Los desafíos de la investigación interdisciplinaria en biodiversidad y cambio climático

This report examines the necessity and challenges of interdisciplinary research to address climate change and biodiversity loss in the Tropical Andes. It argues that traditional, fragmented scientific approaches are insufficient for creating effective adaptation strategies and proposes a holistic model integrating natural sciences, social sciences, and traditional indigenous knowledge to support national policy decisions in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

• Research in the Tropical Andes is hindered by significant fragmentation, including a high dispersion of existing information on climate change and biodiversity, poor communication between institutions and countries, and a lack of integration between scientific products and political decision-making.
• Effective climate adaptation requires a transdisciplinary approach that merges natural and social sciences with the traditional knowledge of local and indigenous populations, as scientific data alone is insufficient for development needs.
• The retreat of glaciers in the Tropical Andes serves as a primary example of the need for interdisciplinary work, requiring the combined expertise of meteorologists, glaciologists, hydraulic engineers, physicists, chemists, biologists, sociologists, economists, agronomists, and doctors.
• In Bolivia, the Alianza de Institutos para el Cambio Climático was created by the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés to foster a holistic approach to climate research, though it still struggles to overcome the traditional individualistic mentality of institute heads.
• Colombia has implemented the Programa Nacional de Adaptación Integral (INAP), which uses Participatory Action Research to involve local populations in adaptation strategies for high mountains, marine and coastal zones, and the study of climate-related diseases such as malaria and dengue.
• Ecuador's Ministry of the Environment leads two interdisciplinary initiatives: one focused on water governance and climate risk (GEF/PNUD-MAE) and another targeting the resilience of ecosystems and local economies facing the retreat of glaciers around the Antisana volcano (GEF/Banco Mundial-MAE).
• Peru's PROCLIM program conducted an integrated evaluation of the Mantaro River basin, producing a Climate Atlas and a diagnosis that incorporated ancestral knowledge to help create the first Regional Climate Change Strategy for the Junín region.
• The report identifies four critical actors for successful interdisciplinary research: Governments (responsible for planning and funding), the academic community (universities and NGOs), users/beneficiaries (civil society and producers), and external donors/international cooperation.

APA

Sahley, C., Zaratti, F., Cuéllar, M., Cáceres, L., & Martínez, R. (n.d.). Los desafíos de la investigación interdisciplinaria en biodiversidad y cambio climático. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/DE3.pdf

Chicago

Sahley, Catherine, Francesco Zaratti, Mónica Cuéllar, Luis Cáceres, and Rodney Martínez. Los desafíos de la investigación interdisciplinaria en biodiversidad y cambio climático. Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research, n.d. https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/DE3.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sahley |first1=Catherine |last2=Zaratti |first2=Francesco |last3=Cuéllar |first3=Mónica |last4=Cáceres |first4=Luis |last5=Martínez |first5=Rodney |title=Los desafíos de la investigación interdisciplinaria en biodiversidad y cambio climático |publisher=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |url=https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/DE3.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sahleyndlos, author = {Sahley, Catherine and Zaratti, Francesco and Cuéllar, Mónica and Cáceres, Luis and Martínez, Rodney}, title = {{Los desafíos de la investigación interdisciplinaria en biodiversidad y cambio climático}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, url = {https://iai.int/admin/site/sites/default/files/uploads/2014/06/DE3.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }