The last week in Colorado Springs was bittersweet. All the meetings were, as usual, extremely interesting, but the fact that we were leaving for Washington on Sunday made the week full of nostalgia, as it officially marked the end of the 1st part of the program.
We have spent a lot of time discussing the future of the region in meetings with the Mayor, in a Forum for Civic Advancement, in a meeting of the Forum for the Pikes Peak region, and in a lively discussion about electoral reform. A large part of our time was also dedicated to the military, with a visit to the Air Force Academy, where we had a chance to meet with a professor of political science, and we also met with a retired Sargeant-Major, with whom we discussed civilian-military relations. All of these meetings gave us a broad sense of what the main priorities of the region are, and how the local authorities are planning on making change. It was extremely interesting to once again realize the power of the civil society, how its voice is heard and how active it is. Although Colorado Springs is not, by today’s standards, considered to be a big city (approx. 414.000 inhabitants), it is a very large one (482 km2), which makes it very different to most European cities, meaning the approach to any issues must also be thought of in a completely different manner.
There was also a healthy slate of leisure activities (as Monday was a public holiday), with us visiting Pikes Peak, the Pioneer’s museum, and also going to a baseball match.
Overall, it was not a very intense week, work-wise, but had the right mix of fun and work, which was the perfect way to say goodbye to the city.
Although none of the fellows knew much about the region prior to the trip, we were able to get a real grasp of the American way of life, the functioning of the political system, and the role of the military in the region. Many myths were dispelled, much was discussed, much was learned. We will now be confronted with a completely different reality in Washington D.C., something we are all very much looking forward to.
