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Seeds that bloom at home: the story of a graduate who today is a professor at her...

Seeds that bloom at home: the story of a graduate who today is a professor at her Alma Mater

9 March, 2026

In a corner where a passion for knowledge intertwines with a love for nature, the story of Nilsa Lorena Alvear Narváez begins. From a very young age, Nilsa dreamed of unraveling the secrets of life, and it was in the classrooms of the University of Cauca that she found the perfect space to let her aspirations flourish. Today, after a journey filled with learning and challenges, she returns to her Alma Mater not only as an alumna, but as a mentor to 50 young people who, like her, aspire to transform the world through the Environmental Sciences research group.

The University of Cauca is much more than a simple academic space; it is a place where the roots of knowledge intertwine with a passion for teaching. This #HeritageOfAll is home to a flourishing garden in which its graduates become the new guides of future generations. Among this special group stands out Professor Nilsa Lorena Alvear Narváez, who is not only an occasional lecturer in the Department of Biology, but also a living testament to the transformative power of education.

“I was born in the municipality of La Unión, Nariño, where I spent some years of my life. I come from a large and loving family, with my maternal grandmother as the axis of unity. I am a woman, daughter, sister, wife, mother, aunt, professor, researcher, and a learner of life. I arrived in 1999 to study Biology at Unicauca, thus beginning a journey of recognition toward a science that, although foreign to me at the time, little by little won me over through its diverse and complex ways of understanding life. As a student, I joined the Environmental Studies Group (GEA), where I took part in various processes as a research assistant, young researcher, later as a scholarship student in the PhD in Environmental Sciences, and currently as an occasional professor in the Department of Biology,” says Professor Lorena with deep pride.

In this way, our Unicaucana protagonist explains how, since her time as a Biology student, she began to notice the gap between disciplinary science and the knowledge and realities of communities, which led her to seek alternative ways of studying and understanding territories.

This brave and distinctive decision led her to build an interdisciplinary line of research between ecology and environmental education, enabling her to contribute to the strengthening of “local and international networks of environmental education; to accompany community training processes aimed at consolidating public policy instruments; to contribute to the consolidation of environmental education processes in formal and non-formal contexts; and to participate in various settings for dissemination and critical reflection on participatory processes that guide us toward an environmental citizenship committed to good living,” Lorena explained.

In this sense, our professor has always believed that teaching is an act of generosity, and as a gesture of gratitude and reciprocity for the path she has traveled, she felt the desire to contribute through a seedbed. Thus, her story as a teacher is told through the voices of her seeds.

“Our seedbed was born in 2018 under the leadership of Professors Apolinar Figueroa and Mónica Valencia from the PhD in Environmental Sciences, with the purpose of creating a space that would engage students in interdisciplinary research processes and doctoral training. In 2020, before the declaration of the pandemic and following Professor Mónica’s departure, I asked the Doctorate to allow me to take on the mentorship of the seedbed. We began with four students from the Biology and Anthropology programs, working virtually and participating in an environmental education and management project in the municipality of Popayán. Since then, the seedbed has grown through word of mouth that conveys the life experience students have had. In the first semester of 2025, we have 50 ‘seeds,’ including students and graduates from seven programs: Biology, Bachelor’s Degree in Natural Sciences and Environmental Education, Environmental Engineering, Physical Engineering, Geography, Anthropology, and the Master’s Degree in Continental Hydrobiological Resources,” stated Professor Lorena with heartfelt satisfaction.

Thus, for the past five years, the seedbed has participated in research projects of the PhD in Environmental Sciences, seedbed meetings, academic publications, internal training activities, and even published a book on Birds.

In addition, they have supported academic events, worked with communities, and presented their research in different forums. In fact, over the past year, their participation in the project “Interurban Biological Corridor, Tulcán Sector” strengthened their research capacities, allowing them to serve as speakers at local, national, and international events. They currently lead the “Environmental Sciences Lecture Series,” a space for sharing their reflections and research with the community. Without a doubt, beyond the academic dimension, this seedbed stands out for fostering friendship, cooperation, and collective work, key elements for comprehensive education that connects knowledge with sensitivity, ethical commitment, and the transformation of territories.

Thus, like seeds that germinate under the shelter of fertile soil, the Environmental Sciences Seedbed has been that ground where each member has found the conditions to root their dreams, strengthen their stems, and open up to the world with new leaves of knowledge, experiences, and human connections. Under the attentive and generous care of Professor Lorena, these seeds have learned not only to grow, but also to recognize themselves as part of a broader ecosystem, in which learning is interwoven with sensitivity, commitment, and confidence in their own abilities.

It is from this deep place of gratitude that her pupils share these reflections on what it has meant to walk by her side:

“The Environmental Sciences Seedbed has been for us a space of great learning, reflection, co-creation of knowledge, and the building of bonds that go far beyond research work. Hand in hand with Prof. Lore, we have been strengthening our path, broadening our ideas, generating new possibilities, and above all growing as people and professionals. Thank you for everything, profe!”

“Sometimes, from our own fears, we limit ourselves and stop seeing the opportunities right in front of us. Thanks to Professor Lorena, we have learned to transform those barriers into momentum, to see solutions where there was once only uncertainty, and to envision ourselves as part of meaningful projects. She pushes us to improve every day, reminding us of the potential we have, even when we ourselves doubt it. She is like a protective soul: her energy feels close, warm, and above all motivating.”

“What is most inspiring is how she opens doors for us to the outside world, accompanying us through the processes and preparing us to be not only great professionals, but also great human beings. Teaching is not only about transmitting knowledge; on the contrary, it is about experiencing it personally. Professor Lorena makes us fall in love with learning, with researching, with expanding and sharing with others, and that is what teaching truly is.”

“Thank you, Prof. Lorena, for sowing so much in our lives.”

For this home that is #HeritageOfAll, it is truly a source of pride to see how those seeds, planted in this fertile land of knowledge, are beginning to bear fruit, driving new harvests that offer shade, nourishment, knowledge, and life to our department, the region, the country, and even beyond, expanding into international settings. Today, within the framework of our #HistoriasQueInspiran campaign, we thank Professor Lorena for being an essential part of this process and invite the students who dream of staying on to teach to do so, so that in a few years we may also celebrate them and say to them: Happy Teachers’ Day!