The event was attended by representatives of the Environment, Education and Cultures of Coquimbo, as well as the secretary of the Association of Rural Municipalities, Sergio Ríos, and the coordinator of the Coquimbo Territory Program, José Miguel Valenzuela, among others.

During the month of December 2023, the members of the Conecta ULS 2195 Project - an initiative led by the Academic Vice-Rector's Office of the University of La Serena (ULS) and the Directorate of Linkage with the Environment and Extension (Diveuls) - carried out its second meeting - the first of a face-to-face nature -, together with the members of the Advisory Committee of said project; this in order to review the progress of the project and make pertinent suggestions to continue improving its implementation.

The activity took place on December 6, from 10 a.m. to 13 p.m., in the CETECFI Hall, located on the Ignacio Domeyko Campus of the University of La Serena and was attended by the Project Manager of the Seremi de Medio Environment of Coquimbo, Juan Luis Novoa and the person in charge of Communications, Ismael Díaz, both attendees representing the Seremi de Medio Ambiente, Leonardo Gros.

The Programmatic Manager of the Creation Centers (Cecrea) of the Seremi of Cultures, Arts and Heritage of Coquimbo, Marcela Castillo - representing the Seremi, Cedric Steilein - also attended; in addition to the Chief of Staff of the Seremi of Education of Coquimbo, Eduardo Marín; the secretary of the Association of Rural Municipalities, Sergio Ríos; and the coordinator of the Coquimbo Territory Program, José Miguel Valenzuela.

The meeting was chaired by the institutional coordinator of Diveuls, Nando Verelst and the coordinator of the Conecta ULS 2195 Project, Natalia Gorosito, together with the academics and researchers of the Conecta ULS Project, Dr. Sebastián Rossel and Mg. Coralina Muñoz, as well as the Conecta ULS Project researcher, Paulina Valdivia.

Regarding this, the institutional coordinator of Diveuls, Nando Verelst, stated that “I thought that today's meeting was very fruitful, opinions were shared regarding the evolution of the Conecta ULS project and key guidelines were provided to advance the project. work program with the educational establishments of Canela, Combarbalá, Punitaqui and Monte Patria. I hope that next year this work opportunity will continue to be taken advantage of, and that this good practice of linking with the environment will be replicated.”

Regarding the topics discussed during the meeting, the secretary of the Association of Rural Municipalities of Norte Chico, Sergio Ríos, expressed his gratitude for “the work carried out within the framework of the project, since we were all very happy to know that it has been a great work, not only in terms of quantity, but also for the discoveries that have been made in the application of the methodologies that the project contemplates and the opinions it collects regarding the work that can be done during 2024.”

The coordinator of Learning Communities of Territorio Coquimbo, José Miguel Valenzuela, also referred to this issue and stated that “for us it is a tremendous challenge to work with universities, because I believe they have a great social responsibility and therefore, they have to "to make a presence and influence regional public policy, in such a way that all the initiatives implemented by the university contribute to the development of the region, which is why these types of spaces and projects are extremely significant."

For her part, the Program Manager of Cecrea Coquimbo, Marcela Castillo, said that “this was a very positive instance, because it allows us to continue articulating actions for what is coming in 2024 and at the same time we can also strengthen the integration of different work networks for a common objective, which is to reach lagging localities, with methodologies that allow the learning of girls, boys and young people in a way that permeates the arts, technologies, sustainability and allows their penetration into their territories ”.

It should be noted that Conecta ULS 2195 is a project that is carried out with funds from the Ministry of Education (MINEDUC), with the main objective of enhancing the capabilities of management teams, teachers, and students of educational establishments in lagging areas of the provinces of the Limarí and Choapa, based on joint work with academics and students from the ULS, through Active Learning Methodologies. 

Written by Romina Onel, Conecta ULS Project