Scientific Cooperation Contacts

=People to Meet=

1
Rectorado Universidad "Amawtay Wasi"

rector@amawtaywasi.edu.ec

Luis Fernando Sarango

RECTOR DE LA UNIVERSIDAD COMUNITARIA INTERCULTURAL

DE LAS NACIONALIDADES Y PUEBLOS INDIGENAS "AMAWTAY WASI"

Calle Francisco Robles E2-35, entre Pedro de Valdivia y Ulpiano Páez.

Telefax: (593-2) 2905203

Quito DM - Chinchaysuyu / Ecuador

2
Vicente Cordova 

" When I returned to Ecuador after 8 years abroad, I was positively surprised with the pace and extent of the changes that the new vision of governance was implementing.

I had the opportunity of working first hand in those changes, as Director of Scientific Research at SENESCYT for almost one year. That position gave me a great insight of the R&D structure and policy in Ecuador. I fact, I collaborated with the draft of the New Plan of Science and Technology and was involved in the reorganisation of the State Research Institutes.

As director of local development and environment at the government of Municipio de Pìllaro, I started working directly with farmers, ranchers and small entrepreneurs, looking for financial sources for several programs to help the community be economic and environmentally sustainable.

Now, I collaborate with the Ecuadorian Space Institute IEE, as scientific advisor by means of an agreement between UTC and IEE.

At all those jobs, I became more aware of the real limitations for both research and development in the production processes.

There is a tremendous lack of information the farmers need to enhance their production processes. The capital (corporations) have sequestered the technical information and competencies from the technicians and given to the sales executives.

The farmers have developed a high dependence on the agrochemical salesmen, affecting the environment and condemning the farmers and consumers to increasing levels of poverty and negative environmental and health effects. I consider the last roya outbreak in Ecuador a direct consequence of the overuse of chemicals enforced by the agrochemical companies.

The lack of information has rendered the irrigation projects across the country useless and of high environmental impact. We don´t have a reliable, in real time, trustable source of agro meteorologic information to make technical decisions, redounding in a lack of real information for political decision. This situation has worsen the perspectives of sustainability on most of the production processes, specially in ecosystems that have evolved in dry conditions for millions of years (peninsula de Santa Elena).

The research efforts that we as UTC and IEE are carrying out, must have the sustainability components, to ensure the survival of our country. Creating and migrating towards a knowledge based society is the only option. Management of intellectual property, in such a way that the whole community can access to, is a priority for the research instances, in order to achieve technological and scientific independency.

Beyond the fact that I could or not qualify for the announced position, I pursue to have a personal conversation with you. I´m sure your insight in the collaborative consumption models and in modern approaches for doing research and science will make our efforts more meaningful to reach the ideal of a knowledge based sustainable community."