With Ondas Bio, UNAL promotes science and technology research and scholastic innovation in Tumaco

With funding from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mintic), the Ondas Bio program was implemented between 2018 and 2021, making it possible to discover talents in these areas and empower students from an early age through comprehensive training.

As a result of UNAL’s efforts, and with the support of strategic allies such as the Municipal Education Secretariat, Tumaco participated in the 2nd Virtual Regional Meeting of Science and Technology 2021 Huila, the National X Science Meeting and Territory 2021 of the Ondas Programme, and in Expociencias Lima 2022.

In these scenarios, the initiatives of the research groups in Santa Teresita District, San José de Conapi km 60, Tangarial Carretera, Santa Teresita, Maritime School and Max Seidel National High School were presented.

The research group “Liceístas exploradores del ambiente (LEA)”, from Max Seidel National High School, has been selected to represent Colombia at VII Expociencias Nacional Chile 2022, with the project “Mangrove and Sea Natural Reserve”, ranked as the best in the event. This initiative is led by teacher Liner Salazar and consists of students Ana Valentina Quiñonez Barreiro and Jossell Fabián Pantoja Castillo.

“Winning a place to participate in an international science event is a great achievement for the region. There is a great deal of potential and we have to give the opportunity to recognize the talents of Tumaco youth,” confirms Professor John Josephraj Selvaraj, Director of the Institute of Pacific Studies at UNAL Sede Tumaco.

“Many of the Ondas Project beneficiaries are already UNAL students, who entered through the Special Program for Academic Admission and Mobility (Peama),” she adds.

An example of this is student María Fernanda Cavides Ibarra, agro-industrial engineering Tumaco Campus, who made use of Ondas Bio when she was in the 8th grade of high school at the Instituto de San José de Konabi Km 60, where she was a member of the research group “Naturals “.

There, accompanied by the then chancellor Sergio Jimenez, who supported the coordination of the program in the municipality, María Fernanda developed a project that consisted of making use of the residues of the banana crop to make paper, wallets and bags.

“I thank UNAL for bringing the research projects from Grade 8 to my school located in rural areas. The Ondas program helped guide my career, and I realized that I really love research and making use of the resources of our environment.”

Other notable projects at the Science and Territory meeting included: “Evaluation of extracts of botanical origin for the control of the plague of ‘blind chickens’, from the San José de Conapé Education Foundation; “Flavor of Peace”, from IE Misions Santa Teresita; and “Strategies for Reducing Solid Waste in Households by cadets of the Naval College.

Regarding the progress of this project in the region, the then Minister of Mintic, Arturo Luna, traveled to Tumaco and, in a meeting with members of the UNAL headquarters in Tumaco, indicated a commitment to managing more economic resources to further advance knowledge since high school.

At the time, the former minister said: “For me, it is very special to be in Nariño and to see firsthand the progress of the different sectors driven by science, technology and innovation. In addition, we bring to this department very positive news that will help address the current problems in the territory.” .

Thus, the Academy was a strategic ally of the Tumaco community, proposing academic alternatives so that the “Pearl of the Pacific” and its surroundings could grow culturally, socially, and economically.