Former Bogota mayor Antanas Mockus hired mimes to shame bad drivers, reducing traffic deaths by half. He also demonstrated water conservation and asked for voluntary tax payments, resulting in a 40% decrease in water consumption and tripled tax revenues. Colombia has two coastlines and the most bird species, while Bogota has 186 miles of bike lanes.
When former university professor Antanas Mockus became mayor of Bogota, Colombia, in 1995, one of his first targets was the city’s very high traffic accident rate. Instead of taking typical law enforcement measures, however, Mockus took the unorthodox route of hiring 420 mimes to make fun of bad drivers, hoping to shame them into correcting their ways. It worked. Traffic deaths have dropped by half, proving the mayor’s social theory is correct: Colombians are more afraid of being ridiculed than of being cited for bad driving. Mockus’ innovative leadership style also extended to showering on TV to demonstrate how to conserve water and asking Bogota residents to voluntarily pay higher taxes. He has been successful in both of these efforts as well, as water consumption has decreased by 40% and tax revenues have tripled.
What Colombia has to offer:
Colombia is unique among South American countries in that it touches both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
Colombia is home to 1,826 bird species, the most of any country on Earth.
Bogotá has over 186 miles (300km) of bike lanes, making it the most bike-friendly city in South America.
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