Cartagena: A Bridge Between the Urban and the Rural

Cartagena de Indias, a jewel of the Colombian Caribbean, is a city that combines history, heritage, and modernity, making it the ideal setting for ICARRD+20. Its historic center, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, offers a unique environment that reflects centuries of cultural mestizaje and diversity, while its international-level hotel and event infrastructure ensures full logistical capacity to host a global conference. Cartagena boasts excellent air connectivity with major capitals of the continent and an exceptional natural environment linking sea, islands, and mangroves, reaffirming its commitment to sustainability and territorial development.

The city’s tourism vocation, hospitality, and rich cultural life make Cartagena not only an iconic destination representing Colombia to the world but also an ideal meeting point to debate the future of land, equity, and rural life.

ICARRD+20 will highlight in Cartagena the deep connection between rural and urban systems through:

• The ancestral fishing route, showcasing the traditional knowledge of coastal communities

• The integration of artisanal fishers into urban markets, highlighting their role in food security

• Sustainable tourism models that generate economic alternatives while protecting marine - coastal ecosystems.

These experiences, aligned with the Agrarian Districts and SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities), will demonstrate the potential of circular economies that benefit both rural and urban populations.

Parallel Agenda - Land For All Zone

The Land For All Zone is conceived as a space for events, pedagogical activities, dialogues, exhibitions, and other initiatives that complement and enrich the Official Agenda. It will be the central hub for social mobilization and will embody the promise of making ICARRD+20 a space for collective construction.

This will be an open space for the general public, inviting national and international representatives and all social groups to learn, dialogue, and exchange proposals on the global challenge of responsible land tenure.

The Zone will operate as a thematic circuit where visitors can move through immersive experiences aligned with the key messages of ICARRD+20.

These experiences will group exhibitors by theme and offer thousands of visitors an engaging journey through the challenges and opportunities of agrarian reform and related topics.

The Land For All Zone will also include academic spaces for the development of the parallel agenda, aligned with the thematic structure of the Official Agenda.

The parallel agenda events will be open to the general public and will be built based on proposals submitted by national and international organizations.