In partnership with the Reformed University Corporation, the Interreligious Initiative for Tropical Forests in Colombia conducted a training program for environmental engineering and theology students.
The educational event, held on October 17 and 18 at the educational institution’s facilities in Barranquilla, included a series of discussions and conferences that addressed topics ranging from the relationship between faith and science to deforestation figures and their impact on the territories, and the hydroclimatic characteristics of the Amazon region.
The discussion “Faith and Science: Unlikely Dialogues?” featured Pastor Milton Mejía, Vice President of Continuing Education at the university; Diego Fernando Campos, biologist and expert in Ecology and Sustainable Development; and Blanca Lucía Echeverry and Carlos Augusto Lozano, director and senior advisor of IRI-Colombia. Accompanied by students from the Faculty of Theology, they reflected on the need to consolidate a closer relationship between scientific knowledge and faith and spirituality, with the aim of finding new ways to strengthen the work of protecting nature and promoting effective actions that obey the ethical and spiritual duty to preserve creation, supported by the solidity of scientific advances.
“Dialogue between faith and science is not only possible, it is necessary. Dialogue with scientists can help us build solutions that contribute to restoring the Amazon, protecting its connectivity and biodiversity,” said IRI-Colombia Director Blanca Lucía Echeverry, who also presented the organization’s objectives and work strategies to the students, as well as the main advances and challenges for the protection of the Amazon.
In addition, students had the opportunity to learn about the serious situation of deforestation in our country and the impact of forest loss on the territories during the conference “Deforestation of the Amazon: environmental crisis and human rights crisis,” led by Carlos Augusto Lozano.
Biologist Diego Fernando Campos gave a lecture entitled “The Great Water and Climate Ecosystem: Why the Amazon Connects Us All.” In his presentation, the professor from the District University addressed the role of Amazonian tropical forests in the water cycle and their relevance in regulating rainfall at the regional level and the global climate system.
In addition, teachers from the Reformed University Corporation and the IRI-Colombia team exchanged experiences with the aim of identifying common ground and formulating strategic synergies for their work. University representatives shared some of the projects that the Regional School of Environmental Leadership is developing in different municipalities in the department of Atlántico, and IRI-Colombia presented the work it is carrying out in the Amazon through its 46 local chapters.
