Stories of Impact: The Podcast Series

Dr. Santiago Tobón — From Gangs to Growth: Fighting for the Future of Medellín's Teens

Born and raised in Medellin, Colombia, Dr. Tobón grew up in the 80's and 90's while the country surged with gang violence. As a kid, young Santiago was lucky to have enough privilege to keep himself safe and to give him a promising future of education and employment.

But there was no denying the impact that gang violence was having on kids — kids his own age. When he graduated from college with a degree in computer science, and got a job working in rural economic development, it was the first time he saw gang activity up close. For four years he witnessed violent conflict around the local drug trade.

Dr. Tobón started to dream of finding a way to stop gang violence and stop kids from sacrificing their lives to gang culture. He wondered how kids could instead find a path to a flourishing future? What could he do to keep gangs from bringing in hundreds of new teenage recruits each year? He decided to arm himself with PhD in economics.

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