August 18, 2025 • 15 mins
Christine Balling, Institute of World Politics, planted some seeds years ago in Colombia (no, not that kind). It appears to have made a significant difference. A good conversation follows.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
Welcome to the third hour of the Morning Show with
Prestin Scott. Great to be with you. I'm Preston. He's
ose sweltering inside the studios of the Morning Show here,
but it's great to be with you as we start
our week show five four hundred and thirty three, And
as promised, joining me on the program is Christine Baling.
(00:27):
Christine's resume kind of looks like this short version. Senior
vice president of professional Affiliations and a faculty member specializing
in Latin American Affairs at the Institute of World Politics,
located in our nation's capital. And Christine joins us on
the phone line this morning. Christine, how are you.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
I'm doing really well. Great to be with you, gentlemen.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
I appreciate you making time for us. The piece that
caught my attention we prompted democracy by building playgrounds in
Columbia fifteen years ago. When I returned, I found live
forever changed. Before we get into the details of that,
what prompted you to write this when you did.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Well? I wrote this piece because I made a trip
back down to Colombia a few months ago in April
to visit with the well now adults, the kids, with
whom I had worked starting back in two thousand and nine.
So I had been concerned about the cuts to USAID,
(01:34):
although obviously some of them were warranted, and I kept
thinking to myself that, well, I think that what I
did made a difference. But then I thought, well, how
can I possibly say that if I don't actually talk
to the people themselves.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So you went back there? Now, before we pick up
that story, I think it's useful to go back in time.
Let's go back to this particular project. What was its
purpose and when did it all take place?
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, it started back, as I said, in two thousand
and nine. My late husband was running for senate in
an area of Columbia where the Marxist gorillas were very active,
and so during a campaign stop, a group of kids
came up to me and started talking about what their
(02:27):
very poor village needed. One of the things was a playground.
So on the way back home, I was thinking, well, now,
how expensive would it be to build a playground? But
instead of just giving a gift, and I was probably
inspired by being on a political campaign, I thought, while
the kids should need to use the democratic process to
(02:50):
determine where the playground goes, and why so I contacted
the village's mayor. I asked him to give me two
or three Canada sites. Went back a month later with
a group of kids. We toured the sites, We held
a public debate with kids representing each site, followed by
(03:11):
a vote, and then we built the playground where the
majority of kids had voted for it to be. It
was very moving. They picked the poorest section of this
very poor village. I took a video of the inauguration.
I got it to some folks that are embassy in
Bogatah and ended up having a meeting with USID and
(03:38):
members of Special Operation Command South. I said, if you
all were to give me five thousand dollars, I take
a group of kids from that first village, bring them
to an even more remote village, have the first group
of kids, teach the second group of kids this democratic model,
and I would start creating a network of kids. And
(04:03):
the motto I use for this entire project with Latin
non city, which is Latin for not for self. And
it grew, it grew, you know, one visit to our embassy.
At a time, I was constantly begging for money, and
I'm sure you know a lot of folks who are
involved with non profits understand that. And we went town
(04:25):
by town, playground by playground. We added medical brigades, we
added marches for peace because, just so your listeners understand,
this timeframe was when the Colombian government was negotiating with
the Marxist gorillas, and it was it was incredibly moving
because the kids right away took ownership of the of
(04:50):
the project. They they got a sense of dignity and pride,
not only experiencing what it's like to be a citizen
of a demidocracy, seeing democratic rights in action, but also
being able to help the even less fortunate, the little
kids in their respective communities.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
It's a project she spearheaded years ago in Colombia, and
I'm with Christine balling. Christine, give us a little snapshot
of you mentioned the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia may
be better known by some who are well read as
FARC far RC and then the Colombian government at that time.
(05:34):
What are we talking about in terms of the makeup
of the government. What kind of government was going on
there that your husband was running for office.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
Well, it's a republic, so a functioning democracy. I think
a lot of folks have heard of Pablo Escobar, the
famous drug pin. When I was operating, this was after
his reign of terror. But the bottom line is is
the far was trying to overthrow the government and also
(06:05):
they were very deeply involved in the cocaine trade and
constantly trying to undermine national security to to make the
Colombian government, which again is functioning to seem illegitimate and
out of control.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
Historic particularly go ahead, go ahead, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
I've got particularly disturbing was the FARK would recruit kids.
That's the bottom line. They would They would be recruiting kids,
often forcibly or otherwise tempting them, saying that they would
be part of a family and empowered, recruiting kids as
young as nine years old.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
I was going to say frequently, these these types of gangs,
if you will, or groups or military organizations, they prey
on the poverty, They prey on young people that are
stuck in those circumstances.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
That's correct, and so my initiative, not that it was
my intention on the outset, really became some very modest
alternative because the kids who were so used to war,
so used to these these these the terror that the
FARC would inflict on their respective communities suddenly saw something.
(07:20):
It was a glimmer of hope. And perhaps even more importantly,
as far as I know, not one of the kids
with whom I worked closely ever joined the FARC.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
That is a remarkable accomplishment in and of itself. Before
we get to the I guess your recent visit in
what led to kind of this retrospective article that you've written,
and maybe an attempt at answering what difference did it make.
I'm curious when you held those first meetings, what was
(07:54):
the reaction when young people gathered together and not just
maybe learned about the ways of determination by way of
vote and debate and discussion, but they actually sought an action.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, it was remarkable. I mean again, it caught fire
in a great way because I very quickly and by
the way, Preston, this is the only reason at work.
It's the only reason, in my opinion, were one of them,
that the FARC never fought back and harmed me or
(08:32):
any of the kids. They immediately seized the entire project
for themselves. And I think that you know those some
all of us here in the United States, were so blessed.
We look at a violent third world country and somehow
(08:52):
think that the kids there are different than the kids
here at home. Well they're not. Give them a chance,
give give them a sense of mission of dignity, as
I said before, and they're just like American kids who
are taken seriously and they really jump on it.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Christine bowing with the Institute of World Politics, talking about
a project she spearheaded as part of a campaign with
her husband that well, what what is the end result
of some playgrounds? Twenty one minutes past the hour, Christine
Bowling is chronicling a story that she wrote for us
(09:35):
on the show today. She wrote the article for Real
Clear Policy, Real Clear Politics, and it says this, we
prompted democracy by building playgrounds in Columbia fifteen years ago.
When I returned, I found lives forever changed. And so
we're talking about that process. And Christine's let's go to
(09:56):
that recent trip, fairly recent trip, and tell us how
you determined what the impact was of those playgrounds.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Well, I ended up meeting a group from the First
and Second villages where I had worked and had over
the years done several projects. They were all adults. This
was fifteen years later, and they all, I met with
(10:28):
about ten former participants. They all went to great lengths
to meet with me number one, which certainly spoke to
But the most important thing was what had happened. Not
only did no one join the FARC. One woman was
so motivated by the democratic process that she ran for
(10:50):
a councilwoman in her village and served as a councilwoman
for two years. A pair of sisters decided that they
could really achieve goals, et cetera, et cetera, and became accountants.
A fourth young gal went to college, which is a
rare thing, and became a lawyer, advocating for the rights
(11:14):
of victims of violence. So that's just an example. And
they also, by the way they had were very skeptical
about the United States of America is as close as
Columbia and US has been in the past, because the
FARC says only bad things about what we Americans stand for.
(11:37):
So they're certainly so so their their minds as to
what it means, what an American is, and that we're
you know that I were not horrible imperialists. I mean,
that's another thing. They got even more interested in the
United States and going online and finding more about it.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
What happened to the playground since then?
Speaker 2 (12:02):
Well, most of them have gone into a state of
disrepair because I had to stop my I came back
to the United States. But there are a couple that
the kids, as best they can, have kept up by
painting over the years. So even if they're not in
(12:23):
great shape, the symbolism remains.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
I would be curious to know. I mean, obviously, those
young people that were impacted by it, they know the
important role it played. Do you think it's about restoring
those playgrounds or is it about doing the process again,
gathering groups together and saying where should we put a
new one?
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Absolutely pressed in both of them, and in fact, these kids,
who are now in their early thirties and have a
couple kids their own, they said, if if I were
ever to come back, they would like to teach the
next generation about the meaning of non sibby and the
importance of democracy.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
I mean, well, I'm curious what would it cost to
restore those playgrounds?
Speaker 2 (13:18):
Oh, jeez, luise a playground a couple thousand bucks, well
maybe more, now maybe three four These were modest wooden playgrounds. Yeah,
I'll tell you this. Of over the course of the
five years I built. We did twelve playgrounds, medical days,
you know, marches for peace. Total number of donations I
(13:40):
received three hundred thousand dollars. That's it. So, you know,
a lesson again with a modest amount of US government aid,
if if the you know one can achieve a lot
of great things. And I want that message to come through,
you know again, just in the midst of all the crazy,
(14:01):
silly projects that were highlighted in the press. You know,
American public diplomacy works and it doesn't have to cost
a lot.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
I think you and I are going to end up
chatting a little bit more off the air about this project.
We do a we do something every year. We call
it Operation Thanksgiving and Spirit of Christmas, and we're kind
of looking for a project this fall, so maybe you
and I can talk.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
I think that'd be fantastic. I've in fact just resurrected
my foundation legally in Colombia, and as I said, the
non SIBY team members are raring to go.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Christine, thanks for the time this morning. We'll be in touch.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Christine bawling with us now when she was able to
document that not one of those kids that took part
in that whole process took became a member of the
Marxist rebel, and some were inspired to do these other things.
I got to thinking, why in the world would we
not we meaning us, you and me? Why would we
(15:13):
not see if we can encourage that, if it would
only take a few thousand dollars to resurrect those playgrounds.
I'm thinking there's a few playgrounds that we might resurrect.
We'll see. Well, I mean, you tell me, what do
you think? Send me an email Preston at iHeartRadio dot
com twenty minutes past the hour
Welcome to the third hour of the Morning Show with
Prestin Scott. Great to be with you. I'm Preston. He's
ose sweltering inside the studios of the Morning Show here,
but it's great to be with you as we start
our week show five four hundred and thirty three, And
as promised, joining me on the program is Christine Baling.
(00:27):
Christine's resume kind of looks like this short version. Senior
vice president of professional Affiliations and a faculty member specializing
in Latin American Affairs at the Institute of World Politics,
located in our nation's capital. And Christine joins us on
the phone line this morning. Christine, how are you.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
I'm doing really well. Great to be with you, gentlemen.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
I appreciate you making time for us. The piece that
caught my attention we prompted democracy by building playgrounds in
Columbia fifteen years ago. When I returned, I found live
forever changed. Before we get into the details of that,
what prompted you to write this when you did.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
Well? I wrote this piece because I made a trip
back down to Colombia a few months ago in April
to visit with the well now adults, the kids, with
whom I had worked starting back in two thousand and nine.
So I had been concerned about the cuts to USAID,
(01:34):
although obviously some of them were warranted, and I kept
thinking to myself that, well, I think that what I
did made a difference. But then I thought, well, how
can I possibly say that if I don't actually talk
to the people themselves.
Speaker 1 (01:50):
So you went back there? Now, before we pick up
that story, I think it's useful to go back in time.
Let's go back to this particular project. What was its
purpose and when did it all take place?
Speaker 2 (02:05):
Well, it started back, as I said, in two thousand
and nine. My late husband was running for senate in
an area of Columbia where the Marxist gorillas were very active,
and so during a campaign stop, a group of kids
came up to me and started talking about what their
(02:27):
very poor village needed. One of the things was a playground.
So on the way back home, I was thinking, well, now,
how expensive would it be to build a playground? But
instead of just giving a gift, and I was probably
inspired by being on a political campaign, I thought, while
the kids should need to use the democratic process to
(02:50):
determine where the playground goes, and why so I contacted
the village's mayor. I asked him to give me two
or three Canada sites. Went back a month later with
a group of kids. We toured the sites, We held
a public debate with kids representing each site, followed by
(03:11):
a vote, and then we built the playground where the
majority of kids had voted for it to be. It
was very moving. They picked the poorest section of this
very poor village. I took a video of the inauguration.
I got it to some folks that are embassy in
Bogatah and ended up having a meeting with USID and
(03:38):
members of Special Operation Command South. I said, if you
all were to give me five thousand dollars, I take
a group of kids from that first village, bring them
to an even more remote village, have the first group
of kids, teach the second group of kids this democratic model,
and I would start creating a network of kids. And
(04:03):
the motto I use for this entire project with Latin
non city, which is Latin for not for self. And
it grew, it grew, you know, one visit to our embassy.
At a time, I was constantly begging for money, and
I'm sure you know a lot of folks who are
involved with non profits understand that. And we went town
(04:25):
by town, playground by playground. We added medical brigades, we
added marches for peace because, just so your listeners understand,
this timeframe was when the Colombian government was negotiating with
the Marxist gorillas, and it was it was incredibly moving
because the kids right away took ownership of the of
(04:50):
the project. They they got a sense of dignity and pride,
not only experiencing what it's like to be a citizen
of a demidocracy, seeing democratic rights in action, but also
being able to help the even less fortunate, the little
kids in their respective communities.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
It's a project she spearheaded years ago in Colombia, and
I'm with Christine balling. Christine, give us a little snapshot
of you mentioned the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia may
be better known by some who are well read as
FARC far RC and then the Colombian government at that time.
(05:34):
What are we talking about in terms of the makeup
of the government. What kind of government was going on
there that your husband was running for office.
Speaker 2 (05:42):
Well, it's a republic, so a functioning democracy. I think
a lot of folks have heard of Pablo Escobar, the
famous drug pin. When I was operating, this was after
his reign of terror. But the bottom line is is
the far was trying to overthrow the government and also
(06:05):
they were very deeply involved in the cocaine trade and
constantly trying to undermine national security to to make the
Colombian government, which again is functioning to seem illegitimate and
out of control.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
Historic particularly go ahead, go ahead, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (06:26):
I've got particularly disturbing was the FARK would recruit kids.
That's the bottom line. They would They would be recruiting kids,
often forcibly or otherwise tempting them, saying that they would
be part of a family and empowered, recruiting kids as
young as nine years old.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
I was going to say frequently, these these types of gangs,
if you will, or groups or military organizations, they prey
on the poverty, They prey on young people that are
stuck in those circumstances.
Speaker 2 (06:58):
That's correct, and so my initiative, not that it was
my intention on the outset, really became some very modest
alternative because the kids who were so used to war,
so used to these these these the terror that the
FARC would inflict on their respective communities suddenly saw something.
(07:20):
It was a glimmer of hope. And perhaps even more importantly,
as far as I know, not one of the kids
with whom I worked closely ever joined the FARC.
Speaker 1 (07:33):
That is a remarkable accomplishment in and of itself. Before
we get to the I guess your recent visit in
what led to kind of this retrospective article that you've written,
and maybe an attempt at answering what difference did it make.
I'm curious when you held those first meetings, what was
(07:54):
the reaction when young people gathered together and not just
maybe learned about the ways of determination by way of
vote and debate and discussion, but they actually sought an action.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
Well, it was remarkable. I mean again, it caught fire
in a great way because I very quickly and by
the way, Preston, this is the only reason at work.
It's the only reason, in my opinion, were one of them,
that the FARC never fought back and harmed me or
(08:32):
any of the kids. They immediately seized the entire project
for themselves. And I think that you know those some
all of us here in the United States, were so blessed.
We look at a violent third world country and somehow
(08:52):
think that the kids there are different than the kids
here at home. Well they're not. Give them a chance,
give give them a sense of mission of dignity, as
I said before, and they're just like American kids who
are taken seriously and they really jump on it.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Christine bowing with the Institute of World Politics, talking about
a project she spearheaded as part of a campaign with
her husband that well, what what is the end result
of some playgrounds? Twenty one minutes past the hour, Christine
Bowling is chronicling a story that she wrote for us
(09:35):
on the show today. She wrote the article for Real
Clear Policy, Real Clear Politics, and it says this, we
prompted democracy by building playgrounds in Columbia fifteen years ago.
When I returned, I found lives forever changed. And so
we're talking about that process. And Christine's let's go to
(09:56):
that recent trip, fairly recent trip, and tell us how
you determined what the impact was of those playgrounds.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Well, I ended up meeting a group from the First
and Second villages where I had worked and had over
the years done several projects. They were all adults. This
was fifteen years later, and they all, I met with
(10:28):
about ten former participants. They all went to great lengths
to meet with me number one, which certainly spoke to
But the most important thing was what had happened. Not
only did no one join the FARC. One woman was
so motivated by the democratic process that she ran for
(10:50):
a councilwoman in her village and served as a councilwoman
for two years. A pair of sisters decided that they
could really achieve goals, et cetera, et cetera, and became accountants.
A fourth young gal went to college, which is a
rare thing, and became a lawyer, advocating for the rights
(11:14):
of victims of violence. So that's just an example. And
they also, by the way they had were very skeptical
about the United States of America is as close as
Columbia and US has been in the past, because the
FARC says only bad things about what we Americans stand for.
(11:37):
So they're certainly so so their their minds as to
what it means, what an American is, and that we're
you know that I were not horrible imperialists. I mean,
that's another thing. They got even more interested in the
United States and going online and finding more about it.
Speaker 1 (11:59):
What happened to the playground since then?
Speaker 2 (12:02):
Well, most of them have gone into a state of
disrepair because I had to stop my I came back
to the United States. But there are a couple that
the kids, as best they can, have kept up by
painting over the years. So even if they're not in
(12:23):
great shape, the symbolism remains.
Speaker 1 (12:29):
I would be curious to know. I mean, obviously, those
young people that were impacted by it, they know the
important role it played. Do you think it's about restoring
those playgrounds or is it about doing the process again,
gathering groups together and saying where should we put a
new one?
Speaker 2 (12:50):
Absolutely pressed in both of them, and in fact, these kids,
who are now in their early thirties and have a
couple kids their own, they said, if if I were
ever to come back, they would like to teach the
next generation about the meaning of non sibby and the
importance of democracy.
Speaker 1 (13:13):
I mean, well, I'm curious what would it cost to
restore those playgrounds?
Speaker 2 (13:18):
Oh, jeez, luise a playground a couple thousand bucks, well
maybe more, now maybe three four These were modest wooden playgrounds. Yeah,
I'll tell you this. Of over the course of the
five years I built. We did twelve playgrounds, medical days,
you know, marches for peace. Total number of donations I
(13:40):
received three hundred thousand dollars. That's it. So, you know,
a lesson again with a modest amount of US government aid,
if if the you know one can achieve a lot
of great things. And I want that message to come through,
you know again, just in the midst of all the crazy,
(14:01):
silly projects that were highlighted in the press. You know,
American public diplomacy works and it doesn't have to cost
a lot.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
I think you and I are going to end up
chatting a little bit more off the air about this project.
We do a we do something every year. We call
it Operation Thanksgiving and Spirit of Christmas, and we're kind
of looking for a project this fall, so maybe you
and I can talk.
Speaker 2 (14:30):
I think that'd be fantastic. I've in fact just resurrected
my foundation legally in Colombia, and as I said, the
non SIBY team members are raring to go.
Speaker 1 (14:42):
Christine, thanks for the time this morning. We'll be in touch.
Speaker 2 (14:46):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Christine bawling with us now when she was able to
document that not one of those kids that took part
in that whole process took became a member of the
Marxist rebel, and some were inspired to do these other things.
I got to thinking, why in the world would we
not we meaning us, you and me? Why would we
(15:13):
not see if we can encourage that, if it would
only take a few thousand dollars to resurrect those playgrounds.
I'm thinking there's a few playgrounds that we might resurrect.
We'll see. Well, I mean, you tell me, what do
you think? Send me an email Preston at iHeartRadio dot
com twenty minutes past the hour
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!