Recent News
'Organic Agriculture Systems' Project: Improving Farmers' Soil and Crop Health in the Colca Valley
March 25, 2024
Project team collecting soil samples in the CIBCI area (Thursday, March 14). Left-right: Co-directors of the Arequipa Nexus Institute and lead PIs of the Organic Systems Project: MS. Dennis Macedo and Dr. Lori Hoagland, postdoc Ada Martinez, and PhD student Henrique Petry. Photo credit: Dr. Rosa Cossio
UNSA and Purdue begin impact projects to improve quality of life in the Colca Valley
March 13, 2024
The National University of San Agustin (UNSA), in Arequipa, Peru, and Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN, begin the third phase of joint collaboration to develop research projects in organic agriculture, genetic improvement of South American camelids, renewable energy and regenerative tourism in the Colca Valley.
UNSA and Purdue begin impact projects to improve quality of life in the Colca Valley
NEXUS PHASE 3 PROJECT: PROMOTING RENEWABLE ENERGY IN AREQUIPA’S HIGHLAND COMMUNITIES
February 2, 2024
Burning fossil fuels to generate energy is a key contributor to the climate change crisis. Renewable sources of energy offer clean energy production, without emitting greenhouse gases, and there is a continuous growth of in the adoption of clean energy production in emerging economies.
NEXUS PHASE 3 PROJECT: ENHANCING ALPACA’S SURVIVAL AND FIBER QUALITY IN AREQUIPA’S HIGHLANDS
January 5, 2024
2024 has been designated the International Year of Camelids by the United Nations. Camelids have a significant role in the livelihoods of millions of poor families around the world; moreover, they are an important element in the cultural identity of ancestral indigenous peoples.
Purdue Article Highlights Continuation of Purdue-UNSA Partnership
August 10, 2023
An article written recently by Maureen Manier, Purdue Agricultural Communications Specialist, emphasized the funding received by the Arequipa Nexus Institute (a partnership between Purdue and UNSA) for a third phase of multidisciplinary research projects). Read more about “Purdue article highlights continuation of Purdue-UNSA partnership”
Purdue Article Highlights Continuation of Purdue-UNSA Partnership
UNSA article highlights continuation of Purdue-UNSA collaborative effort in the Caylloma region of Arequipa, Peru
July 31, 2023
An article published by the University Office of Institutional Imagey, of the Saint Agustin National University (UNSA), made emphasis on the execution of four research projects in the Caylloma region aimed at generating social impact of the population in the area. This third phase of multidisciplinary research projects is a continuation of the partnership between UNSA and Purdue. Read more about “UNSA article highlights continuation of Purdue-UNSA collaborative effort in the Caylloma region of Arequipa, Peru”
UNSA article highlights continuation of Purdue-UNSA collaborative effort in the Caylloma region of Arequipa, Peru
Rainwater collected in the Andes Mountains contains fingerprints of atmospheric processes
October 3, 2022
Water Origin members teamed up to study rains captured during the wet monsoon season and measure the oxygen and hydrogen stable isotopic ratios of the rainwater. This study of isotopic signatures of different rain generating atmospheric patterns was recently published in the American Geophysical Union's (AGU) Geophysical Research Letters (GRL).
Rainwater collected in the Andes Mountains contains fingerprints of atmospheric processes
Researchers Share Lessons Learned From Peru's Water Management Program
February 2, 2022
Learning, as defined by Ababacar Mbengue and Sedou Sané, is the ability to "detect errors and correct them by changing [one's] theory of action. But what happens when that learning does not produce the expected outcome?
Researchers Share Lessons Learned From Peru's Water Management Program
Purdue Article Highlights Purdue-UNSA Partnership
January 27, 2022
An article written recently by John O'Malley, Purdue Communications Specialist, highlighted UNSA's leadership visit last October, in preparation for the third phase of the major multidisciplinary research partnership between Purdue and UNSA through the Arequipa Nexus Institute.
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Using Pacha Kit to Measure Soil Health Indicators: Nexus Featured Research Tool
October 11, 2021
Soil practices can improve agricultural productivity, but a healthy soil cannot be only defined by crop yield. It is necessary to measure integrated chemical, biological, and physical indicators that are sensitive to management and reflect changes in resilience and adaptation. Soil health is then defined as the ability of the soil to sustain the productivity, diversity, and environmental services of terrestrial ecosystems (ITPS, 2020). Moreover, soil management decisions, crop rotation, and application of agrochemicals lead to changes in physical, chemical, and biological soil properties that require constant monitoring and evaluation. In this context, Peruvian smallholder farmers face limited access to basic farming needs like formal soil analysis, and when done, these analyses can be costly, complex, lacking standardization, and can delay farmer decision-making. To foster knowledge exchange and future collaborations with farmers, the Soil Vulnerability, Impairment, and Health Assessment (SHIVA) group of the Arequipa Nexus Institute has adapted a relatively simple soil kit, the PachaKit, to measure soil health indicators such as physical characterization, bulk density, infiltration, electric conductivity, pH, nitrates, texture, aggregate stability, particulate organic matter (POM), permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC), extractable phosphorus (P) and macrofauna.
Read More about "Using Pacha Kit to Measure Soil Health Indicators: Nexus Featured Research Tool"
