After a meeting with some of the faculty at UNSA who are part of the phase III projects at their new Technological Park, which was modeled after Purdue’s Discovery Park.
HLA Professor and Co-Director of the Arequipa Nexus Institute (ANI) Lori Hoagland and ESE/HLA PhD student Cristian Salinas traveled to Arequipa, Peru to kick-off phase III of ANI, which will fund four interconnected projects focused on organic crop production, alpaca fiber quality, renewable energy, and regenerative tourism.
During their visit they met with their research partners at the University of San Augustin (UNSA) and the mayors of the three communities in the Colca River Valley where the phase III projects will focus their efforts. Hoagland and Dennis Macedo (UNSA Professor and ANI Co-Director) will co-lead the organic crop production project, working with local stakeholders to evaluate and improve the health of their soils and deal with contamination if present, integrate and better manage new high-value vegetable crops in the region with fitotoldos (high-tunnel like structures), and develop a new MS program in Agroecology at UNSA. Salinas will investigate how science diplomacy can contribute to the development of sustainable solutions to agricultural and environmental challenges.
Mario Pachecho (Mayor of Madrigal), Lori Hoagland, and Dennis Macedo inspect a field of garlic where contamination from a nearby abandoned mine is suspected.
Cristian Salinas receives a typical local garment from the Jose Saryasi (Mayor of Yanque) in appreciation for the visit and new partnership.
Rosa Cossio (ANI Program Manager; center in black) learns about some of the challenges vegetable growers are experiencing in fitotoldos.