Mariana Alegre
Mariana Alegre is a passionate city designer, community engager, connection-maker and public spaces defender.
Devoted to promoting an urban social movement to improve cities, she isn´t just an urban planner and thinker; she’s an urban doer. Mariana is wholeheartedly convinced that the urban revolution is not just a distant dream—it’s happening now.
She is the executive director and founder of Sistema Urbano, a Latin American ecosystem driving urban transformation. Mariana leads initiatives such as Lima Como Vamos (an evidence-based urban observatory), Ocupa Tu Calle (citizen-led public spaces), Nodal (empowering the new urban generation), and Clima Urbano (addressing climate injustice).
A passionate advocate for urban rights, she empowers neighbors to protect their public spaces. Mariana believes that building community resilience and establishing alliances are essential for addressing societal challenges and tackling urban inequality. To achieve this, she encourages genuine community involvement processes and acts as a connection enabler, creating inter-sectorial spaces to produce shared value and public goods.
Mariana holds a MSc in city design and social science from LSE. She studied law and completed a master’s in human rights at PUCP, where she is now a tenured professor researching mobility, public spaces, citizen movements, and urban disobedience. She has served on several government advisory committees, and she was recognized by Forbes magazine as one of the Most Powerful Peruvian Women in 2022.
She firmly believes in nurturing collective strength, promoting mutual care and recognizing the profound power of community: inspiring, transformative, and life affirming – an experience she has felt not only as a civic leader but also as a cancer survivor. You can find Mariana riding her bike, sitting in a park, or walking around Lima, the city she loves most.