Consultant 03, 07 and 08, 1999
FAO MICRO GARDENS PROJECT SEN/8823
DAKAR, SENEGAL

To begin an urban and suburban project to produce vegetables for food and income.

Consultant 10 to 12, 1998
UNDP - ELS Ministry of Agriculture
BELMOPAN AND ORANGE WALK, BELIZE

To help prone areas affected by frequent hurricanes.

Consultant 09/1997 to 09/1998
UNDP - ELS/97/013 Ministry of Agriculture - PNUD
EL SALVADOR

Activities:
To organize and provide technical support to the government to expand simplified hydroponics to all the national territory in El Salvador and inundated zones in Belize.  Support provided to government institutions (Universities, Agriculture Schools, and the National Center of Transfer of Agricultural Technologies), and to non-governmental organizations working in urban and rural sectors.  Consultation in support of efforts to improve life conditions through the improvement of the feeding and the family income, by means of the culture and commercialization of vegetables in hydroponics to produce agricultural products in small and limited spaces.

Consultant 08/1996 to 08/1997
UNDP - ELS/96/020 MAG
EL SALVADOR

Provide support for the Social and Economic Development of Horticultural Producers.

Activities:

To validate the experience of Simplified Hydroponics in the social, environmental and economical conditions of El Salvador, aiming to reduce the high percentage of imported vegetables and modernizing the production procedures in the country.  Contributed to the improvement of nourishing food security, family income and the integral development of the people.

Reason for retirement: Conclusion of the project.

Consultant 03/1993 to 06/1996
UNDP-INIFOM: UNDP - Productive Urban Communities Project (CUP) through INIFOM
NICARAGUA

Consulting to provide support to the Agricultural Sector of the Ministry of Agriculture for the implementation of Hydroponics Cultures in marginal sectors of urban and suburban zones of Nicaragua.

Activities:

Based in the climatic and economic conditions of Nicaragua, validate the experience of Hydroponics in a social context, sponsored by UNDP and FAO in Latin American countries, promoting a change of attitude of beneficiaries towards the improvement in feeding habits, family income and the human development.

To formulate and teach the benefits of preparing hydroponics nutrients.

Provide training to national professionals in the agricultural, social and ecological area so that they can multiply the experience in other strategic regions of the country.

To support national institutions and organizations in the formulation of projects to expand popular hydroponics.

To elaborate audio-visual aids (pamphlets, videos, and slides) that will support the educational activities of this experience for the benefit of the most needed communities.

Reason for retirement: Conclusion of the project where hydroponics was included, although it is esteemed that more support and supervision is needed.

Consultant  1993, 1994 and 1995
FAO AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Short consultancies (1 to 6 weeks) for FAO in Popular Hydroponics in Seychelles and in urban agriculture in Bolivia, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, for the Institute of Nutrition of Central America and Panama - INCAP- and for the Spanish Cooperation and the Ministry of Health in Costa Rica.

Consultant 01/1992 to 02/1993
UNDP, Chile

Consultant for the United Nations Development Program in Popular Hydroponics.

Consultant 05/1990 to 12/1991
UNDP, Colombia

Consultant in Popular Hydroponics for Regional Project to Overcome the Poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean. Area of the work: Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic and Venezuela.

Activities:

To advise institutions and NGOs working with projects for the improvement the living conditions of the population socially and economically depressed, through the creation of small community companies dedicated to vegetables production using Simplified Hydroponics.

Reason for retirement: Conclusion of the Regional Project.

Professor, Full Time Instructor 07/1988 to 05/1990
Colombia

Horticulture and Marketing Professor. Faculty of Agronomic Engineering. University of Tolima.

Coordinator of the university extension program for the poor communities of the department of Tolima, Colombia.

Head of the Production Department and Vegetal Health of the Agronomic Faculty of the University of Tolima.

Reason for retirement: Remunerated Commission not granted by agreement with project RLA/86/004 of the UNDP in Colombia, to participate in Latin American Project and Caribbean to Overcome Poverty.

Associate Professor, Full Time Instructor 10/1983 to 08/1987
Colombia

Horticulture Professor, Associate Category. University of Tolima, Colombia

Administrative director of the Farms of the University in Armero, Espinal and Ibagué.

Reason for retirement: Granting of commission of studies to attend the course on Agro-Alinmentary Products Commercialization made in Zaragoza, Spain (1987-1988).

Consultant 08/1980 to 09/1983
DUTCH EMBASSY, Colombia

Program Director of Vegetables Production in the Colombian Amazonía, with the support of the Real Dutch Embassy - Project DAINCO-CASAM - Host: Araracuara - Amazon Colombia.

Objective: To organize indigenous communities and colonist groups to improve its productive capacity without disturbing the environment, using remainder resources and elements from its surroundings.

Area of work: Amazonía, Orinoquía and Island Territories of Colombia.

Reason for retirement: Termination of commission not remunerated granted by the University of Tolima.

Professor, Full Time Instructor 03/1977 to 08/1980
Colombia

Full Time Professor, Faculty of Agronomic Engineering at the University of Tolima, Ibaguè, Colombia.

Reason for retirement: Granting of commission not remunerated to direct an investigation program in Horticulture in the Colombian Amazonia.

POST GRADUATED PROGRAMS:
Specialist in Crop Production. Main subjects: International Courses in Vegetable Crops:

Instituto Agronómico Mediterraneo de Zaragoza (IAMZ),
Zaragoza, Spain 1987 to 1988
International Course on Commercialization of Agro-Alimentary Products.

Tropical Products Institute of London, United Kingdom 1982
Complementary Course in Optional Programs in Hydroponics.

Wageningen University, Wageningen, Netherlands 1982
International Agrarish Center – IAC: Optional Programs in Hydroponics

MASTER OF SCIENCE DEGREE DECEMBER, 1977
NATIONAL UNIVERSITY – ICA
BOGOTÁ, COLOMBIA

Agronomic Engineer MSc. MAY, 1976
UNIVERSITY OF TOLIMA
IBAGUE, COLOMBIA

Superior Studies 1971 to 1976
Faculty of Agronomic Engineering
Universidad del Tolima, Ibaguè, Colombia
Grade Point Average: three ninety four (3.94) on a scale of 0.0 to 5.0.

Secondary Studies 1964 to 1971
Bachelor of Science Institute
Santander de Quilichao, Cauca, Colombia

Elementary School 1958 to 1963
Francisco De Paula School Santander
Santander de Quilichao, Cauca, Colombia

Experience and disposition for the organization and work with indigenous communities and marginal populations.

Experience in formulation and execution of productive projects especially in populated sectors.

Experience and disposition to work in productive projects in populated regions in horticultural food production using low environmental impact techniques.

Facility of communication and integration for food production systems.

Experience, disposition and capacity to mobilize and implement resources from different sectors.

Experience in the writing and processing of technical documents, visual and audio aids (manual, guides, videos, slides) to support training activities by means of the "learn by doing" model.

Participation in more than 25 international technical and scientific events on subjects related to horticulture production and commercialization of agricultural products, including environmental impact activities.

Lecturer to Colombia Congress on main ecological problems of the department of the Tolima, Colombia, derivatives of the inadequate exercise of agriculture.

Support provided to missions of UNDP and FAO regional projects in Latin America (Belize, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Ecuador, Venezuela), the Caribbean (Cuba, Dominican Republic, Trinidad and Tobago) and Africa (Seychelles, Senegal).

International Seminary on Urban Agriculture. La Paz Bolivia. May of 1995.  Presentation of strategy to expand Popular Hydroponics at the regional level.

Lecturer in the International Course of Hydroponics. Universidad de la Molina, March of 1996.

Lecturer in Seminar on the Horticulture in the Tropico Humedo, Havana, 1995.

Lecturer in Seminar on Tropical Horticulture in Trinidad and Tobago, November of 1995.

Responsible of the processing and support of the investigation proposal on causes of desertion in projects of Simplified Hydroponics in Latin America, presented at Lima and Havana in August and September of 1998.

Lecturer invited to different events on Horticulture and Hydroponics in Universities from Santo Domingo (R.D.), San José (C.R.), Managua (NIC), San Salvador.

International Observer for the Presidential Elections in El Salvador, March 1994.

Coordinator for American Center of the Latin American Network of Investigation in Urban Agriculture (AGUILA).

Guide for the Culture of Hot Climate Vegetables, University of Tolima, Ibaguè, Colombia, 1978.

The Culture of Vegetables in the Colombian Amazonìa, Santa Fè de Bogotà, Colombia, 1982.

The Commercialization of the Spanish Pear of Beauty, Zaragoza, Spain, 1988.

Illustrated Manual for the Culture of Vegetables by the Popular Hydroponics System, Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia, 1992.

The Hydroponics Gardens, Technical Manual, Santiago, Chile, 1993.

Popular Hydroponics, Illustrated Guide, Managua, Nicaragua, September, 1995

Technical Guide for Simplified Hydroponics Cultures, San Salvador, El Salvador, 1998.

Director of 15 papers for a degree in horticultural subjects at the University of Tolima, Colombia and other universities in Nicaragua and El Salvador, 1978 to 1990.

Articles on horticulture and hydroponics subjects in magazines and national and international newspapers; Le Monde, Los Angeles Times, The Press (Nicaragua), Mercury (Chile), The Newspaper and Press (El Salvador), Tolima, 7 days (Colombia).

English: speak and read with basic understanding.
French: speak and read with basic understanding.
Portuguese: read with basic understanding.