“As a young child growing up in Bogotá, I used to play an imaginary game on journeys through the city. I would blink and picture a tree, a park, or something more attractive appear. Much of my career has been about turning that instinct into action: changing the form of cities and creating calmer, safer and more enjoyable journeys. I joined Crossroads because I see a gap that cities need filled. When leaders want to be bold and strategic, they need trusted partners who can help them answer key questions: what is our best next step, how do we build alignment across institutions, and how do we manage the political costs of change?”

Claudia Díaz is an urban mobility and public space leader with more than 16 years of experience across public sector leadership, development banking, transport policy, planning and delivery. She is the former Secretary of Mobility of Bogotá, Colombia, where she directed mobility and public space policy for a city of eight million residents and led a team of 3,000 people.

Her tenure delivered major street transformations, including expanded cycle tracks, public space interventions and high-capacity transit corridors, in close alignment with Bloomberg Philanthropies, the FIA (International Automobile Federation) and the Global Designing Cities Initiative. Previously, as Bogotá’s Director of Road Safety, she led the city’s Vision Zero Policy, Speed Management Plan, safe school travel programmes and emergency COVID-19 bikeways.

Her leadership has been recognised through major international honours, including the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award, Bloomberg Mayors Challenge for Ciempiés (safe school travel programme), Bloomberg Global Speed Challenge, Global Designing Cities Initiative’s Street Shaper Award and Bogotá’s recognition through The Earthshot Prize.

Complementing her city leadership, Claudia has worked at the Inter-American Development Bank, preparing loan operations and technical cooperations, contributing to its Paris Agreement alignment guide, and integrating safety metrics across Latin America and the Caribbean projects. She holds a Master of Science in Civil Engineering, specialising in transport, and a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering.