what the country has to offer. Although there are fundamental challenges that need to be resolved, Colombia has become one of Latin America's most important economies and a gateway to global business in the region. It is a country full of opportunity, with an ambitious vision to become a regional leader.  The Urban Land Institute’s decision to award Medellín joint finalist status with New York and Tel Aviv for Most Innovative City in the World is testament to the new Colombia.

We, the group of UCL Alumni living in Colombia, applaud the Colombian students who have been working hard on the creation of the UCL Colombian Society. They can all count on our support and we are happy to contribute to the purposes they have outlined. We have been in contact with this active and inspiring group, and we are proud to announce that there are already some activities that we plan to organize together. We hope to run a collaborative agenda and to help people in Colombia know more about the University and what Colombians are doing at UCL.

Wishing you all the best.

Sincerely,

Juanita Saenz Samper
Jessica Wong
Christopher Banahan
Sebastián Tobón
Carlos Ramirez
Pamela Góngora Salazar