In October 2009, representatives of city governments, ministries of agriculture, research institutes, NGOs and international organizations from 12 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean met in Medellín, Colombia, to develop strategies for reducing high rates of urban poverty and food insecurity across the region. They met as many countries were emerging slowly from the effects of global fuel and food price inflation, which had pushed the cost of living beyond the resources of many of the region’s 160 million urban poor. The Medellín meeting proposed a new agenda for an urban transition toward social inclusion, improved quality of life, equity and sustainability. Its Medellín Declaration urged national, state and local governments to incorporate urban and peri-urban agriculture, or UPA, into their programmes for eradicating hunger and poverty, ensuring food and nutrition security, promoting local development and improving the urban environment.