February 2008 - INBio has a 2008 calendar with refreshing images about Costa Rican biodiversity available to be used as screen background (desktop).

This product was developed by an interdisciplinary team of specialized scientists, photographers, graphic designers.

To download bio-calendars click here

March 28, 2007 - Costa Rica holds an enormous diversity that might be the source for the generation of novel treatments against different diseases. However, many of the organisms remain unknown and there is still a lot to do in regard to the discovery and development of drugs based on natural products.

With the aim of exchanging knowledge and experiences related to the latest technologies and processes that comprise this important topic, the National Institute of Biodiversity organized on March 28 th , 2007 the “I International Symposium for the Development of National Capacities on the Discovery of Natural Sources with Potential for the Pharmaceutical Industry”, that was developed with the support of the European experts and the CONICIT.

This activity coved a variety of topics like the importance of the biodiversity as a source of novel substances, the in vitro an in vivo screening against different diseases, novel technologies used for the discovery of bioactive compounds, methodologies used for the structural elucidation of compounds, design and synthesis of drug leads. Lectures were performed by a selected group of speakers that include Dr. Reto Brun from the Swiss Tropical Institute and referent from the World Health Organization in parasitic diseases, Dr Matthias Hamburger from the University of Basel, Switzerland, Dr. Luisella Verotta from the Institute of Organic Chemistry of the University of Milano, Italy, Dr Mahabir Gupta from the University of Panama, Dr Esther del Olmo form University of Salamanca, Spain, Dr Andreas Link from the University of Greifswald, Germany, Dr Conrad Kunick from the University of Braunschweig, Germany and MBA Ana Lorena Guevara, Manager of the Bioprospecting Unit of INBio.

March 16th, 2007 - As part of the activities developed for the project “Developing Capacities and the Sharing of Technology for Biodiversity’s Handling in Central America”, financed by Norway’s Government from March 12 to the 16^th, the “Biogeography of Conservation, Tools for Prioritising of Sites” workshop was carried out.

The workshop was given by Dr. Tania Escalante, from Spatial Analysis’ Laboratory, Biology Institute at UNAM. 18 people took part in the workshop, all of them representing Central America Herbals.

The workshop’s purpose was to check on all the main techniques and modern methods for the systematic planning of biodiversity conservation as of geographic placement. Different tools as data bases, geographic information systems, ecological niche models, potential distribution and optimal algorithms for prioritising of sites were analyzed. In addition, it was analyzed the main prioritising criteria and more recent contributions to the science of biogeography conservation.

As an important impact of this training, there is a vision of fostering the value of the biological collections as an information source and as a support in conservation’s decision making, concretely talking about the prioritising of sites for conservation.

February 22nd 2007 – A group of 34 naturalist guides graduated on Thursday, February 22nd, at INBioparque. The graduates successfully completed the requirements of the “General Naturalist Guide course, which is aimed at tourist guides and is jointly implemented by the National Biodiversity Institute (INBio) and the Costa Rican Association of Tourism Professionals (ACOPROT).

This course has been certified by the National Training Institute (INA) and is recognized by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT). As a result, the ICT gives all graduates an official credential that is valid for three years and can be used in the whole country.

This is the fourth graduation since 2003. Students from different regions of the country have enrolled and graduated and are now highly qualified as tourist guides all over Costa Rica.

This training program is based on a strategic alliance between INBio; a renowned scientific institution specialized in biodiversity conservation, and ACOPROT, a national leader in tourism. Additionally, representatives of different tourist and scientific sectors such as tour operators, travel agencies, and other organizations, have given important feedback to consolidate a high quality naturalist guide training program.

This graduation ceremony had the presence of approximately 50 people, among them, representatives of INBio, ACOPROT, ICT, tour operators and instructors.

NEXT GROUPS
This year, two options for the “General Naturalist Guide” course will be available at INBio headquarters: Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the afternoon and same days in the evening.

More information can be found at: http://www.inbio.ac.cr/es/cursos/curso_capan_guianatu07.htm

February 10th 2007 - The National Institute of Biodiversity (Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad - INBio) created INBioparque seven years ago in order to promote this biological treasure, stress the importance of its conservation, and highlight the work of the institute in the field of scientific research.

INBioparque offers its visitors a unique interactive experience with nature.  Upon visiting the park you will be surprised to find that, in the middle of the city, you can encounter both the rain and dry forests of the Central Valley .  In these forests you can also observe many birds, sloths, guatusas, iguanas, and deer that live freely in their natural habitat.

Around the lagoon you can visit a butterfly nursery that houses more than fifteen different species of butterflies.  An observatory has been installed under the lagoon so that you can see the fish that live in it up close.  You'll also be able to see poisonous frogs, bullet ants, seven snake species, tarantulas, alligators, turtles and, during this time of the year, orchids in full bloom.

Starting on February 11th, visitors will have the opportunity to take an interactive tour of "La Finca" , an exhibit especially created with the purpose to illustrate how humans have coexisted with biodiversity and made sustainable use of it.  On this new tour you can plant seeds in the garden, learn about medicinal plants, and extract juice from sugarcane.  Or you could simply comb a goat or feed some of the farm animals.  Not only will you have a great time with Don Teo, the host during this entertaining visit, but you will also learn one or two of our farmers' secrets.

At 11 am on every Sunday in February, a procession (cimarrona) with masks inspired by Costa Rican fauna will march through the parks' pathways until reaching La Finca, where visitors will be invited to celebrate INBioparque´s birthday.

INBioparque is open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 8 a.m to 6 p.m (last admission 4 p.m)

http://www.inbioparque.com

Cartago, May 4, 2006 – A UNESCO Chair on Biodiversity Informatics was officially inaugurated on May 4th, at the Center for Research in Computer Science of the Costa Rica Institute of Technology (ITCR). This is the first chair on this subject officially established by UNESCO in the world.

The main goal of this chair, jointly managed by ITCR and the National Biodiversity Institute (INBio), is to create an interdisciplinary program in informatics applied to the study, sustainable use and conservation of biological diversity.

The Biodiversity Informatics Chair will act as a regional center to promote capacity building in this field for Latin American countries. The Chair will host both academic (M.Sc.) and general/continued education programs, which will offer individuals in this region a unique training opportunity in the biodiversity informatics domain. The education programs organized around this Chair will be supported by an interdisciplinary team conformed by highly skilled computer scientists from ITCR and expert biologists and biodiversity informatics professionals from INBio. It is foreseen that in the long term, the trained individuals will have a significant impact in the design and development of novel IT infrastructures aimed at supporting strategic biodiversity conservation policies in Latin America.