Can Artificial Intelligence Help Palm Oil In Colombia?

Bonet was born in Cuba, where she did all her studies, from undergraduate to doctorate, at the Universidad Central de las Villas, Santa Clara, Cuba and went on to work there as a professor before moving to Colombia in 2012.

“Since I graduated I have been doing research in the area of Artificial Intelligence and I have always liked research, discovering things,” she says, “I think that working at a university since I graduated has also made it possible for me to strengthen my research.”

Bonet explains that the countries of the Global South continue to face the most severe effects of climate change, such as extreme weather events and related diseases.

“In the South, solutions developed in the North are often not transferable, because the needs and challenges differ greatly in terms of health, agriculture and climate change,” she says, “Therefore, for local problems, adapted models and solutions must be developed.”

Bonet explains that the best developments can be achieved with international collaboration, which can encourage the sharing of knowledge and resources, which can lead to significant advances in science and technology.

“The Global South’s leadership in addressing climate change and other challenges offers valuable experiences and solutions that can be adopted globally, fostering an exchange of knowledge that benefits all regions,” she says.

Another reseacher working with pal,s in Colombia is Alberto Gomez Mejia, a botanist and founder of the Quindio Botanical Garden.

Gomez explains that Colombia has a tenth of the world’s palm species and that it is key to preserve two key food species: Taparo palm (Attalea amygdalina) and Chontaduro (Bactris gasipaes).

Colombia has the third highest number of palms of any country, with around 260 species — but 20% of Colombian species are in serious danger of extinction.

Of these Taparo, whose seeds are used to make sweets and Chontaduro or peach palm (a fruit eaten with either honey or a lemon and salt mix) are culturally and economically important, especially in the central and southern regions of the country.

Gomez explains that his team aims to establish a gene bank to protect the palms’ genetic diversity, reintroduce some examples into wild areas and develop schemes for sustainable commercial plantations.

“We have the largest collection of palms in Colombia,” he says, “With new resources, we are going to work with two native food palms that are in danger of extinction.”