The OCAD Collegiate Body for Administration and Decision, approved a knowledge and technology transfer project, associated with patents on biodegradable materials obtained from Yucca for a value of $ 8,178 million from the Science, Technology and Innovation Fund, General System of Royalties SGR and resources administered by the Government of Cauca.

Last Tuesday, November 26, session No. 68 of the Collegiate Body of Administration and Decision, OCAD of the Science, Technology and Innovation Fund, FCTel of the General Royalty System, SGR was approved, in which more than $ 155,527 million were approved for finance investment projects, which will impact different regions of the country.

The project 'Consolidation of transfer processes and technologies for the production of biodegradable materials' exposed by the Vice Chancellor for Research, Héctor Samuel Villada Castillo, was approved for a value of $ 8 thousand 178 million pesos being the result of 20 years of work and the consolidation of different actors, amongst students, teachers and researchers from different faculties of the Universidad del Cauca who believed in the process.

“For the University and for the research groups that are working on this project, it means closing a cycle that has been coming for two decades and the idea is precisely to be able to take the developments that we have been working on to processes of impact and social innovation in the environment, where a social component is involved,”said Professor Villada Castillo who is also the principal investigator of the project.

This initiative aims to benefit the region and the country through the consolidation of physical infrastructure such as laboratories and larger analysis equipment so that the University acquires a pilot plant in Biodegradable packaging. “The challenge that follows is to be able to achieve a maturity in this type of products and that can easily be adopted by the industrial sector, in addition that the University can license them and thus start a product path that shows the University and all that can be done in innovative things, "added the Vice Rector for Research.

In the same way, he stressed, that it is intended to work on the transition of those small companies that want to convert to the use of these biodegradable materials and there will be a focus on raising awareness about the use of synthetic plastics and the creation of culture towards environmental care ambient.

Finally, the Vice Rector for Research thanked public entities such as the Government of Cauca, the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture, among other entities that have accompanied the entire process.

In the course of 2019 the University of Cauca and the Department have achieved the approval of two initiatives: 'Consolidation of transfer processes and technologies for the production of biodegradable materials' and the' Implementation of a program for the participation and articulation of the regional ecosystem of science, technology and innovation 'worth $ 6,951 million pesos, which will be financed by the General System of Royalties administered by the territorial entity which intend to impact different regions of the country.

More Info:

Office of the Vice President for Investigations

Telephone: 8209800 Ext. 2673

Email: vri@unicauca.edu.co