150 young people from different public establishments in the La Serena commune were motivated through TED talks, organized by the Science and Technology Dissemination and Dissemination Team of the ULS and the Gabriel González Videla Corporation.

Within the framework of the “Awakening Scientists of the Future” program and in celebration of Science Month, a scientific and pedagogical talk was held, aimed at schoolchildren from municipal schools and high schools of La Serena, an initiative that is part of the cooperation agreement between the University of La Serena and the Gabriel González Videla Municipal Corporation.

Through TED talks (Technology, Entertainment and Design), we seek to disseminate inspiring ideas and speeches that can “change the world” in scientific matters, with the aim of promoting knowledge and equity in access to science, for the benefit of students. and teachers.

The event held at the Municipal Theater of La Serena, brought together more than 150 schoolchildren from seventh grade to fourth year of high school, who, together with prominent experts, analyzed and were able to consult on topics related to climate change and cell division, among other topics.

The academic of the Department of Biology of the University of La Serena and executive director of the Laboratory of Research and Technological Innovation for Science Education (LIITEC-ULS), Francisco López Cortés, explained that “this agreement with the Municipal Corporation dates back to 1991, and today, in my role as director of LIITEC, we have a relationship with five educational establishments, which we call pilots, institutions with which we co-design and participate in the implementation processes, but other instances of the University have also joined. to make this work more organic. We train teachers in technology and, with them, we co-construct the learning sequences and that is what is new, one thing is to tell the teacher how to do their work in the classroom and another is to invite them in a peer relationship to build the products they "They are going to be installed in the classroom."

The researcher and head of Glaciology at the Center for Advanced Studies in Arid Zones (CEAZA), PhD in Geography at the University of Otago, New Zealand, Shelley Mac Donell, indicated that “there is nothing better than seeing the potential that exists in children, adolescents and young people, because beyond being a cliché, they are the future, and they chose to attend this talk.”

Likewise, the expert pointed out that “there is a real need for Chile to train 'Chilean' professionals in this topic, we have more than 24 thousand glaciers in the country, and there are only 5 or 6 Chilean glaciologists and the rest are foreigners. So, it is not only important to make the science that we do visible, it is also important to show them the possibilities for them, the students, so that they can take control of their own territory.”

THE General Secretary of the Gabriel González Videla Municipal Corporation, Patricio Bacho Chávez, stated that “the purpose is to adhere to Science Month and highlight important aspects in our establishments. The study of science, taking advantage of the advantages that the region has, especially in the field of Astronomy, and also, the alliances established with entities such as the University of La Serena, in addition, as a Municipal Corporation, we have contributed to strengthening education in this matter, through the provision of scientific and technological implements.”

The eighth grade student at José Miguel Carrera School, Scarlett Parra Araya, expressed that “I loved the talk, I have liked science for a long time, and I wanted to attend an activity like this. At my school they encourage us to learn about this subject, they hold Astronomy workshops and in the subjects, in general, they teach us a lot about Technology.”

Finally, the exhibitors called on the student communities to participate, shortly in a second talk that will be held on the 29th of this month and in the ExpoCiencia Más Cerca, which will take place in the same week.

Written by Sergio Muñoz, ULS Science Dissemination and Dissemination Team

On September 25, the Teaching Committee met in the Alejandro Covarrubias Room of the Central House in order to strengthen quality assurance and management mechanisms for undergraduate teaching.

Headed by the Director of Teaching, Dr. Pamela Labra, this event was attended by the School and career directors of the 4 faculties of the University of La Serena. On this occasion, the collegiate body analyzed what was declared in Exempt Decrees 028/2010 (Regulation of Study Regime of the University of La Serena) and 224/2019 (Registration and use of Social Name of Trans students of the University of La Serena ).

It should be noted that the Teaching Committee will meet monthly to address issues related to the multiple national challenges regarding the new requirements in Higher Education, which merit articulated efforts to satisfy these demands.

The third session of the Teaching Committee will be held on October 30, 2019, in a place to be defined.

During Wednesday, October 2 and Thursday, October 3, the young people were able to learn about the academic offer of the school, along with its facilities, benefits, activities, extracurriculars, programs and units.

4.266 4th grade students from 80 educational establishments in the 3 provinces of the Coquimbo Region participated in a new version of the ULS Expo, a traditional activity that seeks to present the academic offering and the work of the school.

The vocational fair was held for the first time at the Andrés Bello Campus, a place where students had the opportunity to learn about the University's careers, interacting with students, academics and professionals of the institution in charge of the 1 stands arranged in a large and cozy tent.

In addition to the undergraduate programs assigned to the faculties of Sciences, Social and Economic Sciences, Humanities and Engineering, the Department of Student Welfare, Dept., was present at this fair. of Health, Dept. of Physical Education and Sports, Dept. of Extracurricular Activities, Admission and Enrollment, Teaching Improvement Unit, International Relations, Graduate Monitoring Office, Learn ULS - PACE ULS, Digital Campus, Scientific and Technological Dissemination Team and Student Federation.

Along with this, the students were able to take guided tours of the Food Engineering and Physiozoology laboratories and the facilities of the university campus located on El Pino Hill, in addition to the facilities of the Ignacio Domeyko and Isabel Bongard campuses.

They also enjoyed various micro talks by academics and professionals from the state campus and entertaining and applauded musical, artistic and sports interventions.

For the students, participating in the ULS Expo 2019 was a great experience, where they feel that they can clarify their doubts regarding their next university life. This was indicated by Nicole Tapia, a 4th grade student at Colegio Miguel de Cervantes. “I found it very interesting, they clarified all the questions I had regarding entering the University and, especially, in the career that interests me, which is Pedagogy in Biology and Natural Sciences.”

On the other hand, it is important that students can inform themselves about the career they will choose for their professional future, as expressed by Sofia Torres, teacher at Colegio San José de La Serena. “For the students it is a pleasant experience to get to know the University and all the courses it offers, in addition to knowing the experience and reality of what it means to study at the University by its own students and thus make a decision with greater knowledge,” she maintained.

Finally, for Carlos Meneses, a 2nd year student studying Journalism and in charge of his career's stand, it is important to be able to generate an interaction with the students, transmitting the experience that it means to study at the University. “I consider this initiative to be super good, where students can share the experience with future university students, who are very happy to be able to find out about the careers of their interest.”

“Along with giving us the opportunity to connect directly and massively with high school students and teachers in the region, EXPO ULS is the institutional opportunity to test our ability to work together among the administrative and academic management teams, as well as general services teams. An instance that adopts party characteristics and that provides the University with the freshness and spontaneity of future students,” said the Director of Strategic Communication and person in charge of the 2019 Expo ULS version, Mg. Carola Espinoza.

EXPO ULS 2019 is organized by the Strategic Communication Directorate, with the important support of academic and non-academic officials from various units and students of the University of La Serena, whose collaboration made it possible for this new version of the fair to be a complete success. .

See Photo Gallery

The initiatives will take place on October 4 and 11 at the Limarí Campus of the ULS, where important actors from the olive sector in the Coquimbo Region will attend.

More than 30 olive growers in the region will receive tools to optimize their production and olive oil extraction processes within the framework of the FIC project "Functional Prospecting of Regional Olive Oil", executed by the University of La Serena and financed by the Regional Government from Coquimbo.

These are two workshops where the beneficiaries, prior to a diagnosis carried out by experts, will receive recommendations to increase the quality of their olive oils, with emphasis on the increase and protection of the minority components associated with their sensory and nutritional quality.

The events will take place this October 04th and 11th at the Limarí Campus of the University of La Serena and will have the presence of important actors from the productive sector, as well as students from the Agronomic Engineering careers of the ULS and Agroindustry of the CFT of the Coquimbo Region.

The project

The project “Functional prospecting of regional olive oil” aims to carry out a functional chemical-analytical analysis of regional olive oils in order to enhance their quality and, consequently, their marketing to new markets.

In this regard, the director of the project and academic of the ULS Department of Chemistry, Fabiola Jamett, explains that “what we are looking for is to find these minority components that are only found in the highest quality oils and that give it the power as a nutritional and functional food, that is, with a positive selective effect on one or several functions of the body, reducing the risk of suffering from a disease, and once we find them, see how we can protect them for consumption and/or make a variation, so that can be sold in another way and can go to other markets, for example, the cosmetic area, which requires the highest quality oils.”

The initiative, financed by the Regional Government through the Innovation Fund for Regional Competitiveness (FIC-R), has a budget of $200 million allocated to research, the purchase of specialized equipment for the analysis of compounds and the implementation of an online platform for organoleptic evaluations (tastings) of olive oils.

Written by Daniela Pulido, FIC Project "Functional Prospecting of Regional Olive Oil"

During a visit, the authorities highlighted the infrastructure, the high level of technology and the commitment of the state institution and its professionals to provide quality education to future dentists in the Coquimbo Region and the country.

A complete tour of the facilities of the Teaching Assistance Dental Clinic of the University of La Serena, was carried out by a group of Regional Counselors in order to get to know the campus and internalize the work carried out by professionals, academics and students of the Dentistry career .

This activity, framed in an invitation made by the ULS, brought together the authorities to learn about the dynamics, infrastructure and technology available to the Dentistry career, which has a strong scientific, humanist and technological background, based on solid principles ethical and socially responsible.

The tour, headed by the President of the Board of Directors, Ernesto Velasco, the Academic Vice Chancellor, Dr. Alejandra Torrejón, the Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, Dr. Amelia Ramírez, the Director of the career, Mg. Cristian Oyanadel, the Director of Strategic Development and Quality, Dr. César Espíndola, and the Director of the Protocol Department, Mg. Karina Damke, considered the surgery wards, care rooms and simulation rooms, where there were even students conducting their workshops, through which the counselors were able to see in situ how they manage to work with state-of-the-art instrumentation, real patients -with the teachers' guide- and in an environment suitable for the training of professionals.

“As a state university in the region, we want to open the doors so that our regional authorities know what is done in this cutting-edge clinic, and also show that we are capable of carrying out large projects. Why not think about being able to generate the Medicine career in the future, which would require significant government support, since the institution does not have the resources to carry out an initiative like this", said the Academic Vice Chancellor, Dr. Alejandra Torrejon.

The regional councilor and president of the Health and Sports Commission, Marco Antonio Sulantay, said he was grateful for the invitation and the coordination that existed between the ULS and the regional councilors, and expressed that "this building should be an example of what it is the preparation of health professionals in Chile, we are in a place of excellence, with first-rate laboratories and implementation. The University of La Serena has invested very important resources in this clinic and it shows that there is effort and commitment; this is the way in which other higher education units should face the training of health professionals”.

The president of the Board of Directors of the ULS, Ernesto Velasco, meanwhile, stressed that “it is notable that the university has an infrastructure of high quality standards and that it not only trains professionals, but also people with a high social sense, who They are linked to the environment through important projects that benefit the community. Frankly, it is a luxury for the Coquimbo Region, which is a public university to have this level of infrastructure and teaching commitment.”

During the visit, the regional councilors were able to talk with academics from the Dental Clinic, as well as with students and administrative officials, learn about the procedure and the social work they carry out through projects, where, for example, SENAME children are cared for.

Written by Patricia Castro, DirCom

Two researchers from the University of La Serena have carried out studies on 17 wetlands in our region, ecosystems that today experience a series of threats.

Climate change is defined, according to organizations in the environmental world, as the difference between one climatic state balance and another, that is, changes due to adverse effects that impact a given system.

Among the associated impacts of climate change, the melting of ice stands out, which causes a rise in sea level, violent weather phenomena, such as droughts that destroy ecosystems and whose effects favor the development of fires, the death and/or displacement of species, and the appearance and disappearance of water bodies and the destruction of ecosystems.

The Coquimbo Region is not far from all these impacts, in fact, for 60 years there has not been a drought as great as the one it is facing today. Entire productive sectors have been declining, the death of animals is on the rise, and the uncertainty of farmers and peasants is increasing.

The question is, if the large river basins are affected, what happens to the wetlands that maintain a symbiosis of diverse lives and that also need water? Hence the importance of the study carried out by researchers from the University of La Serena on 17 coastal wetlands in the area, and which, from the perspective of the analyzes carried out, are highly threatened not only by the effects of climate change, but also by the anthropogenic actions, that is, the hand of man.

According to the wetlands expert and academic from the Department of Biology of the University of La Serena, Mg. Carlos Zuleta, the water bodies, especially those in the region, have two great threats regarding climate change: one, that precipitation is decreasing, with very prolonged periods of drought; and two, the anthropic use of wetlands, because people use them for different purposes, such as agricultural communities that use wetlands for planting and family gardens.

The researcher assured that the impact of climate change associated with the melting of ice increases sea level, which produces flooding in coastal wetlands, altering ecosystems.

"Coastal wetlands are highly vulnerable to increased storm surges, which means that with the frequency that seawater penetrates the wetlands, the salinity composition of the water is altered, causing changes in the biota, and the problem is that it does not "All species support high salinity in bodies of water," said the academic, one of the speakers at the international seminar "Coastal Wetlands in the Context of Contemporary Climate Change: experiences from Chile, Colombia and Mexico" on the COP25 citizen agenda, an event that It was held at the ULS and where prominent scientists presented.

In the Coquimbo Region, there would be around 200 wetlands, including ponds and other minor wetlands; However, those that are subject to studies by the ULS are 17, which are the main and largest in the area.

“Apart from containing biodiversity and generating various ecosystem services, some wetlands serve as a great cultural point, since many religious festivals and celebrations are associated with them. In addition, they provide nutrient regulation of the properties of different species, so they are not simply pools of water that are in a certain sector, since they fulfill vital functions for human beings and for the regulation of nature, hence lies the importance of everything, knowing how to take care of them and from the legislation, knowing how to protect them,” he expressed.

When asked about what measures can be taken to care for wetlands, both Carlos Zuleta and Víctor Bravo-Naranjo, two of the ULS experts who are investigating these ecosystems, assured that “climate change cannot be stopped, but it can be stopped.” It can be foreseen and appropriate measures taken. One of the appropriate measures would be not only to conserve part of the coastal wetland network, but also to safeguard the basin that feeds them, and develop rational management of it."

According to Carlos Zuleta, the political will is what has been lacking to be able to generate greater protection of the wetlands, "by simply declaring them as an ecological zone or of tourist interest, they could be regulated and, above all, avoid possible damage to these ecosystems," he said.

“The problem in many places and not only in Chile is that we are in mixed systems, where the natural and the citizen are mixed, which is why the anthropic function is generated, that is, the damages are products of man and his actions” , assured the academic.

Ramsar Sites

The ULS has had a leading role in the declaration of Ramsar sites in the Coquimbo Region, such as Las Salinas de Huentelauquén and the Coastal Wetlands of Tongoy Bay, both public, two of the three sites with this designation. , to which Laguna Conchalí is added.

A Ramsar site is a broad figure and has a connotation of the sustainable use of wetlands, and in that sense, the new guidelines of the Convention indicate that human activities must be integrated into the sustainable conservation of wetlands; That means, using it reasonably for human consumption, irrigation, multiple-use marine areas, that is, ecosystems provide services to man, but they must be used sustainably.

One of the most emblematic wetlands of the La Serena - Coquimbo conurbation is El Culebrón, and it has not been without problems, due to its high visitation and the poor management of care that the citizens themselves have had.

For Víctor Bravo, also an academic at the ULS and who together with Zuleta study wetlands, the big problem “apart from the lazy dogs that prey on birds in this place, is that there is a high visitation rate, and due to the lack of a zoning of the place, people enter from any place, generating loss and fragmentation of vegetation, in addition to soil compaction. In the past they entered with vehicles, which has been avoided for a couple of years, but it is to be considered that the traces left by these require at least 10 years of natural recovery of the soil, due to the pressure they exert, and despite the fact that “In this wetland, this threat factor has been eliminated, if it exists for the majority of the coastal wetlands that we analyzed.”

What happens to the birds? “In the Coquimbo wetland there is a clear example of the effects of climate change in synergy with anthropogenic threats. For example, records show that the Snowy Plover has not existed in this site since the 70s. This small bird that needs the dry sand of coastal wetlands to be able to nest and live, which has been lost both due to the advance of the urban border towards the coast, and due to the growing increase in the frequency of storm surges. Due to this, the bird has no place to breed, therefore, these birds are no longer seen in the Culebrón, but they are seen further north such as in the Mouth of the Elqui River and in the Punta Teatinos Wetland, at the northern exit of La Serena, where there are still areas of dunes with creeping vegetation, although not free from anthropogenic threats, especially in summer,” Bravo stated.

Although it is known that climate change is now, social awareness about it is young, and has yet to mature. Conservation figures have advanced, due to the declaration of Ramsar sites; However, much remains to be done.

For Zuleta, proposing conservation measures is very slow and entails high monetary value; resources are not always available for studies, especially for Andean wetlands, where the big problem is getting to them, due to transportation and logistics. that this entails.

Until 2015, at the Latin American level, there were 298 sites declared Ramsar. Bolivia takes the lead in this type of declaration, allocating greater resources to the preservation of wetlands. Chile is owed, it is in position number 12 out of a total of 17. Clearly, very far from the high standards of neighboring countries, and even further from Europe, which is leading the way with its water and ecosystem directive. , which have strict environmental care regulations.

Written by Patricia Castro, DirCom