Hay Festival Cartagena 2026

According to UNESCO and the World Bank, one out of every two children in the world cannot understand what they read. Although there are many factors that contribute to this global learning crisis, we need to ask ourselves about how and when we have taught our children to learn. At this lecture for teachers with Elisa Guerra, we explore a practical proposal for the teaching of reading, as well as strategies to increase reading comprehension at any age.

The inclusive theatre company Ritmos de Libertad, run by the social and cultural organisation Ruleli, based in the Olaya neighbourhood, opens the 2026 Hay Festival Comunitario with a show that includes dance, music and theatre, and which involves children, teenagers, young adults and disabled people, celebrating the group’s diversity. Inspired by Caribbean musical rhythms, they emphasise their African heritage through some vibrant routines. This special opening event will also feature the La Pambelé, which will give a special musical performance.

Belo is a rattlesnake from Abreguí, a village where one resident has gone missing. Visible are the tracks of a very large animal… and there are those who say there is a hidden treasure in the area. With the book Belo: un héroe del campo as a starting point, Nicole Sánchez Castillo offers a reading and writing workshop in which children will play games inspired in the story and they will learn to write a letter, which they will send to Belo.

The poet, storyteller, writer, activist and teacher Mary Grueso is the first Afro-descendent woman to be a member of the Colombian Academy of the Language. This pioneer in Afro-Colombian children’s literature, who has black children as the protagonists of her stories, is the author of entertaining books such as Agüela, se fue la nuna, about a child who wants to understand what has happened to the moon, and the modern classic La muñeca negra, a narrative poem that is now an illustrated book.

Culture should be accessible to all and local art deserves a higher profile. This is the thinking behind the work of Colartis, the Corporación Pulso Creativo, which offers artistic education to young people who have limited access to cultural spaces. Through three artworks by Cartagena artists, those taking part in this theoretical and practical workshop will learn to connect a work and its message, using the concepts provided by the educators to help decode each one. Workshop lead by Niurka Rigñack.

What is water and what does it represent in our lives? Rodrigo Paredes will run a traditional textile dyeing workshop, and will explore the relationship between water and identity, memory and imagination, building a dialogue between communities and bodies of water. Each participant will dye their own cloth, and will learn to experiment with folds and cords and how to apply dyes, and about the absorption process.

The cultural manager Brillith Sossa Wilches imagines a space based on the stories created by children involved in the Resonating Hope; Black History, Our History project, which were printed in the illustrated booklet Cuentos del barrio: la esperanza afrodescendiente. Participants will read the stories and do exercises in poetry writing and sound games inspired by Afro rhythms, including the bullerengue and the mapalé. A workshop for linking body, memory and imagination.

Lo que nunca te dije, Un silencio prohibido, MalEducada and Descubriendo a Miranda, Antonio Ortiz has become one of the most popular authors of young adult fiction in Colombia. The reason is simple: he speaks to their hearts, tackling the internal conflicts and concerns that are most relevant to them: bullying, loneliness and the breakup of relationships. It is with stories that cover such issues that he has been attracting so many young readers. This will be a close, enjoyable encounter that encourages young people to laugh at themselves, recognize their emotions, and discover how literature can help them understand themselves better.

Gambote también puede convertirse en un libro: las aventuras, historias y tradiciones del día a día pueden plasmarse en cuentos breves rebosantes de imaginación. Rosmery Armenteros conduce este taller que fomenta la creatividad y el sentimiento de pertenencia a una comunidad de quienes tomen parte en él. Partiendo desde la palabra hablada, y combinando juegos, narraciones orales y escritura, cada participante creará un cuento breve inspirado en su territorio, y se construirá un Árbol de historias colectivas de Gambote.

Starting the workshop with the question “If you had your own media outlet, what issue would you put on the front cover?”, Rodrigo Paredes introduces the fanzine —an alternative format for popular communication—, and each participant will create their own using the technique of collage. This is an exercise for exploring creative skills and channelling energies through art.

Respira ciencia is a collection of illustrated stories whose goal is to bring science to children. This is a project run by Ciencia Magnetica, two of whose members are Mónica Diago and Pedro Caballero, which seeks to awaken scientific curiosity among the young. Because often, children are only a story away from discovering the world of science. This session will be on the book El tití y el mojojoy.

The poet, storyteller, writer, activist and teacher Mary Grueso is the first Afro-descendent woman to be a member of the Colombian Academy of the Language. This pioneer in Afro-Colombian children’s literature, who has black children as the protagonists of her stories, is the author of entertaining books such as Agüela, se fue la nuna, about a child who wants to understand what has happened to the moon, and the modern classic La muñeca negra, a narrative poem that is now an illustrated book.

With books such as Lo que nunca te dije, Un silencio prohibido, MalEducada and Descubriendo a Miranda, Antonio Ortiz has become one of the most popular authors of young adult fiction in Colombia. The reason is simple: he speaks to their hearts, tackling the internal conflicts and concerns that are most relevant to them: bullying, loneliness and the breakup of relationships. It is with stories that cover such issues that he has been attracting so many young readers. This will be a close, enjoyable encounter that encourages young people to laugh at themselves, recognize their emotions, and discover how literature can help them understand themselves better.

The actor, director, cultural manager and interpreter of the identity of his region, the Cartagenan Jhon Narváez, understands art as a tool for community transformation. He organises projects that boost citizen participation, such as the Pedro Romero Vive Aquí collective, the Mi Centro es Cartagena initiative, the Tornado Cartagena audiovisual festival, and the creation of the superhero Capitán Cartagena. His work in film is also linked to popular memory, interpreting Joe Arroyo in the film Rebelión.

A chance to find out about the art of book-binding, based on memories and perceptions of amphibious cultures and those who live in them. Guided by Rodrigo Paredes, each participant will create their own booklet with the aid of folds and stitches, and also design the covers. After this, these mini-projects will be completed by writing the first pages through a creative writing exercise.

A workshop for singing songs, in order to listen to them. A workshop for “catching butterflies” in a playful and poetic sense, using the emotions. Participants will create their own songs together with the coordinator Jairo Ojeda, using the literary strategy of it looks to me. The workshop will include a conversation about the interaction between listening to and singing songs.

Respira ciencia is a collection of illustrated stories whose goal is to bring science to children. This is a project run by Ciencia Magnetica, two of whose members are Mónica Diago and Pedro Caballero, which seeks to awaken scientific curiosity among the young. Because often, children are only a story away from discovering the world of science. This session will be on the book La dinosauria que veía solo la mitad del mundo.

Culture should be accessible to all and local art deserves a higher profile. This is the thinking behind the work of Colartis, the Corporación Pulso Creativo, which offers artistic education to young people who have limited access to cultural spaces. In this practical workshop, participants will reconstruct the memory of their territories through images and texts, and look at how to preserve local narratives through the arts. Workshop lead by Dayro Carrasquilla.

The young adults from the La Esperanza neighbourhood who took part in the Cuentos del barrio: La Esperanza afrodescendiente workshops will share their stories and thoughts about the value of being reflected in a community publication. Together with Brillith Sossa Wilches, who has run the project, they celebrate the voice of their area and their Afro legacy.