Annual Report 2020-2021

{2010) Foto por Eric Pancer via CreativeCommons

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i
Designed by Andrea P. Vázquez Colón
Translated by Samiris Suleimán Orozco and revised by Alison Chopel

"Municipalism is a collectivist ideology that
recognizes that in order to achieve
transformational change, it is essential to
collaborate with all the entities and stakeholders
that make up the municipality, or the municipal
ecosystem composed of the various actors and
stakeholders. Municipalism also recognizes the
importance of the town or city as the uniting
entity of people, since it is the space in which
they live and develop, both personally and
professionally. Municipalism is an approach used
to implement social and systemic change, using
the municipality as the vehicle to achieve the
desired change."
–La Liga de Ciudades de Puerto Rico, 2021
ii

Hon. Juan Carlos García Padilla
Mayor, Municipality of Coamo
Hon. Pedro Juan García Figueroa
Mayor, Municipality of Hormigueros
Hon. Bernardo "Betito" Márquez García
Mayor, Municipality of Toa Baja
Cristina M. Miranda Palacios
Founding Executive Director
Hon. Javier Jiménez Pérez
Mayor, Municipality of San Sebastián
Following the elections of the new board held last November 18, 2021,
a new board of directors was established composed of:
Hon. Juan Carlos García Padilla
Mayor, Municipality of Coamo
Hon. José A. "Josian" Santiago Rivera
Mayor, Municipality of Comerío
Hon. Rosachely Rivera Santana
Mayor, Municipality of Gurabo
Hon. Jesús E. "Gardy" Colón Berlingeri
Mayor, Municipality of Orocovis
Hon. Bernardo "Betito" Márquez García
Mayor, Municipality of Toa Baja
Cristina M. Miranda Palacios
Founding Executive Director
​Hon. Pedro Juan García Figueroa
Mayor, Municipality of Hormigueros
iii

iv

Greetings! I am extremely proud to shareLa Liga’s
achievements of 2021 with you. In 2021, despite it being a
complicated year, we were able to continue to reap important
successes and collaborations. We act from our definition of
municipalism, which is "a political ideology, neither electoral nor
partisan, whose main objective is to provide greater autonomy to
municipalities, aiming for systemic change and equity in the
distribution of resources and responsibilities."
We see influencing public policy as a central axis of action, to
ensure the necessary resources are allocated to the
municipalities to enable them to attend to all their
responsibilities, including those left unattended by the central
government. Therefore, one of our main goals is the
decentralization of public administration.
We operate from a collectivist approach that recognizes that to
achieve the required changes, we must work with all the entities
and stakeholders that make up the municipal ecosystem. We
work hard to contribute to improving the living conditions of all
residents of Puerto Rico, including promoting initiatives focused
on improving the socio-economic, cultural, and environmental
conditions that envelop our communities. To defend the
municipalities is to defend the nation.
In the following pages, you will not only find a summary of
what we have achieved during 2021, but also
information about our upcoming initiatives. We
continue working steadily promoting a true
municipalist agenda, which is the nation's
agenda. We hope you will join us: to design,
act, and transform. You are all welcomed.
Cristina M. Miranda Palacios, MCP, CHP
Directora Ejecutiva Fundadora
v

Miembros de la Junta Directiva 2022-2024 conversan antes de la Primera
Reunión de la Junta 2022. | Foto tomada por Francisco Rodríguez Burns
The year 2021 was full of great
opportunities and changes for La Liga.
From the inauguration of the Municipal
Capacity Building Institute (known by its
initials in Spanish, ICAMU for Instituto de
Capacitación Municipal), to new
partnerships, increased funding
opportunities, and the election of a new
Board. The past year brought abundant
growth for the organization. However,
the challenges have kept pace with the
successes, mainly in performing with a
limited budget. Still, thanks to new
funding opportunities and, following the
approval of our 501(c)3 status, we
anticipate further expansion of projects
and work throughout the next year.
vi

ABOUT
LIGA LA

The League of Puerto Rican Cities (known as La Liga
in Spanish), is a non-profit, non-partisan, nonelectoral,
but political organization that unites local
governments to improve the quality of life of the
Puerto Rican people.
To strengthen the capacity of Puerto
Rican municipalities and communities
to better address social, structural,
fiscal, and governance challenges.
Transparency and accountability.
Citizen participation.
Learning, collaboration, and leadership with
service to the people.
9

DECENTRALIZATION
Maximize state government resources
by promoting administrative, political,
and fiscal decentralization of
responsibilities and resources to local
governments.
PUBLIC POLICY
Promote and influence public policies
at the state and federal levels that
ensure the welfare and development
of local governments.
NEW MODELS OF GOVERNANCE
Foster civic engagement in all Puerto
Rico’s communities by promoting
new models of participatory
governance, transparency, and
accountability.
EMPOWERMENT AND TRAINING
Empower municipalities to better
access and maximize federal and state
funds.
BEST PRACTICES
Share best practices and experiences
between local and international
governments and build capacity and
skills among them to address social,
fiscal, infrastructure, and governance
challenges.
10

Open
govern–
ment and
transpa–
rency
Attention
to youth
and elder
matters
Public
health
Legal
advocacy
Public
policy
advocacy
Education
Datadriven
decision
making
Maximi–
zation and
access to
funds
Economic
develop–
ment
Revitaliza–
tion
Fiscal
autonomy
Participa–
tory
planning
Infrastruc–
ture
Municipal
empower–
ment
Safe and
affordable
housing
Environ–
mental
awareness
and
protection
11

"La Liga de Ciudades [...] is an excellent
initiative that helps us to unify efforts, to
learn and to train ourselves to make our
public management even better."
Hon. Rosachely Rivera Santana,
Mayor of the municipality of Gurabo.
"La Liga de Ciudades comes to occupy a very
important space in our current Puerto Rico… of
how to identify [and face] the most pressing
problems of the communities."
Hon. Pedro J. García Figueroa,
Mayor of the municipality of Hormigueros
"La Liga de Ciudades is a project of hope. It is a
project where we connect mayors from
different partisan factions and set an agenda
for the country.”
Hon. Bernardo "Betito" Márquez García,
Mayor of the municipality of Toa Baja.
"My call to my fellow mayors is that they join La
Liga because they will have an enormous
benefit in the technical-scientific part that we
municipalities need."
Hon. Jesús E. Colón Berlingeri,
Mayor of the municipality of Orocovis
"I have been part of La Liga since its beginnings
since I believe that a true municipalist agenda can
be promoted [...] that has as its main objective to
provide greater autonomy to the municipalities."
Hon. Juan C. García Padilla,
Mayor of the municipality of Coamo
"From La Liga, we promote initiatives that are not
only necessary, but transformative, informed in
best practices and seeking solutions that affect us,
and therefore affect our communities and the
country."
Hon. José A. "Josian" Santiago Rivera,
Mayor of the municipality of Comerío
12

Municipalism
noun, fem. sing.
1. Based on a model of governance focused
on the local level. It means a political ideology, neither electoral
nor partisan, whose main objective is to provide greater autonomy
to municipalities, based on systemic change and equity in the
distribution of resources and responsibilities. It also acknowledges
the importance of influencing public policy issues as the central
axis of action, to be able to allocate the necessary resources to the
municipalities and recognize the responsibilities that should be
delegated to them; thus, understanding that "municipalism" has one
of its main goals: the decentralization of public administration.
This ideology is a collectivist one that recognizes that to achieve
the required changes, it is necessary to work with all the entities
and stakeholders that make up the municipality, meaning the
municipal ecosystem is composed of the various actors and
stakeholders. Municipalism also recognizes the importance of the
city as the entity that brings people together, since it is the space
in which they live and develop, both personally and professionally.
Based on this recognition and given the reality of the diversity of
needs of the communities and inhabitants of each municipality, the
municipalism adopted by La Liga is based on the model of social
determinants of health, since its objective is also to improve the
living conditions of the inhabitants, it will be essential to work on
changing the socioeconomic, cultural, and environmental conditions
that surround them. Municipalism is an approach used to
implement social and systemic change, using the municipality as
the vehicle to achieve the desired change.
Definition prepared by La Liga de Ciudades de Puerto Rico
13

La Liga is a membership organization that
currently has 31 member municipalities. It is
important to emphasize, however, that La Liga
works to serve each of the 78 municipalities of the
archipelago of Puerto Rico. Our membership is free
of charge, and member municipalities benefit from
access to exclusive activities and initiatives, as well
as being part of the Board of Directors.
One of the initiatives for the new year is the
development of membership for municipal
employees and allied entities, with the opportunity
to have exclusive participation in La Liga’s future
projects and programs.
To learn more about
joining La Liga, point
your cell phone camera
at the QR code on the
right:
AGUADA
COMERÍO
LAJAS
PEÑUELAS
VEGA BAJA
BARCELONETA
DORADO
LARES
PONCE
VILLALBA
CABO ROJO
GUAYAMA
LAS PIEDRAS
SAN GERMÁN
YAUCO
CANÓVANAS
GUAYANILLA
MOROVIS
SAN JUAN
CAYEY
GURABO
NARANJITO
SAN SEBASTIÁN
CIDRA
HORMIGUEROS
OROCOVIS
TOA ALTA
COAMO
ISABELA
PATILLAS
TOA BAJA
= MUNICIPALITIES THAT ARE PART OF LA LIGA'S BOARD AS OF JANUARY 2022
14

ANDREA P. VÁZQUEZ COLÓN
Andrea has been an Associate VISTA Member in
Program Development for La Liga de Ciudades since
July 2020. She works as a graphic designer for La Liga's
publications, as well as coordinating workshops and training for
the Municipal Capacity Building Institute and all things related
to training and changing the narrative about municipalities. She
holds a bachelor’s degree in History of Western Art from the
University of Puerto Rico (UPR), Río Piedras Campus.
ARIANA P. CORDERO FLECHA
Ariana started at La Liga as a VISTA Summer Associate
working in the development and coordination of the Sym–
posium "From Resilience to Systemic Change" as well as in the
management of social media. She is currently the Administrative
and Programmatic Coordinator for La Liga. She holds a bachelor’s
degree in Sociology from the UPR, Cayey Campus, and plans to
pursue a master’s degree in General Public Health.
CAMILA VÉLEZ AGOSTO
Camila is an Associate VISTA Member in Program
Development at La Liga. She has worked on proposals
related to solid waste management in municipalities, as well as
environmental benefit proposals. She is also dedicated to writing
and reviewing proposals, papers, and other documents. She
holds a bachelor’s degree in Methods and Techniques of Social
Research and is currently pursuing her graduate studies at the
UPR Graduate School of Planning.
LENULISY ROSADO ESTRADA
15
Lenulisy provides programmatic support to La Liga as a
public and environmental health worker. Since 2020, she has
contributed to the development of a framework for decentralization in
Puerto Rico and the strengthening of La Liga’s collaborative projects,
such as the social marketing campaign funded by Oxfam America in
response to the Covid-19 pandemic in the municipality of Toa Baja. In
addition, she collaborates on communication strategies through the
design of our website and publications for social networks. Lenulisy
has a master’s degree in Public Health with a specialization in
Environmental Health and a bachelor’s degree in science with a
concentration in Microbiology, both from the UPR.

Cristina M. Miranda Palacios is a social and
community planner who currently serves as the
Founding Executive Director of Liga de
Ciudades de Puerto Rico.
Cristina is co-founder of the Third Mission
Institute (ITM) of Albizu University, where she
served as Director of Planning and
Development. As part of ITM's projects, she
also served as Executive Director of the
Municipal Alliance for Education and the Futuro
Program, a collaboration that began with four
municipalities and eventually grew to eight,
impacting over 3,000 students in after-school
programs, among other community
transformation efforts through education.
As part of her commitment to social justice
and equity, for the past 17 years, she has been a
fervent collaborator of the Homeless
Continuum of Care Project in Puerto Rico), led
by the Coalition of Coalitions for People
Experiencing Homelessness in Puerto Rico. In
addition, she collaborates with several nonprofit
and community organizations in strategic
planning, development and sustainability.
Recent accomplishments include her
selection as a member of the Puerto Rico
Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on
Civil Rights, as well as her position as a Global
Finalist for the Ford Foundation's Ford Global
Fellowship program.
de Puerto Rico para la Comisión de
Derechos Civiles de los Estados Unidos, así
como su posición de Finalista Global del
importante programa Ford Global Fellowship
de Ford Foundation.
Cristina completed her master’s degree in
Community Social Planning and Urban
Development at the University of Maryland
at College Park in 2003, where she received
the Lefrak Award for community service and
where she also completed a Graduate
Certificate in Historic Preservation. In 2008
she completed a Certificate in Public Policy
from the UPR and in 2015 she completed a
Graduate Certificate in Community
Development from Rutgers University. She is
currently pursuing doctoral studies in
Caribbean History and Philosophy at the
Center for Advanced Studies of Puerto Rico
and the Caribbean.
To learn more about Cristina's career, scan
the QR code below:
CRISTINA M. MIRANDA PALACIOS
Founding Executive Director
16

La Liga began its operation with a $200,000 contribution from the Ford
Foundation, and support from Oxfam America as its fiscal sponsor for the first two
years. Ford's seed funding and Oxfam America's administrative support were
fundamental to the strengthening of La Liga. We are incredibly grateful to both
entities, not only for their support during La Liga's beginnings but also for their
continued support of our core programming and initiatives.
Strengthening our administrative and fiscal capacity has been a central goal of
our recent efforts. To this end, we have established important partnerships and
developed links with various allied organizations.
Among other successes we celebrate our designation as a 501(c)3 entity by the
Federal Treasury Department, as well as securing essential funding, either as
operational donations or as contracts for key initiatives.
A
increase
Operating funds ending 2020 Operating funds ending 2021
FUNDS APPROVED AND ACCUMULATED IN 2021
Filantropía PR– Strengthening Social Justice
Casey Family Programs- Systemic Access Gap Analysis
Open Society Foundation- Legal Advocacy Fund
Ford Foundation- Operational Support
National Low Income Housing Coalition
Member Municipalities- Legal Advocacy Fund
OXFAM - Covid-19 Pilot Project
OXFAM- Administrative Support
17
$0 $100,000 $200,000 $300,000 $400,000

From projects developed, to financial
and administrative support provided and
workshops offered, every effort of La
Liga is made through partnerships with
organizations, entities, and foundations
committed to the municipalist agenda,
which is the agenda of Puerto Rico.
We extend a special thanks to the
following organizations for
their constant support
throughout 2021.
18

AND
PROJECTS
INITIATIVES

“PUBLIC
NUISANCES IN
THE NEW
MUNICIPAL CODE
I & II"
"INVENTORY OF
VACANT
PROPERTIES"
"THE LIVABLE
CITY MODEL: A
TOOL FOR
SOCIAL
INTEGRATION
AND
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT"
"DESIGNING
SAFE,
SUSTAINABLE
AND DISASTER
RESILIENT
HOUSING FOR
COMMUNITIES"
"WHO
SUBSIDIZES
WHOM?:
MUNICIPAL
RADIOGRAPHY
PRESENTATION
AND DISCUSSION"
"MUNICIPAL
PREPAREDNESS,
EMERGENCY
RESPONSE, AND
MITIGATION
PLANS"
"DIGITAL TOOLS TO
EXPEDITE
MITIGATION
STUDIES AND
ENVIRONMENTAL
PLANNING"
"CLARIFYING
MYTHS OF THE
DEBT ADJUSTMENT
PLAN AND THE
IMPACT OF P.C.
1003"
"GENERATING
FROM WASTE:
ON THE ROAD
TO A
CIRCULAR
ECONOMY"
"HOW TO PUT
MUNICIPAL
CITIZEN
PARTICIPATION
INTO ACTION?"
"GOOD
PRACTICES FOR
THE USE OF
CDBG-DR FUNDS
AND SAFE
HOUSING"
"WHY, WHAT
FOR, WHO
BENEFITS?:
YOUTH AND
PUBLIC
POLICY"
"SANITARY AND
CLIMATIC
URGENCY: NEW
INTEGRATED
MANAGEMENT IN
SOLID WASTE
MANAGEMENT"
In February 2021, the Municipal Capacity Building Institute (ICAMU, for its Spanish
acronym) was inaugurated with the encore of the oft-requested workshop "Public
Nuisances in the New Municipal Code" together with the Center for Habitat
Reconstruction. Amassing an audience of over 150 people, we recognized that ICAMU
would be an ideal tool for training the municipal ecosystem in various thematic axes and
issues that municipalities work on daily. Throughout 2021, virtual workshops and trainings
were held on issues related to planning, solid waste management, environmental
stewardship, disaster mitigation, access to available funds, public policies, government
transparency, and more.
To ensure further dissemination of these resources, a YouTube channel was launched
with the recordings of the workshops along with digital folders containing accessible
resources relevant to the topics discussed. We thank AARP Puerto Rico, Abruña &
Musgrave, Ayuda Legal PR, Basura Cero Puerto Rico, Cambio PR, Centro CUNY, Centro
para la Reconstrucción del Hábitat, CCLR, EDS, Enterprise Community Partners,
Foundation for PR, Generación Circular, Impacto Juventud, Instituto de Participación
Ciudadana del Municipio de Toa Baja and terraFirma Software for collaborating in the
facilitation of workshops and trainings throughout the past year.
21

To achieve our mission of strengthening the capacity of municipalities
and communities in the archipelago, La Liga develops important publications
and analyses related to public policy and the current socio political context of Puerto Rico.
One of the most significant publications was the analysis of the Fiscal Plan 2021,
developed and approved by the Fiscal Control Board (FCB), entitled "En Arroz y Miserias..."
(translated as "In Rice and Misery..."). The title is a play on words: in Puerto Rico, to say it "in
rice and beans" means to explain in a simple way. Instead of rice and beans, the title makes a
reference to the expected impacts of the undemocratic fiscal plan that entrenches austerity
measures and increases misery for the most marginalized communities and vulnerable
populations in Puerto Rico. This analysis focused on the expected impact of its approval on
municipalities, communities, and public entities across Puerto Rico. Its approval
demonstrated that the FCB, even without having achieved positive changes to the economic
restoration of the country, maintains a threatening posture towards the organizations that
make up our fiscal, governmental, environmental, academic, and social ecosystem.
As part of La Liga's organizational objectives, our team developed and published a
framework to evaluate decentralization opportunities in Puerto Rico. This was based on a
brief historical overview of elements that have been attempted in Puerto Rico,
definitions of concepts, lessons learned,
achievements of other countries, and
potential courses of action.
Scan the QR code on the right to
access all of La Liga's publications:
La Liga has accessed the press to promote the municipalist agenda, and to
communicate about other initiatives and work that La Liga is leading. Throughout
the year, opinion columns highlighting the accomplishments of the municipalities
were published in the country's newspapers. At the beginning of 2021, a series of
articles about the lawsuit against the Fiscal Control Board dominated the news,
successfully highlighting the importance of this legal advocacy strategy for
municipalities. Among these, a letter addressed to the Board was disseminated,
focusing on the fact that Law 29 was not a bailout for the municipalities, but rather
for the central Puerto Rican
government. In November,
several papers ran front page
features announcing the
Amicus Curiae supported by
five members of the US
Congress (Nydia Velázquez,
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Raul
Grijalva, Jesus "Chuy" García
and Richie Torres). 22

In March 2021, La Liga led filing of a lawsuit against the Fiscal Control Board, the
Municipal Revenue Collection Center (CRIM for its Spanish acronym), the Financial
Advisory Authority and Fiscal Agency (AAFAF), and the Health Insurance Administration
(ASES) to determine the illegality of the withholding and collection of money owed to the
municipalities because of the Board's opposition to Law 29. This law exempted local
governments from paying contributions to the central government for the Vital health
plan and pensions.
The lawsuit seeks to sustain the illegality of the withholding of funds committed
during the effective term of Law 29, even though this was later declared null and void by
Judge Taylor Swain. During the filing of the lawsuit, five congress members filed an
amicus curiae siding with La Liga. In it, the congress members recognize the
municipalities as the main service entity for Puerto Rico's communities, emphasizing that
the Board's jurisdiction should be limited to the central government and not present a
fiscal risk to the municipalities. Despite these efforts, Judge Taylor Swain recently
ordered the dismissal of the lawsuit in January of this year (2022). Our appellate strategy
will continue to focus on the welfare of the municipalities. If you would like to stay
abreast of updates on this lawsuit, scan the QR code below:
23

In November 2021, La Liga had the opportunity to present at an extended
White House briefing, where Ms. Miranda Palacios presented on the current
state of municipalities, as well as making a series of proposals to benefit
Puerto Rico. During the briefing, Ms. Miranda Palacios emphasized the
importance of La Liga as a key entity in the reconstruction of Puerto Rico
through the municipalist agenda. The proposals submitted included: that the
White House actively and vocally support the municipalist agenda, thata
municipal subcommittee be created as a direct line of communication to
clearly communicate the needs of the municipalities, that the effectiveness
of the Fiscal Control Board under the parameters of PROMESA be
honestly evaluated and that the territorial instrumentality concerning
the determinations of the Board to the municipalities be clarified.
Four years after the historic phenomenon that was Hurricane
Maria, we worked to rethink the tragedies that it caused across
Puerto Rico. Recognizing that the commemoration of this fourth anniversary
should be a solemn occasion, we also considered that there would be no better way to
acknowledge the passage of time and honor the 4,645 deceased than by encouraging and
igniting a real conversation about what happened.
What, how, why, and, most importantly, ensuring that it does not happen again – were
topics covered in the Symposium: "From Resilience to Systemic Change: Puerto Rico
Strengthens Four Years after Hurricane Maria." This symposium initiated an important multisectoral
conversation and fostered new collaborations focused on systemic change instead
of on perpetuating a resilience model based on the premise of having to survive whatever
comes.
This massive hybrid event consisted of a three-day agenda with 16 virtual conferences in
total and two days of field visits to communities in Caguas, Río Piedras, Santurce, and Toa
Baja. With academic, business, state, federal, planning, and third sector participation, La
Liga concluded the Symposium with new collaborations and initiatives for projects and
proposals that seek to improve and strengthen municipal welfare.
Scan the QR code on the left
to access the recordings of
the conferences offered
throughout the Symposium.
24

Municipalities are the closest government entities to the community, this has been
proven time and time again, most recently with their handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With a grant from OXFAM America, and with the support of Coalición de Coaliciones as fiscal
agent, La Liga launched a pilot project for the creation of a social marketing campaign
focused on increasing community awareness of COVID-19 management.
For this project, the Municipality of Toa Baja was chosen as the area of impact. The
campaign consisted of developing, jointly with the municipal response team, a series of
preventive and educational health strategies based on community input and reality aimed at
preventing infection by SAR-CoV-2, virus that causes COVID-19. The strategic approach
based on integrating social marketing and health communication strategies contextualized in
the realities of the municipality and resourced by the local government was innovative for
Puerto Rico.
Transparency and accountability are part of La Liga's core values, and in collaboration
with Sembrando Sentido, we launched the Transparency in Infrastructure initiative,
known as CoST.
With this launch, first in the Municipality of Coamo, and followed by the Municipality of
Toa Baja, Puerto Rico joined an important international initiative. The main purpose of
the initiative is to implement a citizen governance mechanism that protects the multimillion-dollar
investments allocated for the infrastructure sector by generating greater
competitiveness and efficiency, which translates into lower costs for the government and
better quality for the infrastructure that is fundamental to all commercial, economic,
cultural, and social development. CoST seeks to facilitate and legitimize citizen
participation in the municipalities through the development and implementation of
transparency and social monitoring mechanisms focused on infrastructure projects of
priority for the communities, such as school rehabilitation, road construction, and more.
CoST is an organization that was born in the World Bank and later became independent.
It works with the government, the private sector, and civil society to disseminate
information about public infrastructure projects, which helps empower citizens to
demand accountability from government and business leaders who make decisions. With
this action, La Liga has made Puerto Rico the first US jurisdiction to join CoST.
25

At the end of the year, La Liga had the opportunity to participate in the informative
public hearing convened by the U.S. Civil Rights Commission, where representatives
from the public, community, and private sectors discussed the failures committed by
FEMA during the management and recovery process of the archipelago.
Organizations such as the Center for the New Economy, Taller Salud, the Center for
Puerto Rican Studies, the Center for Investigative Journalism, and others participated
in the event.
La Liga's presentation, delivered by Founding Executive Director Cristina Miranda
Palacios, focused on the delay in the reconstruction process, caused in part by the
lack of preparedness of the local and federal governments to deal with the disaster.
Furthermore, the crisis that municipalities are going through because of the lethargic
reconstruction process, austerity measures imposed by the Fiscal Control Board and
the Puerto Rican Central government, and other concurrent factors were emphasized.
In an era where information travels quickly through
social networks, as an organization we recognized that a
better way to advance the municipalist agenda was to strengthen our
media presence. To this end, we launched our Instagram account with the intention
of not only promoting workshops and initiatives, but also informing a wider
audience about alternatives, models, and practices that we endorse and work on as
a political organization. Also, as mentioned above, we launched our YouTube
channel, a space that serves as a repository for recordings of the workshops offered
through ICAMU. This is also used to provide information about our organization and
participation in public forums. In addition, our web page was remodeled to increase
the flow of information and accessibility for its users.
Follow us on our
social media:
28
26

NEXT
STEPS

To strengthen the capacity of local governments, two important training and
education initiatives will be launched: the Municipal Participation and Innovation Lab (El
Lab) and the Municipal Development and Collaboration Unit (la unidá'). In its pursuit of
improved quality of life in Puerto Rico, through El Lab, La Liga will facilitate
participatory design processes to support innovation and adaptation that centers the
role of the municipality in coordinating collective solutions, with ample participation of
stakeholders. By enabling this collaboration, La Liga expects that Puerto Rican towns in
need of infrastructure, services, and ongoing recovery will become better positioned to
leverage the access to federal funds that municipal governments have together with the
access to citizen experts and citizens’ trust that community-based organizations have.
And La Liga will be there to provide support when those collaborations materialize,
through La Unida’ it will accompany these public-private partnerships on the journey of
identifying and applying for public funding to address public problems.
These learning communities will cover topics anchored in the thematic axes of La
Liga, seeking to bring together municipal teams in workshops and seminars, with
particular emphasis on addressing the growing needs of our municipal governments, as
well as serving as a bridge between them and the organizations that make up the
municipal ecosystems.
The Casey Family Programs focus on bringing about lasting improvements in the wellbeing
of children, families, and the communities in which they live. As part of their
initiatives, they launched a project focused on analyzing public policies that directly
affect Latinx families, preventing or hindering their access to programs that benefit
their well-being. To include the Puerto Rican community, the Casey Foundation
recruited La Liga to conduct the study in Puerto Rico.
29
The project includes a comprehensive review of existing laws, regulations, and
policies that impact the well-being and prosperity of Latinx families and children; a
social network analysis; and an analysis of the environment and context to create a
visual representation focused on the intersectionality of social dynamics and power
structures in the production of public policy. In addition, the study design includes a
series of in-depth interviews with participants in different sectors, including people with
lived experience, as well as stakeholders in the government, non-profit, philanthropic,
research, and private sectors.

Seeking to expand La Liga's network of allies, a membership
model will be launched for communities, non-profits,
philanthropic, academic, and other entities representing the
third sector and civil society. These allies, as members of La
Liga, will have the opportunity to participate in special activities
to collaborate in development of strategies that are aligned with
the municipalist agenda, as well as spaces for discussion and
promotion of collaborations and alliances in favor of the
communities of Puerto Rico.
The importance of the Municipal Radiography published in 2020
was immediately apparent upon its dissemination. Analyses of the
financial statements of the municipalities, valuable information for
professionals and academics who care about Puerto Rico, are almost
nonexistent. Moreover, the radiography clearly quantifies the
permanent damage that municipalities have suffered and may
continue to suffer in the future due to the system imposed by the
Central Government of Puerto Rico. For this reason, La Liga is
developing a second municipal radiography entitled "Hasta donde
nos dé la sábana" in Spanish, focused on the imminent risk caused
by the continued imposition of unilateral measures by the Fiscal
Control Board, which will potentially result in at least 43
municipalities becoming insolvent in the next year or two. The
radiography will further describe and detail the implications for the
populations living in these 43 municipalities.
30

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Designed by Andrea P. Vázquez Colón
Translated by Samiris Suleimán Orozco and revised by Alison Chopel