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At a rhetorical level, the SDGs provide a unified global agenda, and their targets and indicators are believed to drive action for social and environmental transformation. However, what if the SDGs (and their specific goals and indicators) are more of a problem than a solution? What if they create the illusion of action through a depoliticised and technical approach that fails to address fundamental dilemmas of politics and power? What if this illusion continues to reproduce poverty, inequality, and environmental degradation? This paper addresses these questions through a focus on SDG 6.5.1 – the implementation of integrated water resources management (IWRM), measured on a 0-100 scale through a composite indicator. The paper presents an empirical analysis of SDG 6.5.1 reporting in Colombia, Ethiopia, India, Malaysia, and the UK, drawing on research from the Water Security and Sustainable Development Hub.1 An evidence review and series of expert interviews are used to interrogate the local politics of IWRM measurement, specifically three dilemmas of global composite indicator construction: (1) reductive quantification of normative and contested processes; (2) weak analysis of actually existing institutional capability, politics, and power; and (3) distracting performativity dynamics in reporting. The paper concludes that SDG 6.5.1 is an example of a 'fantasy artefact', and that in all countries in this study, IWRM institutions are failing to address fundamental and 'wicked' problems in water resources management. We find little evidence that these numbers, or the survey that gives rise to them, drive meaningful reflection on the aims or outcomes of IWRM. Instead, they tend to hide the actually-existing political and institutional dynamics that sit behind the complexity of the global water crisis.

Photo ID 131102170 © Geckophotos | Dreamstime.com INTRODUCTION Medical tourism should contribute to developing a more robust healthcare system that acts in the best interests of patients and ensures equal access to healthcare. This paper examines medical tourism in Colombia and argues that developing a system that aligns with bioethical principles is necessary. People traveling for care should have access to the Ministry of Health rather than only the Ministry of Industry and Tourism, emphasizing their purpose as patients seeking medical procedures or treatments rather than tourists engaging in leisure activities. Additionally, in the interest of justice, Colombian patients should benefit from the revenue derived from medical tourism. It is crucial to recognize that both patients traveling for care and people in the destination country can derive benefits from medical tourism. The Colombian government can protect the rights and well-being of patients seeking care and ensure that any benefits are distributed fairly among Colombian citizens. I. Background Medical tourism refers to people traveling to foreign countries to obtain health care.[1] Many individuals from high-income countries seek health care in less developed countries to take advantage of the lower costs. Destination countries are increasingly showing interest in becoming medical tourism hubs due to the significant financial potential of this multi-billion dollar industry. The global medical tourism market is projected to reach $207.9 billion by 2027.[2] This growth not only generates income but also creates employment opportunities and business prospects for local residents in sectors such as tourism, pharmaceuticals, and infrastructure. By establishing themselves as medical tourism destinations, countries can stimulate economic development and enhance their healthcare structure. Colombia is among the fastest-growing medical tourism destinations in the world. It has become a popular destination for medical tourists due to its advanced healthcare infrastructure, biotechnology, and highly skilled physicians who cater to international patients at affordable prices.[3] The healthcare entities in Colombia offer a wide range of medical procedures, including cardiovascular, bariatric, orthopedics, cosmetic surgery, dental care, and fertility treatments. [4] The Colombian government has actively promoted medical tourism to position the country as a destination for world-class medical services.[5] Through strategic economic policies, effective regulation, and digital marketing, medical tourism has emerged as a significant contributor to Colombia’s income. The Colombian Ministry of Industry and Tourism, which regulates medical tourism in Colombia, forecasts at least 2.8 million health tourists and a revenue of at least $6.3 billion by 2032.[6] Colombia intends to have medical tourism play a significant role in its economy. However, ethical issues exist. The Colombia Ministry of Industry and Tourism is more involved in medical tourism than the Ministry of Health is. Additionally, the government has not been held accountable for the shortcomings in the medical tourism industry. There should be an organization advocating for the rights and well-being of medical tourists. Furthermore, using public funds to attract international patients may divert funds from local communities. Last, the negative impacts of medical tourism on Colombian patients deserve attention. This paper aims to explore these ethical issues from two perspectives: that of medical tourists and that of Colombian citizens. I argue that the benefits of medical tourism outweigh the harms but that those traveling for health care deserve protection. II. Patients: Are They International Patients or Tourists? When medical tourists seek hospitals and physicians in a destination country, facilitators may direct them to non-licensed practitioners and questionable facilities. These facilitators, who receive commissions, may not act in the patient’s best interest. Rather, like travel agents, they base their referrals on the referral fees that hospitals or physicians pay.[7] International patients risk getting lower-quality health care from unregulated hospitals or providers. This can interfere with informed consent and increase the risk of infections. There may be an absence of medical malpractice coverage from physicians. Unregulated or unlicensed medical care may even lead to patient fatalities. Therefore, it is crucial for international patients to carefully evaluate the risks associated with “booking” their healthcare options. To mitigate these risks, it is important for international patients to thoroughly assess the accreditation status of the hospital or clinic they plan to visit. The Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation can provide patients with an external quality assessment and assist them in making an informed decision.[8] International patients should proactively seek out certified and reputable healthcare providers and institutions to ensure both their safety and a high quality of care. Colombia has five hospitals and clinics with JCI accreditation.[9] Colombia is the third most-used destination for plastic surgery in the world; the first is Brazil, and the second is Turkey. In Colombia, one out of every three plastic surgery patients is an international patient.[10] The Colombian Association for Plastic Surgery advises all patients to check the hospital's accreditation. Patients should check the website of the local Secretary of Health in each city and see if the physician conducting the plastic surgery is listed.[11] Institutions and doctors must fully comply with requirements, including describing the procedure and obtaining informed consent from patients. It is very common to read in the media plastic surgeries conducted in what is known in Latin America as “clinicas de garage” (garage clinics) with negative results and deaths.[12] Official data covers plastic surgeries conducted at accredited institutions with registered doctors. There is a lack of data on garage clinics. There are a few things the government can do to make medical tourism safer. First, the Ministry of Health’s website should maintain a list of healthcare providers with JCI accreditation. In each city, the local Secretary of Health is responsible for providing patients with information about the quality of care of the hospitals in its region. Second, the government should take responsibility for providing accurate and comprehensive information to international patients, enabling them to make fully informed decisions regarding their medical procedures. In the context of informed consent, patients may have trouble understanding due to language barriers, terminology, and the complexity of the risks involved in medical procedures. Lastly, Congress should enact a legal framework that determines the responsibility of all parties involved in medical tourism.[13] In the unfortunate event that a medical tourist requires intensive care, it becomes imperative to determine who will bear the responsibility for their well-being and any potential financial implications. Medical tourists are not protected from errors and failures of medical procedures because the Colombia Constitution specifies that the healthcare system exclusively caters to its citizens, while coverage for foreigners is limited to emergencies only. The US State Department recommends that those traveling to Colombia have international health insurance.[14] International patients can sue doctors in Colombia for medical malpractice, referred to as medical liability.[15] The government should take responsibility for certifying medical institutions and issuing medical visas with specific requirements and regulations specific to medical tourism.[16] A new medical visa system is in place. Changing the terminology may help the government see those traveling for care as medical patients rather than medical tourists. That may lead to a different mindset and spur the government to protect them and ensure high-quality care. It may also help those traveling avoid tourism industry facilitators and find reputable surgeons and hospitals. III. Are Colombian Patients and the Local Healthcare System Benefiting from Medical Tourism? The main reason for the growth of medical tourism from developed countries to developing countries like Colombia is the excessive cost of treatment in wealthier nations.[17] Other reasons include the long queues for certain types of medical services in the home country, the availability of better technologies abroad, inadequate (or absence of) health insurance, and the unavailability[18] (or prohibition) of certain medical services in the home country.[19] The Colombian Constitution recognizes health as a fundamental right for all citizens.[20] Pursuant to the Constitution’s health mandate, Colombia designed a mandatory universal social health insurance system in 1993. It aims to achieve a fair distribution of resources, opportunities, and services while holding the government accountable.[21] Before 1993, less than 25 percent of the population had coverage; now, between 94 and 99 percent have it, regardless of income level or employment.[22] However, universal care does not entitle Colombian citizens to many of the modern surgical centers, technology, and doctors that tourists access. Local wealthy Colombian citizens tend to purchase private insurance that allows them many more healthcare options.[23] The OECD reports that only 41 percent of Colombian citizens were satisfied with the availability of the quality of care, while the OECD average is 67 percent. According to the OECD, the out-of-pocket health expenditure in Colombia is 14 percent, which is lower than the OECD average of 18 percent. Despite its recognized right to health care, the current system is not providing the quality of care that the people would prefer. Those traveling to Colombia for care are not covered by universal social health insurance and must pay for their health care[24] out of pocket or through their private insurers using international coverage.[25] Like local supplemental private insurance, medical tourists and their insurance plans tend to pay more for their care than the rate that the universal system would pay the providers for care provided to the general Colombian population. This situation often leads to higher revenue from medical tourists than local patients unless the local patients have supplemental private insurance. The mismatched payment schemes leave the local population with unequal access to healthcare resources[26] since healthcare providers prefer to cater to patients paying more than the government-subsidized insurance pays. Medical tourism “threatens to result in a dual market structure”[27] characterized by a higher-quality, expensive segment that serves wealthy nationals and foreigners alongside a lower-quality segment that caters to the poor, most of whom are covered by universal healthcare coverage.[28] Medical tourists should pay taxes or a special premium to improve the local healthcare system. While the medical tourism industry arguably generates tax revenue,[29] some additional money should flow from the medical tourists to the healthcare outlets that the local people use. Then, the country can benefit even more from promoting medical tourism while ensuring that the government and the healthcare system follow the principles of justice, beneficence, and public welfare.[30] In Colombia, Fundación Cardioinfantil, a private non-profit hospital known as “La Cardio,” is a good example of a regional leader committed to providing clinical excellence to both national and international patients.[31] About 20 years ago, La Cardio, well known for its cardiovascular health care, aimed to become the top hospital in the region (Latin America and the Caribbean) to obtain financial resources for improving its facilities. It became the first hospital in Colombia to achieve the JCI accreditation, attracting patients from countries with inadequate cardiovascular healthcare systems.[32] Foreign governments covered their citizens’ medical expenses, allowing La Cardio to fund system improvement. Currently ranked as the fifth-best clinic in Latin America and having won the Gold Award for Corporate Social Responsibility, La Cardio has received recognition for its dedication to serving economically disadvantaged Colombian patients.[33] This example demonstrates how introducing a high-paying market has not led to neglecting local patients, as resources from medical tourists are used to enhance the healthcare system for the local population. CONCLUSION The Colombian government needs to recognize that international patients are seeking medical services, not tourism or vacation experiences. Therefore, a new policy should categorize international patients separately from the tourism sector and treat them purely as patients. The introduction of medical visas may help this. Once establishing international patients are patients and not tourists, the Colombian government could impose taxes on them and allocate the funds generated to reinvest in the healthcare needs of its citizens, ensuring justice and promoting awareness of the ethical rights of international patients. At the same time, home country governments directing patients to a destination country should conduct thorough due diligence of the ethical principles applied to international patients as well as the accreditation of the destination country’s hospitals. Colombia may be aware of the implications of the difference in terms but unwilling to modify the language due to the associated costs, liabilities, and risks involved. - [1] Gaines, J., Lee, C. V. (2019). Medical tourism. Travel Medicine, 371–375. https://doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-323-54696-6.00039-2 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780323546966000392 [2] Forecasted Evolution of Medical Travels, 2023-2027: A Segmental View. ReportLinker. (2023, December). https://www.reportlinker.com/p06473784/Medical-Tourism-Market-Size-Share-Trends-and-Analysis-by-Region-Service-Provider-and-Segment-Forecast.html [3] Forecasted Evolution of Medical Travels, 2023-2027: A Segmental View. ReportLinker. (2023, December). [4] Arias-Aragonés, F.J.A., Payares, A.M.C., & Jiménez, O.J. (2020). Characterization of the healthcare tourism in the city of Bogotá and the District of Cartagena. Clío América, 14 (28), 486-492. https://doi.org/10.21676/23897848.3941 [5] Arias-Aragonés, et al. (2020). [6] Arias- Aragones, et al. (2020). https://www.colombiaproductiva.com/ptp-sectores/historico/turismo-salud (citing the Colombian Production Transformation Program (PTP)) [7] Glenn Cohen, Patients with Passports Medical Tourism, Law, and Ethics. New York Oxford University Press, 2015, p. 25 [8] Glenn, Cohen. (2015), p. 23-24. [9] A Global Leader for Health Care Quality and Patient Safety. Joint Commission International. https://www.jointcommissioninternational.org/ (The five Colombian hospitals and clinics with JCI accreditation are two hospitals in the capital city Bogota (la Cardio and Fundación Hospital Universitario Santa Fé de Bogotá), one hospital in Cali (Clinica Inbanaco), one hospital in Medellín (Hospital Pablo Tobón), and one clinic in Florida Blanca (Fundación Cardiovascular de Colombia). Nearby countries such as Venezuela and Trinidad Tobago do not have any accredited hospitals or clinics. Ecuador and Panamá have one each, Perú has eleven, and Brazil has seventy-one.) [10] International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery ISAPS (2023), ISAPS International Survey on Aesthetic/Cosmetic Procedures performed in 2022, p. 52. https://www.isaps.org/discover/about-isaps/global-statistics/reports-and-press-releases/global-survey-2022-full-report-and-press-releases/ (most frequently cited countries of foreign patients in Colombia are the US, Spain, and Panama.) [11] Why choose a member of the SCCP. (2023). Colombia Plastic Surgery Association (SCCP). https://cirugiaplastica.org.co/porque-elegir-un-miembro-de-la-sccp/ See also: To Find a Surgeon. (2023). Colombia Plastic Surgery Association (SCCP). https://cirugiaplastica.org.co (This website is helpful for checking the list of members of the SCCP.) [12] Cosmetic Surgeries Performed in Garage Offices can Become a Public Health Problem. Concejo de Bogotá D.C. (2022). https://concejodebogota.gov.co/cirugias-esteticas-practicadas-en-consultorios-de-garaje-se-pueden/cbogota/2015-07-17/100100.php (There are many cases of deaths resulting from illegal plastic surgeries. The local government in Bogota is aware of the deaths, as reported in the Bogota Counsel (2015)). See also Travel.State.Gov, US Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs. (August 17, 2023). https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Colombia.html (There is a warning that says: “Although Colombia has many elective/cosmetic surgery facilities that are on par with those found in the United States, the quality of care varies widely. If you plan to undergo surgery in Colombia, carefully research the doctor and recovery facility you plan to use. Make sure that emergency medical facilities are available, and that professionals are accredited and qualified. Share all health information (e.g., medical conditions, medications, allergies) with your doctor before surgery.") [13] Arias-Aragonés, F.J.A., Payares, A.M.C., & Jiménez, O.J. (2020), p. 490. (report “the absence of regulation and a legal framework that determines the responsibilities of each link in the production chain” as a difficulty that affects competitivity to become a leader in medical tourism in the Latin American region.) See also: Trujillo, M. A. (2023, November 24). Colombia’s New Bill on Regulating Cosmetic Surgeries. BNN Breaking. https://bnn.network/breaking-news/health/colombia-to-regulate-cosmetic-surgeries-a-step-towards-patient-safety/ (On November 22, 2023, as a response to rising cases of death and injuries associated with plastic surgeries, a bill was introduced in the Colombian House of Representatives to regulate the practice of cosmetic surgeries and protect the integrity of patients) [14] U.S. Department of State, Travel.State.Gov, Colombia. (August 17, 2023). Traveler’s Checklist, https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Colombia.html [15] U.S. Department of State, Travel.State.Gov, Colombia. (August 17, 2023). Traveler’s Checklist. See also: Medical Tourism and Elective Surgery. The Department of State informs that “U.S. citizens have suffered serious complications or died during or after having cosmetic surgery or other elective surgery“ and “the legal options in cases of malpractice are very limited in Colombia,” https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Colombia.html See also: The law firm Alvarez Gonzalez Tolosa Attorneys. (August 8, 2023). Medical Malpractice in Colombia, includes medical malpractice as one of the areas of expertise of the firm. https://www.agtattorneys.com/blog/medical-malpractice-in-colombia/ [16] Colombia recently enacted a new visa regulation (Resolution 5477 from July 22, 2022, issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) effective as of October 22, 2022. No data currently exists about a "medical treatment" visa because it is a new legislation. Even though the regulation refers to the visitor as a patient and includes requirements such as (1) a letter from the medical institution explaining the treatment and approximate duration, (2) a letter explaining costs and who will pay for the treatment, (3) insurance policy, and (4) the general requirements for tourists, the regulation specifically explains that this kind of visa is considered as a TOURISM visa (art 37). [17] Glenn, Cohen. 2015 [18] Frequently Asked Questions. Bioxcellerator. https://www.bioxcellerator.com/faqs (For example, Bioxellerator stem cell therapies conducted in Medellin, Colombia, are not FDA-approved.) [19] Vovk, Viktoriia, Lyudmila Beztelesna, and Olha Pliashko. (2021). "Identification of Factors for the Development of Medical Tourism in the World" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 21: 11205. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182111205 [20] Colombian Constitution. (1991). art. 49 [21] Ministry of Health and Protection. Columbia Ministry of Health. (2023). https://www.minsalud.gov.co/English/Paginas/Ministry.aspx [22] “Does Colombia’s Health System Need an Overhaul?” (March 2, 2023). The Dialogue, Latin America Advisor. https://www.thedialogue.org/analysis/does-colombias-health-system-need-an-overhaul/ [23] Health at a Glance 2021 Colombia Country Note. OECD. (2023). https://search.oecd.org/colombia/health-at-a-glance-Colombia-EN.pdf [24] Travel.State.Gov, US Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Colombia.html [25] Glenn, Cohen. (2015). p. 2-9. [26] Banco de la República. (2023). Regional Health Inequalities in Colombia. https://www.banrep.gov.co/en/regional-health-inequalities-colombia (The Central Bank of Colombia (“Banco de la República”) in reports that despite having relatively high health coverage compared with other countries, empirical results show persistent inequalities in the healthcare system. The aim is to reduce and eventually eliminate such inequalities.) [27] Glenn, Cohen (2015), p. 158-160, citing Rupa Chanda, an Indian business professor, Trade in Health Services, 80 Bull. World Health Org. 158, 160 (2002). [28] Banco de la República. (2023). Regional Health Inequalities in Columbia. https://investiga.banrep.gov.co/es/be-1233. (Under Colombian law, it is mandatory for all employees and employers to pay 4 percent and 8 percent of the applicable salary, respectively, to the universal healthcare system (EPS) to obtain coverage for the employee and family members. This is known as the contributive system, and the funding is known as parafiscal. The unemployed obtain coverage through the government-subsidized system known as SISBEN (System of Identification of Beneficiaries of Social programs), funded with taxpayers’ money, known as fiscal funding. According to the Central Bank of Colombia (Banco de la República), “in recent years, the healthcare sector has faced financial and administrative problems that have increased the need for fiscal resources for its financing and that could affect its sustainability. Regarding the composition of the outflow, it is worth noting the cost of ensuring the contributory and subsidized regime, which on average explains 80 percent of the total system expenses during the period 2011-2022.” “Additionally, pressures derived from the Covid-19 pandemic, Venezuelan migration” and expenses derived from the increase in the subsidized system due to the high rate of unemployment and informal employment are negatively impacting financing of the healthcare system in Colombia. Additional fiscal resources are needed because the health care Colombians receive costs more than what beneficiaries pay.) [29] Statista. (2023). Revenue of the medical tourism sector in Colombia from 2019 to 2024 https://www.statista.com/statistics/1156551/colombia-revenue-medical-tourism/ [30] Glenn, Cohen. (2015), p.218 (The beneficence principle is the general moral obligation to act for the benefit of others, and some of those acts are obligatory, as is the government’s obligation concerning healthcare.) [31] Hospital Cardioinfantil Bogotá, Colombia. https://cardioinfantil.org [32] Hospital Cardioinfantil https://cardioinfantil.org (Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba, Curacao, and Panamá were the first countries with international agreements with La Cardio.) [33] Hospital Cardioinfantil Bogotá, Colombia. https://www.lacardio.org/historia/

The Hispanic Society Museum & Library (HSML) holds a collection of nine viceregal barniz de Pasto objects, made by Indigenous artisans in the 17th and 18th centuries. Designed to imitate Asian lacquers and intended for European aesthetic tastes, barniz de Pasto is an example of Indigenous technique and knowledge that has survived to the present day. An in-depth analysis of five of these barniz de Pasto objects, dated to the first half and last quarter of the 17th century based on their iconography, was carried out through a combination of non-invasive and micro-invasive techniques, including portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) spectroscopy to investigate the possible presence of inorganic pigments, and fiber-optics reflectance spectroscopy (FORS) and reflectance imaging spectroscopy (RIS) to provide molecular information on colorants and their distributions across the objects. Dyes and pigments were also identified using Raman spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). The nature of the resin was determined by FTIR and pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS), while the decoration stratigraphy and composition were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). This paper confirms the use of mopa mopa, the resin used in the barniz de Pasto technique, in two objects not previously analyzed, and identifies indigo, insect-based red, calomel, lead white, and an unknown flavonol-based yellow dye, and challenges the use of calomel as a temporal marker for these works. Taken together, these results expand our understanding of the material use and explorations undertaken by artists during this time period to create such elaborate and enduring objects.

Objective/context: The article aims to analyze child recruitment as a form of human trafficking. Beyond the theoretical perspectives that focus on security or rights, it addresses the topic as a form of unfree labor. By means of a case study focused on child recruitment by right-wing paramilitary groups in Colombia, the paper analyzes how children entered and exited illegal armed groups, the functions they performed, and the exploitation they endured. The research argues that child recruitment operates as a large-scale labor-market uptake in the wartime social order, where the “employers” are paramilitary groups, and the labor force, in part, consists of children and adolescents. Methodology: This case study relies on different sources of information: a database on child recruitment provided by the special Justice and Peace Unit of the Colombian Attorney General’s Office (989 cases between 1981 and 2005), sentences of Peace and Justice, testimonials given by victims in judicial processes, and semi-structured interviews with different actors. Conclusions: The paper shows that child recruitment as a form of trafficking is functional to wartime social order in contexts of poverty and inequality. There is demand and supply; thus, both girls and boys, who worked as soldiers, are not only victims but also agents that make decisions in challenging conditions. Therefore, if the socioeconomic options for these children, even after their demobilization from the armed group, are still a choice between bad and worse, joining a violent (no longer “armed” but “criminal”) group will remain a feasible alternative. Originality: The article contributes to the academic literature on a recent topic, such as the overlapping between child recruitment and human trafficking in armed conflict and post-conflict situations. It also contributes to the literature on “unfree labor,” as the study focuses on an actor (illegal armed groups) that has not been analyzed until now. Finally, the research demonstrates the limits of understanding human trafficking (and child recruitment as a form of trafficking) as a problem of security or rights entitlement. It highlights the analytical and political advantages of categories such as “unfree labor” to provide effective solutions for the prevention and reintegration of child soldiers.

Abstract Background Alcohol consumption is a social phenomenon that involves society, groups, and individuals from different cultures around the world. Among some Indigenous groups located in Colombia, South America, alcohol consumption has been present in their lives, where contradictory processes occur and generate public health attention. We aimed to analyze qualitative research findings on alcohol consumption among Indigenous peoples in Colombia. Methods This article used the qualitative meta-synthesis methodology, which included: (a) comprehensive search strategy, (b) appraisal of qualitative research reports, (c) findings classification, and (d) synthesis. Databases were searched for papers published from 2004 to 2019 in SCOPUS, LILACS, PROQUEST, and JSTOR, among other sources of information. A total of 2,159 papers were reviewed and finally, 13 studies were included in this meta-synthesis. The synthesis of findings included a constant comparative analysis and also aimed for the articulation of its findings to alternative perspectives in a predefined matrix. Results Nine Indigenous ethnic groups of Colombia were represented in the 13 articles analyzed. From the analysis emerged the symbolic approach “Alcohol: a chameleon that unpredictable society colors” as the meta-theme of this research. This reflects four social processes that influence interaction with alcohol: Dynamic Systems Mergers (Indigenous system, influence of non-Indigenous system); Diverse Authority Spheres (parenting, Indigenous authority, school, university, religious and spiritual, traditional medicine); Between Transculturation and Interculturality (cultural crises effects and dynamism); and the Paradoxes of the Normalization of Alcohol (reasons, functions, and types of alcohol consumption). Likewise, these results support the social determination of health and sociocultural epidemiology perspectives, as being an adequate way of explaining a complex phenomenon. Conclusion Alcohol consumption among Indigenous peoples in Colombia is a social construction. Alcohol acts as an instrument, which is present in the changing relationships and tensions of social processes. This is reflected in harmonies, or disharmonies, in the life of Indigenous Colombians, which take place in a historical, sociocultural, economic, and political context. The results provide a reference point to guide practice and research but also reiterate the need to include the social determination of health perspective in public policies, as a path to the understanding of alcohol consumption.

This paper presents a comprehensive analysis of informal settlements in Tunja, Colombia, from 2010 to 2022. It examines the historical, social, and economic factors that contribute to these settlements, using various data sources, including development and territorial planning plans, the Agustín Codazzi Geographic Institute, and local government records. The study highlights significant inequalities in access to public services between urban and rural areas, exacerbated by environmental hazards from nearby mines, landfills, and sewage treatment plants. The research employs a descriptive and explanatory approach, detailing the historical context and theoretical frameworks related to agglomeration economics, territorial inequality, and urbanization processes. A historical-deductive method ensures logical consistency in the analysis of data from 2010 to 2022. The study also utilizes georeferencing techniques to present spatial data on service coverage and demographic characteristics, differentiating urban and rural disparities. Findings show that informal settlements in Tunja are predominantly located on the periphery of the city, with significant disparities in service coverage. While urban areas have over 90% coverage of basic services, rural areas lack adequate infrastructure, particularly sewage, gas, and internet services. The study identifies specific settlements, such as Runta and Pirgua, details their access to services and highlights environmental and structural issues.

La literatura sobre el uso de sistemas de decisión automatizada (SDA) en el sector público ha dado cuenta de su creciente adopción en América Latina. En el caso de Colombia, no existen trabajos que mapeen y caractericen de forma sistemática el uso de SDA por parte del Estado. Este artículo contribuye a cerrar esa brecha en la literatura a partir del análisis de una nueva base de datos sobre 113 SDA de entidades del sector público colombiano, de los cuales 97 se encuentran en funcionamiento (86%), 14 en pilotaje (12%) y dos más que fueron descontinuados. La base de datos caracteriza los sistemas a partir de 40 variables y fue creada con más de 300 fuentes de información pública. Este artículo describe las principales características, usos y potenciales beneficios de estos sistemas en Colombia. Identificamos sistemas implementados por 51 entidades públicas nacionales y subnacionales del poder ejecutivo, así como por entidades de la rama judicial y de organismos de control. El grueso de los 111 sistemas que están en etapa de pilotaje o en ejecución fueron adoptados por entidades públicas del orden nacional (74%) y la gran mayoría fueron implementados por entidades del poder público ejecutivo (93%). Los SDA son usados para realizar una amplia gama de funciones y para apoyar diferentes tipos de actividades estatales, pero más de la mitad de los sistemas son usados para apoyar actividades de los sectores justicia (18%), educación (17%), y medio ambiente (13%). Además, la mayoría de los SDA pueden aportar a la implementación de políticas públicas (el 98%), pero algunos también pueden contribuir con otras fases del ciclo de las políticas públicas (12% al agendamiento, 18% a formulación y 2% a evaluación). Finalmente, el artículo identifica potenciales riesgos asociados al uso de diferentes tipos de SDA por parte entidades públicas.

This paper studies the lyrics of reggaeton songs. Reggaeton is a popular genre nowadays, especially among young people. Its songs contain a very rich and sometimes surprising vocabulary. That was the reason for choosing this topic: to understand this genre of songs and their lyrics. Thus the purpose of this paper is to discover the meaning of the words used in the songs of this genre, to clarify the main vocabulary characteristics and to point out to the differences between the Spanish spoken in Latin America and Spain. In the analysis, specialized dictionaries were used to reveal the meaning of particular expressions. Attention was paid to expressions which are different from European Spanish as well as to English borrowings (anglicisms). Fifteen reggaeton songs from three countries (Puerto Rico, Cuba and Colombia) were chosen. Our findings showed that in each group (Puerto Rican, Cuban and Colombian), words typical of each of these countries were used in the songs. Anglicisms were also present, although to a different extent in each group.

ABSTRACT Using estimations by Bresser-Pereira et al. (2021), this paper analyses the misalignment between the real exchange rate and the current account equilibrium exchange rate in Colombia in the last two decades (2000-2020). Evidence suggests that the commodity boom and bust cycle in this period is important to explain (i) the main trend of the misalignment, (ii) the deterioration of the current account in recent years and (iii) the general macroeconomic performance of the Colombian economy. A discussion about macroeconomic development and stability is also provided in the context of the Colombian financial configuration, characterized by a flexible exchange rate regime, central bank independence and inflation targeting. Ideas in this paper are consistent with key elements in the New Developmentalism Theory.

Solar photovoltaic-based (PV) microgrids have received increasing attention to lower electricity costs, improve service reliability, and preserve the environment. The literature has mainly addressed their design and operation from the self-supply at a minimum cost perspective, overlooking alternative business models. This paper assesses the possibility of oversizing solar PV grid-connected microgrids to profit from self-supply and export sales to the power grid. To this end, an optimisation model is developed that evaluates if oversizing is a worthwhile business strategy to follow and a better one than the self-supply perspective. The model, which includes legal, technical, and demand constraints, is applied to nine urban communities in Colombia living under diverse socio-economic and climatic conditions. The results suggest that oversizing is the optimal business strategy for small microgrid systems – up to 100 kW of capacity according to the Colombian regulation –, but not for large microgrid systems, those above 100 kW. The model shows larger margins and shorter capital recovery times in small microgrids planned under the oversizing business model than those designed under the self-supply approach for all the analysed communities. The paper demonstrates the advantages of considering oversizing and self-supply when planning solar PV grid-connected microgrids. In the Colombian case, oversizing brings more significant economic and strategic benefits than self-supply for small microgrids. However, the opposite applies to large microgrid systems; self-supply brings larger benefits than oversizing. Thus, the paper contributes to the literature by providing an empirical study on microgrid-centred alternative business models.

Introducción: Con la creciente demanda de aplicaciones en el mercado, las empresas han priorizado atender las necesidades tecnológicas del usuario promedio en detrimento de aquellos con diversidad funcional. Esto ha convertido la accesibilidad en un desafío crucial en diversos contextos, especialmente en el ámbito educativo, donde la diversidad de personas que acceden a contenido web es notable. Objetivo: Este trabajo presenta un estudio basado en una inspección de accesibilidad de seis portales web pertenecientes a universidades en la ciudad de Cartagena. El objetivo es determinar la relación entre la inclusión de pautas de accesibilidad y los factores de posicionamiento web obtenidos a través de Webometrics. Metodología: Se definen cinco fases metodológicas: elección de los portales web, selección de herramientas de inspección, aplicación de la inspección de accesibilidad, análisis de los resultados y formulación de conclusiones y recomendaciones. Resultados: Como resultado del estudio, se ha determinado una correlación superior a 0.8 entre el ranking local de las universidades según Webometrics y el ranking de problemas de accesibilidad identificados mediante herramientas de inspección automática. Conclusiones: El uso de herramientas automáticas de evaluación web debería ser implementado por las instituciones educativas para mejorar la accesibilidad de los sitios institucionales. Esta revisión periódica y la corrección de errores es una buena práctica para mejorar el posicionamiento local e internacional. ABSTRACT Introduction: With the growing demand for applications in the market, companies have increasingly focused on meeting the technological needs of the average user, often overlooking those with functional diversity. Consequently, accessibility has emerged as a critical challenge across various contexts, particularly within the educational sphere, where the diverse range of individuals accessing web content is particularly pronounced. Objective: This paper presents a study centered on the accessibility inspection of six university websites located in the city of Cartagena. The primary aim is to ascertain the relationship between the integration of accessibility guidelines and web positioning factors as determined by Webometrics. Methodology: The methodology comprises five distinct phases: website selection, tool selection for inspection, execution of accessibility inspection, analysis of obtained results, and formulation of conclusions and recommendations. Results: The study revealed a correlation exceeding 0.8 between the local ranking of universities according to Webometrics and the ranking of accessibility issues identified through automated inspection tools. Conclusions: It is recommended that educational institutions adopt automatic web evaluation tools to enhance the accessibility of their institutional websites. This regular review and rectification of issues represent best practices for improving both local and international visibility and usability.

This paper examines how Colombia’s Justicia Especial para la Paz (JEP) emerges as a tribunal within which the roles of history, politics, and transitional justice becomes contested. The paper starts by placing the JEP in a historical, social, and political context. Building on the contextualization, it focuses on how the JEP appears to be an extension of the five-decade long conflict in Colombia in its attempt to deal with the past. The paper underscores how punishing “bad” things is not an easy task. Against this background, the paper challenges the boundaries of criminal liability by discussing and analyzing “storytelling” as an alternative to truth-telling in the JEP in order to not only provide additional nuances to the conflict, but also as a way to, at least theoretically, tie different social collectives together in a post-conflict society and enable the courtroom to function constructively with difficult social issues in the aftermath of cataclysm. Este artículo examina cómo la Justicia Especial para la Paz (JEP) de Colombia emerge como un tribunal en el que se contestan los roles de la historia, la política y la justicia transicional. El artículo comienza situando a la JEP en un contexto histórico, social y político. Partiendo de la contextualización, se centra en cómo la JEP parece ser una extensión del conflicto de cinco décadas en Colombia en su intento de lidiar con el pasado. El documento subraya cómo castigar lo “malo” no es tarea fácil. En este contexto, el documento desafía los límites de la responsabilidad penal mediante la discusión y el análisis de la “narración” como una alternativa a la narración de la verdad en la JEP, con el fin no sólo de proporcionar matices adicionales al conflicto, sino también como una forma de, al menos teóricamente, vincular a los diferentes colectivos sociales en una sociedad posconflicto y permitir que el tribunal funcione de manera constructiva con las difíciles cuestiones sociales en el período posterior al cataclismo. Available from: https://doi.org/10.35295/osls.iisl/0000-0000-0000-1271

This paper presents findings on the correlation between surface air temperature and lightning activity in Colombia. The air temperature data spans several decades, while the lightning data covers 17 years. The temperature records come from nine cities, and the lightning data covers about 50% of the territory. Despite differences in sampling rates and dataset sizes, the findings show a positive correlation between surface air temperature and lightning activity, suggesting a possible relationship between warmer conditions and increased lightning activity.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) linked to the 2030 Agenda have been widely accepted by public and private companies, with many choosing to incorporate them within the framework of their social responsibility initiatives. This research article aims to find out how the SDGs are reflected in corporate sustainability reports and in which business activities they stand out the most. To this end, using a sequential explanatory methodology, the authors analyzed 12 sustainability reports issued in 2021 by large companies in Colombia, Chile, and Ecuador to verify their alignment with the SDGs. The reports showed evidence of a diverse range of programs associated with at least three SDGs, thus highlighting the importance of fulfilling not only the needs based on each company’s field of expertise but also those of its audiences and the community in general. The most prevalent SDGs were “decent work and economic growth” (SDG 8) and “gender equality” (SDG 5), followed by “responsible consumption and production” (SDG 12). This paper contributes to a growing interest among academia in the research on sustainability communication evidenced in annual reports.

Colombia's policy in the Upper Cauca River Basin is diminished by a lack of legitimacy in local areas respecting the control of territory and water. Such illegitimate interference provides a hiding place and fertile ground for the illegal activities of “hidden” actors. This paper aims to scrutinize the potential power of such hidden actors to influence water governance. We engage with critical discussions of water governance to reveal the role of these actors in controlling territory and water in the Upper Cauca River Basin. Extensive fieldwork was carried out, including workshops, interviews, and informal talks. Despite the Colombian government not recognizing hidden actors and their part in influencing water-related policies, the information gathered revealed their active agency in the basin. The paper shows how these actors play a determining role in territorial development and water resource management, disrupting the functioning of the State's water governance. Hidden actors, to promote their own, mostly illegal and illegitimate businesses, seize upon the current lack of clarity in the national normative standards, the deficiencies created by an inconsiderate implementation of national water policy, and the State's lack of legitimacy at the local level. This paper concludes that the awareness of hidden actors and their invisible power over water governance provide a better sense of the reality on the ground for policymakers in Colombia.

This paper provides an updated review of the dengue situation in the Latin-American countries, focusing on Colombia as a highly and historically affected nation. In first instance, it presents a scientific overview about the biology, clinical progress, transmission mode and epidemiology of the disease. Secondly, it describes the different outbreaks in the region during the past five decades. Thirdly, as an illustration of historical trends in most provinces and Colombian territories, early detection and predictive value of a dengue epidemic is inadequate and how a surveillance system should work. Based on these, the document proposes to provide a framework for a pilot model of a sustained and integrated epidemiological surveillance system in Colombia, focused on early detection, prediction (turning point) of outbreaks and recommendation of a model to be implemented by the Colombian local health units of each affected territory. It emphasizes that a vector-borne disease such as dengue must be addressed locally, having the individual, all the way through a primary health care and population-based approach, at the center of the system. It also highlights a new approach for returning to the basics in primary health attention in which the community health promoter be again one of the main participants. The paper concludes that without a primary health care approach, particularly under the existing decentralized local and regional governments, it will be so difficult to achieve real control over this kind of cyclical public health issues.

Social protests were crucial to the election of Colombia's progressive government in 2022. However, it's role in the violence against Venezuelan migrants that preceded it is still unclear. This paper examines racial bias in media responses to Venezuelan migrants during Colombia's 2019-2021 social protests. Theorists suggest that structural changes like migration can normalize hostility against vulnerable groups when specific conditions increase hostile perceptions. Colombia's press has not been scrutinized for misanthropic and hostile views, focusing on xenophobic urban riots that occurred alongside social protests in November 2019. We conducted a content analysis of Colombian newspapers, linking migration, violence, and protests, along with public migration data from Venezuela. Our findings reveal that social movements in Colombia intersect with contemporary Venezuelan migration, highlighting the ambivalence of social protests. While protests may have shifted attention away from racist attributions toward Venezuelan migrants, they do not signify a new perception of vulnerable populations.

Internal forced displacement, a consequence of territorial control strategies by armed groups, has resulted in profound socioeconomic challenges for receiving areas. Approximately eight million people have been affected in Colombia, where internal conflict and criminal networks have prevailed for over five decades. This paper explores the relationship between internal forced migration and crime rates in Colombian municipalities from 2003 to 2016, focusing on spatial dynamics. The study utilizes a spatial panel model and considers five crime categories: homicides, kidnapping, personal injuries, automobile theft, and residential burglary. The results reveal significant associations between forced displacement and certain types of crime, highlighting the importance of spatial analysis in understanding the interaction between migration and crime. The findings offer valuable insights for policymakers and researchers, facilitating informed policy interventions and community initiatives to address the repercussions of internal migration on crime dynamics.

Abstract Background Rickettsiae are obligate intracellular Gram-negative bacteria that are the causative agent of rickettsioses and are spread to vertebrate hosts by arthropods. There are no previous reports of isolation of Rickettsia amblyommatis for Colombia. Methods A convenience sampling was executed in three departments in Colombia for direct collection of adult ticks on domestic animals or over vegetation. Ticks were screened for the presence of Rickettsia spp. by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) amplifying the citrate synthase gene (gltA), and the positive sample was processed for isolation and further molecular characterization by conventional PCR. The absolute and relative frequencies were calculated for several tick species variables. All products from conventional PCR were further purified and sequenced by the Sanger technique. Representative sequences of 18 Rickettsia species were downloaded from GenBank. Consensus phylogenetic trees were constructed for the gltA, ompB, ompA, and htrA genes with 1000 replicates, calculating bootstrap values through the maximum likelihood method and the generalized time reversible substitution model in the MEGA 7.0 software program. Results One female Amblyomma mixtum collected on vegetation was amplified by qPCR (gltA), indicating a frequency of 1.6% (1/61) for Rickettsia spp. infection. Sequence analysis of a rickettsial isolate from this tick in BLASTn showed 100% identity with gltA (340 base pairs [bp]), 99.87% for ompB (782 bp), 98.99% for htrA (497 bp), and 100% for ompA (488 bp) to R. amblyommatis. Concatenated phylogenetic analysis confirmed these findings indicating that the isolate is grouped with other sequences of Amblyomma cajennense complex from Panama and Brazil within the R. amblyommatis clade. Conclusions This paper describes the isolation and early molecular identification of a R. amblyommatis strain from A. mixtum in Colombia. Graphical Abstract

IPCC's Sixth Assessment is a landmark in recognizing social justice and local knowledge as imperative for successful climate adaptation; however, taking this new scientific consensus seriously has profound implications. While narratives of fossil fuel companies and closing climate windows often dominate climate politics, there is an urgent need for new thinking frames, especially given that everyday adaptations by the most vulnerable are often hindered by incumbent actors at more local scales. In response, this paper tackles the issue of climate risk and human wellbeing in Latin America from an emerging and innovative perspective: reparation ecology. Reparation is a heuristic category by means of which we systematize converging evidence about the responses of local Latin-American communities to severe socio-environmental crises that are closely connected to climate risks and to long-lasting threats to the wellbeing of human societies and ecosystems. The results focus on a comparative analysis of five case studies on nature-based urban adaptation in two low-income settlements in Brazil; local ecological governance led by actors from the organized civil society in Colombia; agroecological and just innovative food production systems in Ecuador and sustainable urban-rural food markets in Guatemala. Assuming the complexity of climate change from a culturally and geographically located perspective, the paper unveils the non-doomed, ecologically reparative character of these initiatives. It therefore contributes to the recent turn in the debate on climate risk, claiming that diverse groups of people and communities around the world are contributing to radical change, tuning their behaviors and social arrangements in what an emerging scholarship defines as reparation ecology.

Infrastructural design, transport and mobility policies are strong instruments for interpreting historical urban and regional transformation processes. The paper addresses the intercausalities between both of them. To do so, it briefly sketches debates on the causalities of transport infrastructure and urbanisation and the theory of technological politics, drawing attention to the relationship between transport infrastructure and politics, and how infrastructures and their techno-political frames include means of power and authority. From there, the paper moves to the debate on the relationship between social justice and transport, showing how transport systems embody social processes and social (in)injustice. The history of agrarian extractivism in the region of Urabá in Colombia serves as a case study. The paper shows how existing transport networks of the region of Urabá have supported the expansion of agrarian extractivist industries and more specifically the production of transport (in)justice. It explores the development of the infrastructural network, transport systems and urbanisation of this region from the early 1900s onwards. Results show how the actual agrarian extractivist industries of the region are causing huge challenges related to the overlapping of transport scales, congestion and risks of accidents in urban areas, and how actual transport dynamics in the region are affecting urban development, generating a high segregation characterised by uneven distributions of public services and transport infrastructures. The paper reveals that the existing transport developments in the region of Urabá have no support for local development and are mainly thought for the efficiency of agrarian extractivist industries over local economic development. Agrarian extractivism has been a consistent factor in the economic, political and social spheres, and since colonial times the appropriation of natural resources and the dispossession of territories has been omnipresent. This paper explores the historical role of transport in agrarian extractivism, the long-term impact of the prolongation of old mechanisms, and the interrelations of the latter with current urbanisation and development. It concludes that infrastructural developments in this region have supported agrarian extractivist industries, first in colonial times, but also more recently, showing the deep embeddedness of the relation between mobility and urbanity in the (agrarian extractivist) development history of this region.

Abstract Background This paper estimates spatial inequalities of Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) in Colombia and explores correlates of those disparities from a health system perspective. Methods We apply descriptive epidemiology to healthcare administrative records for estimation of crude and age-standardized prevalences, and health systems thinking for identification of barriers to effective access in RA diagnosis. Results The crude and age-standardized RA prevalence for Colombia in 2018 is estimated at 0.43% and 0.36%, respectively. In the contributory regime, the binding constraint is effective access to rheumatologists in rural and sparsely populated areas; this constraint in workforce affects service delivery, and ultimately comes from the lack of a differentiated model for effective provision of healthcare in those areas (governance). Conclusions There are opportunities for implementation of public health policies and health system interventions that would lead to a better identification of RA patients and the subsequent more precise estimation of RA prevalence, and most importantly, to reduce exposition to risk factors and accurate diagnosis and treatment of RA patients.

ABSTRACTThis paper presents the building process of an interactive instrument called the Colombian Solar Atlas able to easily visualize meteorological data but also assess the current and future potentials of solar photovoltaic generation throughout the whole territory of Colombia, South America. This new tool is based on two different meteorological databases. The first one is done with historical data extracted from satellite imagery information, and the other one corresponds to data issues from regional-scale climate change projection models. The satellite database was validated with different in-situ measurements. The Colombian Solar Atlas uses basic and advanced photovoltaic generation models to estimate the generation of a custom solar installation. With this tool, a user selects a point on the map and can have directly pertinent information to search for an optimal location with a spatial resolution of 4 km2. This tool is the first open interactive online tool particularly adapted to study the photovoltaic power potential in Colombia, considering the country’s needs and native language.

This paper presents a mathematical model for planning optimization of the gas supply chain of a company that is a producer, trader, and gas consumer for its operations, but does not transport it, according to the guidelines of the Colombian government. The model optimizes the profit of the modeled company based on (i) the availability and demand of the modeled company, (ii) public information from other gas-producing and consuming companies, and (iii) demand-serving priorities. The model is formulated as a single-period non-linear programming (NLP) model that optimizes the natural gas allocations and the total, profit of the company considering production, transportation, prioritization, and economic constraints. Due to prioritization constraints, the model is formulated as a optimization problem that is solved with the lexicographical method. The proposed model stands out for its ability to be used as a decision support tool for natural gas supply planners in Colombia due to its considerations of the technical, legal, contractual, and regulatory aspects of natural gas production in the country.

This paper studies the conditions under which quality conventions in coffee can be revised. It shows how value is captured by a collective composed by Colombian producers overseeing coffee quality attributes, engaging in relational approaches and building knowledge with international buyers. Interviews were conducted with selected organic producers in Santa Marta, Colombia and buyers (e.g. in Germany, the Netherlands). Due to the sound relations between the staff of the producer organization and a German buyer, the manager of the collective proposed to also export roasted coffee in addition to green coffee. Although roasting at origin is not common in coffee exports, in the case analyzed existing hesitations were abandoned. Eye-level relationships, trust based on a relational approach and knowledge were key to achieving a collective quality construction and subsequent value capture by producers. Over time, these producers have improved their material quality techniques and become more familiar with the places where their coffee circulates and is valued, allowing them to influence the commercial spheres of the coffee business. The discussion is not about changing quality conventions, but on how quality conventions are institutionalized and the narratives behind them.

The first organized feminist movement in Colombia demanded the right for women to vote in 1954 and, despite its progressist agendas and decades of work, it still tends to be distorted by traditional media representation. With social media, these activists can reach the audience directly, disseminate information, and dispute narratives. Hence, this study addresses the question: how are the discourses about feminism constructed on Instagram in Colombia? Based on netnography and critical discourse analysis, the paper analyzes the discussions on publications and comments on the most popular feminist Instagram account in Colombia, @LasIgualadas. The results indicate that the platform usage could help create a less stereotypical perspective on the movement while informing society on its agendas and raising awareness about rights violations. However, the debate on @LasIgualadas is still predominantly carried out by women (80.5%), and some topics, such as abortion and LGBTQI+ rights, are distorted or deviated from by some Instagram users’ comments.

This paper analyzed the relationship between emergent teaching strategies and the challenges professors at Universidad Icesi (Cali, Colombia) faced when transitioning to Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) during the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey with open-ended questions was used to conduct a content analysis, followed by a correspondence analysis. The main findings were that most professors described submitting information and interaction as the most common teaching strategies. The challenges were primarily emotional and technical in nature. There were differences in discipline, gender, and age. Furthermore, there was no alignment between the challenges and the proposed strategies. Finally, this research has significant implications for future teacher training programs that emphasize faculty diversity. Received: 16 February 2022 Accepted: 24 July 2023

With the guerrilla's strategic weakening and the establishment of the peace dialogues between the FARC and the national government, it started a situation of post-armed conflict, which has been accompanied with the transformation of the Colombian armed forces. In this way, the present paper aims to analyze this initiated in 2011, with the objective of identifying the new role that has been delegated to the military in the context of post-conflict that started with the signing of the Havana Peace Accords in 2016. The hypothesis of the paper is that the process, in one hand, has been consolidating the Colombian armed forces as an institution turned to the accomplishment of subsidiary tasks and, in the other, it has contributed to a renewal of the military dependency with the USA, although with different bases in relation to those observed during the Plan Colombia time. The methodolo gy employed in this research consisted of data analysis collected in international databases, analysis of documents from the Colombian government and literature review about military transformation. Despite this process involving the three armed forces (Army, Navy and Air Force), the first one has been more affected, which for this reason it will be more analyzed.

In the present paper the author continues the study of the challenges faced by Colombia in its struggle to overcome the internal armed conflict, as well as the role of the United States in this process. By 2010 the confrontation between the government forces and the armed rebels had reached a breaking point opening the way to a successful conclusion of the Government of Colombia–FARC peace negotiations and the beginning of the country’s post-conflict reconstruction. The paper thoroughly examines the negotiations process, identifies the key disputed issues and the measures outlined for their resolution, including mechanisms of transitional justice, agrarian reform, programmes for demobilization and reintegration of the former combatants. The results of these talks laid the foundation for the historic Peace Accord of September 26, 2016. However, against all hopes and expectations, the agreement failed to bring an end to the long-standing internal conflict in Colombia. The failure of the national referendum, which was designed to approve the agreement, not only revealed deep divisions in the society, but forced the government to make serious concessions to the opponents of the negotiations with FARC. The author emphasizes the growing erosion of the hard-won consensus in the Colombian society, accompanied by the consolidation of the right-wing conservative camp. In this context the role of external sponsors of the peaceful agreement in general and the United States in particular becomes crucial. The paper presents a comparative analysis of approaches to providing aid to Colombia demonstrated by the administrations of Barack Obama and Donald Trump. The author concludes that despite substantial differences, for both administrations the ultimate objective was national security of the United States. That was clearly demonstrated by the fact that the US foreign aid to Colombia focused primarily on the fight against the illegal production of and trafficking in drugs, while the issues of peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction received less attention. Assessing Colombia’s experience in overcoming the internal conflict and the role of the United States in that process, the author concludes that although prioritization of security issues may have a considerable organizing potential, at the same time it may be detrimental to the process of post-conflict reconstruction in general.

In recent years the issues of peaceful resolution of internal armed conflicts and post-conflict reconstruction have increasingly attracted attention of both the leading states and international organizations and the academic community. Researchers agree that it is the identification and elimination of the underlying causes and triggers of conflict that represent one of the major challenges to the states emerging from the internal armed conflicts. The challenge is all the more complex when the internal conflict is internationalized and involves some external actors. In that regard the case of Colombia is of special interest. The paper covers a relatively long period — from mid-1960s to the end of 2000s — and examines the key stages and areas of the United States-Colombia cooperation aimed at the cessation of hostilities in the latter. The paper identifies the underlying causes of the armed conflict in Colombia, its key participants and their goals. The author shows that the forms and the scope of the U.S. assistance to the Colombian government were strongly linked to the evolution of both the situation in that country and the strategic priorities of the US foreign policy in general. While initially the US assistance was determined by the desire to counter the growing influence of the leftist parties and movements in the region, the prioritization of the fight against drug trafficking in the national security strategy in the 1980s resulted in the re-orientation of the US regional policies to the war on drugs. The adoption of the Plan Colombia served as a milestone in the development of the bilateral relations. The paper examines in detail the consequences and results of implementation of this plan. The beginning of the 2000s was yet another pivotal point in the development of bilateral interaction aimed at cessation of hostilities, marked by the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the failure of negotiations between the Colombian government and the opposition, and the implementation of a ‘democratic security’ policy. All this contributed to the convergence of the two governments’ views on security issues and conflict resolution. A new modus vivendi emerged as bilateral partnership was transforming into strategic alliance. However, the author emphasizes, that implications of these new developments on the peace process were yet to be discovered.

In many countries, the advancement of hydropower resources has been hindered by economic factors and insufficient data on topography, streamflow, environmental sensitivity, power grid, and, most importantly, the location of potential hydropower sites. This challenge is particularly pronounced in certain African and Latin American river systems. Developing web-based maps of hydropower resources based on geographic information systems and advanced mapping technologies can facilitate the initial assessment of hydropower sites. This is especially relevant for developing sites in remote areas and data-scarce regions. The available geospatial datasets, remote sensing technologies, and advanced GIS modelling techniques can be used to identify potential hydropower sites and assess their preliminary characteristics. This paper reviews web-based hydropower atlases in African and Latin American countries. Their main features are represented and compared with the recently launched HYPOSO map viewer covering two African countries (Cameroon and Uganda) and three Latin American countries (Bolivia, Colombia, and Ecuador). This hydropower atlas consists of 20 spatial layers. Its particular focus is to present a geospatial dataset of new hydropower sites with concise information for potential investors. These so-called virtual hydropower atlases can be only one type of discovery at the early project stage, automatically identifying sites worthy of further investigation. A formal validation of the web-based atlases, including the HYPOSO hydropower atlas, is briefly considered. Creating open-access hydropower map viewers is anticipated to significantly enhance the hydropower development database in these nations, offering valuable insights for small and medium-scale projects.

Colombia has extensive laws prohibiting discrimination against sexual minority people. However, violence and discrimination toward sexual minorities are still frequent. While a growing body of research shows that sexual minority people experience elevated rates of discrimination and domestic abuse globally, little research has been conducted on these issues affecting sexual minorities in Colombia specifically. Using minority stress theory as a conceptual framework, this paper aims to fill this gap by examining the prevalence of experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) and witnessed discrimination and the relationship of these stressors to self-reported health among a national sample of sexual minority Colombians. We found that bisexual individuals experienced higher rates of physical and sexual IPV, compared to lesbian and gay individuals. Additionally, sexual minority Colombians who experienced IPV and witnessed discrimination were more likely to report having poorer health, compared to those who had not. We discuss the implications of our findings for future research and clinicians working with sexual minority clients.

This paper investigates the impact of internet voting for draft policy proposals in the framework of Open Government Partnership, on the whole ecosystem of open government in Chile and Colombia. The research objective is, to identify the impact of i-voting for policy proposals on voters, civil society organizations, government authorities and open government overall, taking into account public transparency, civic participation and public accountability. Methodologically, this international comparison of case studies has employed a mixed methods approach including the analysis of applied reports, legislation, social media and expert interviews. It was found that in Chile and Colombia, the i-voting for policy proposals helped bridge remote parts of the countries and thus, make democratic participation more inclusive. Ultimately, the non-binding consultative i-voting for draft open government policies in both countries empowered civil society, working in the open government domain to advocate sectoral policies to be introduced by the government.

Innovation heuristics offer guidance on how to navigate through the complex dynamics of innovation governance. However, further discussion is needed on the premises of such analytical tools to inquire on their implications on innovation policy and practice. This paper builds on the innovation policy dance metaphor to better grasp the ever-changing interplays (or dance) between innovation practice (I), policy (P) and theory (T). We critically assess the basic underlying assumptions of this metaphor, by examining the extent to which its heuristic pretensions are relevant in the Latin American context. To do so, we explore three illustrative cases in Colombia, shedding light on some crosscutting opportunities and gaps for the dancing metaphor across different innovation I-P-T situations. Some derived lessons suggest that dancing occurs within and/or between different governance levels, where variables such as politics shape the innovation I-P-T interplay and time defines first and second order learning pathways.

The current migratory movement from Venezuela to Colombia is at the heart of a heated debate. This paper aims to focus the attention on the Colombian context, starting from the transition process generated after the internal armed conflict. After that, border dynamics and migration policies will be examined, highlighting how the centrality of the subject order / disorder, social harmony / disharmony has also oriented the construction of the figure of the Venezuelan migrant both politically and in the media, with consequences on the reception and inclusion.

The evolution of regionalism in Latin America has historically been greatly influenced by changes in governments and their ideological programs. In this article, looking at the courses of the administrations of Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil, Ivan Duque in Colombia, Sebastian Piñera (second term, 2018-2022) in Chile, Mario Abdo Benítez in Paraguay, it is proposed to examine transformations in integration against the backdrop of increased influence of right-wing forces in regional alignments in the mid-2010s to the early 2020s. Analyzing foreign policy steps, rhetoric, content of conceptual documents, the authors focus on the peculiarities of the national views of various right forces on integration initiatives. The paper concentrates on the decline of Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) and Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), creation of Forum for the Progress and Integration of South America (PROSUR) and Lima Group, activities of the Pacific Alliance and Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR) in the context of the demand for flexible and pragmatic integration “without politicization.” The authors come to several conclusions which show ambiguity of the right turn impact on the integration landscape in Latin America. First, although the rise of liberal-conservative forces has reformatted philosophy, key ideas of integration, participation in multilateral groups remains important for governments that seek to solve pressing problems and expand their own reputational and political capital with its help. Second, despite the fluidity of electoral dynamics, which may soon put an end to the dominance of the right, they have raised a number of issues of long-term relevance in the context of the future path of integration associations in the region. The contribution of the work is explained by its appeal to the very factor of ideology in the development of Latin American integration, detailed analysis of specific country experiences and new conclusions based on it.

Kamsá is a language isolate spoken in the Sibundoy Valley in the Putumayo department of southern Colombia. Its speech community lives on the eastern slopes of the Andes Mountains, between the linguistic areas of the Andes and the Amazon. This paper presents various grammatical features of Kamsá, including its phonology, nominal morphology (especially noun class and case marking), verbal morphology (especially person/number marking for core arguments and evidentiality), morphosyntactic alignment, and syntax (including discussion of causatives, comparatives, and subordinate clauses). In doing so, the paper places Kamsá within its typological and geographical context, between the Amazon and the Andes.

This paper argues that, in the process of imaginingand making possible the modern nation in SpanishAmerica, the Liberator Simón Bolívar (1783-1830) resorted to the civic and revolutionary origin of the nascent States, rather than to ethnocultural uniformity. In this regard, his position was radically modern and antigenealogical, in that he asserted that the character unity entailed by the nation as a political community does not need to match the limits of na-tionalities. This paper draws upon Discurso de Angostura, deliv-ered by the Liberator in 1819, to show that, at the time of build-ing that great nation that should be called Colombia, Bolivar appealed to political and territorial premises, rather than to na-tionalist premises of linguistic, ethnic or cultural equality. In this regard, his constitutional proposal is in line with the tradition of republican patriotism and the ideal of the nation of citizens.

This paper focuses on the opportunity, in the short and medium term, for a Colombia that is an OECD member and NATO partner to face the challenges of the public security transition, despite no explicit mention of it appearing in the Peace Agreement (or Final Agreement). To do this, an anomaly will have to be overcome: the so-called “Lleras Camargo duality”, which has facilitated excessive decisional autonomy of the security forces, scant parliamentary control and insufficient political leadership of defence. The paper is divided into contextual and a priori sections, with another analytical section focussing on conceptual clarifications and practical lessons of a comparative nature. The final part is dedicated to Colombia’s particularities and the presentation of a proposal for addressing eight major challenges: three general, two focused on external security, and three on internal security. Colombia, peace process, transition, security, security forces, non-political direct violence

Fipronil is an insecticide and acaricide widely used in agriculture and domestic animals worldwide. Ecotoxicology studies have shown that, even at the low concentrations used on target species, fipronil and its degradation products have a significant impact on non-target species, either by direct toxicity or indirect effects affecting the food chain. The negative effects of fipronil on non-target species of terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates and indirect effects on food chains have led to its use being banned or severely restricted in numerous countries, including all of the European Union, China, and the United States. Some of the species highly susceptible to fipronil are of great economic and ecological importance, including crayfish, brown shrimp, and bees. In particular, the impact on decimating bee hives worldwide is an example of fipronil´s undesirable effects on agriculture. Other species affected by fipronil -for which there are few studies- are biological predators of the same pests controlled by fipronil. Considering all the impacts on non-target species, the commercialization and indiscriminate use of fipronil in agriculture seem irresponsible. In Colombia, as of September 2021 and pressed by local beekeepers, the Instituto Colombiano Agropecuario (ICA) prohibited its use on avocado, coffee, citrus, and passiflower plantations. However, as long as its use is not prohibited in all agricultural applications, farmers could divert its use and continue using it in any other type of plantation. This paper describes the impact of fipronil on some of the beneficial invertebrate species of outmost economic and ecological importance.

Abstract One of the goals of decentralized policies is to consider the differences between regions and municipalities, which can lead to greater economic growth as well as greater economic development in all areas. However, endogenous limitations should also be overcome. For these purposes, policies have been designed and must therefore be evaluated in terms of the consequences. One of the most ambitious policies in Latin America in recent years has been the implementation of the ‘General Regalías system’ in Colombia. This paper will assess whether this policy has led to significant changes in the fiscal performance of the municipalities in the Valle del Cauca region, in which the most important city is Cali. We found that this policy was not able to change the ‘neighborhood contagion’ observed before implementation. This is an important conclusion of the study, which includes the spatial dependence to explain the fiscal performance of the municipalities. Through an exploratory analysis of spatial data (AEDE), we verified that the referenced system failed to reach its most ambitious objectives, raising the need for another type of public policy instrument.

This paper aims to provide a general reflection on systems engineering as a profession as well as on the current perspective prevalent in the Colombian public educational sector on this discipline both as a degree program and as a profession in the country’s labor market. Various social and academic aspects are analyzed that impact the lack of interest on the part of students in the public sector, taking into account that the information and communication technology (ICT) industry in the country lacks a large number of professionals who can meet the current needs of the enterprise and the academic sector. Therefore, this paper aims to raise awareness of the importance of this industry as well as to better promote this degree program among inclusive social sectors, which require a good number of students with a highly qualified academic training for the software sector.

Colombian literature of the nineteenth century captures the emerging process of the new nation and shows the ethical changes needed for the formation of a new country. By using the Colombian novel and poetry produced in the nineteenth-century, this paper will show how these are unfolded in practical effects of the works, drawing on the authors’ desire to influence with their work the ethical and political progress of the country, their society and the life of citizens, and to contribute to the foundation of the modern state in Colombia through a citizen ethics proposed in the texts. Additionally, this paper stresses the literary effort of reappraising the national moral and political situation, of confronting this with the past and, accordingly, of assessing the current situation.

This paper focuses on the link between Transitional Justice (TJ) and Indigenous Peoples in Colombia. The aim is to identify and discuss how Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia (ONIC) has used and appropriated the Transitional Justice in Colombia during the past 10 years. Thus, the main argument is the Colombian TJ, which is a social process of interactions involving diverse types of agents and multiple levels of law. This implies that Indigenous Peoples have engaged in a TJ from below through multi-sited uses of the discourse. This case study is analysed through a socio-legal and the sociology of social movements approach that articulates Law and globalization perspectives and, the diffusion and uses of law. The action-research perspective, the qualitative approach of ethnography and the methods of non-participant observation and in-depth interviews of some activists and social actors are used. In addition, qualitative content analysis of laws, policy papers, NGOs and indigenous organizations reports. Este artículo se centra en la relación entre la Justicia Transicional (JT) y los Pueblos Indígenas en Colombia. El objetivo es identificar y debatir cómo la Organización Nacional Indígena de Colombia (ONIC) ha utilizado y se ha apropiado de la Justicia Transicional durante los últimos 10 años. El argumento central es que la JT colombiana es un proceso social de interacciones que involucra diversos tipos de agentes y niveles del derecho. Esto implica que los Pueblos Indígenas se han involucrado en una JT desde abajo a través de los usos del discurso en múltiples lugares. Este estudio de caso es analizado a través de un enfoque socio-jurídico y de sociología de los movimientos sociales que articula las perspectivas del Derecho y la globalización, y la difusión y los usos del derecho. Metodológicamente usa la perspectiva de la investigación-acción, el enfoque cualitativo de la etnografía y los métodos de observación no participante y entrevistas en profundidad, y el análisis de contenido cualitativo de leyes, de documentos de políticas públicas, de ONG y de informes. DOWNLOAD THIS PAPER FROM SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=3269132

Este artículo expone los resultados del análisis de la representación mediática, sobre el conflicto de la Reserva Thomas Van der Hammen en Bogotá durante el 2016. Para este propósito, la metodología empleada será de corte cualitativo, utilizando como método el análisis del discurso de las noticias publicadas por los periódicos El Espectador y El Tiempo. Igualmente, la técnica de investigación se basará en las entrevistas semi-estructuradas a los actores claves del hecho. Los resultados permitirán afirmar que, la representación mediática de esta Reserva se realizó a partir de fuentes institucionales, desconociendo a los actores sociales como los habitantes de la zona y se construyó a partir de hechos coyunturales y puntuales. Asimismo, la prensa representó a la Reserva como un conflicto político, entre el alcalde Enrique Peñalosa, frente a grupos ambientalistas del país y grupos de oposición a la administración distrital.

Palynology is an important tool for establishing age and interpreting paleoenvironments in both continental and marine deposits. This paper provides a summarized overview of the palynological information published for deposits in Colombia ranging from the Paleozoic to the Miocene-Pliocene. We found 111 publications in indexed journals contain palynological data from 511 sections or wells. Palynology of the Paleozoic in Colombia has been mainly studied in the Eastern Llanos; the Triassic-Jurassic is virtually unknown; there are studies on the Cretaceous in the Eastern Cordillera, the Upper Magdalena Valley, and Catatumbo; the Paleogene has been studied in sedimentary rocks of the Llanos foothills, the Eastern Cordillera, the Middle Magdalena Valley, Catatumbo, and in some isolated spots in La Guajira and the Caribbean while the Neogene has been studied in the Amazon, the Eastern Cordillera, and the Llanos foothills. Recent publications for the Caribbean and Pacific regions and a palynological zonation for the Llanos and its basins have been successfully used in other basins in the country. In recent years, the interest of the Colombian government in exploring new areas for hydrocarbon exploration in the Caribbean facilitated a partnership between the National Hydrocarbons Agency and the University of Caldas to conduct palynological studies in deposits ranging from the Late Cretaceous to the Quaternary. Here we present a summary of the main advances in Caribbean palynology.

Cutaneous lupus erythematosus (CLE) is classified into three groups - acute, subacute, and chronic - based on clinical and histopathological characteristics. The risk of systemic manifestations varies among these groups. There are few studies on CLE epidemiology. For this reason, this paper aims to describe CLE prevalence and demographics in Colombia between 2015 and 2019. This descriptive, cross-sectional study used the international classification of diseases, tenth revision, for CLE subtypes, utilizing official data from the Colombian Ministry of Health. In people older than 19 years, 26,356 CLE cases were registered, yielding a prevalence of 76 cases per 100,000 population. CLE was more frequent in females, at a 5:1 ratio compared to males. The most common clinical presentation was discoid lupus erythematosus, in 45% of cases. The majority of cases occurred in people between 55 and 59 years old. This is the first study that describes CLE demographics in adults in Colombia. Findings regarding clinical subtypes and female predominance are consistent with those in the medical literature.

Colombia, like many developing nations, does not have a strong health system able to respond to a pandemic of the magnitude of Covid-19. There is an increasing need to create a model that allows particular clinics and hospitals to estimate the number of patients that require Intensive Care Units-ICU care (critical), and the number of patients that require hospital care (severe), but not ICU care, in order to manage their limited resources. This paper presents a prediction of the total number of ICU and regular beds that will be needed in Bogotá, Colombia, during the COVID-19 pandemic. We use an SEIR model that includes three different categories of infection: those who can stay at home, those who need regular hospital beds, and those who need ICU treatment. The model allows for a time varying transmission rate which we use to incorporate the measures introduced by the government over the period of one semester. The model predicts that by mid November 2020, the city will need 1362 ICU beds and more than 9000 regular hospital beds. The number of active cases will be 67,866 by then and the death toll will reach 13,268 people by the end of December. We provide a Shiny app available at https://claudia-rivera-rodriguez.shinyapps.io/shinyappcovidclinic/. The original values in the app reproduce the results of this paper, but the parameters and starting values can be changed according to the user's needs. COVID-19 has posed too many challenges to health systems around the globe. This model is a useful tool for cities, hospitals and clinics in Colombia that need to be prepared for the excess demand of services that a pandemic like this one generates. Unfortunately, the model predicts that by mid-November the projected capacity of the system in Bogotá will not be enough. We expect the lockdown rules to be strengthened in future days, so the death toll will not be as bad as predicted by this model.

The current discussion about assessment in the language teaching context—involving topics such as immigration and citizenship, and university entrance—has brought with it the issue of justice in assessment. Although in Colombia such concerns are not generally discussed, it is important to consider fairness when it comes to classroom assessment. This paper presents a review of five Colombian well-known journals during the period 2009–2020 aiming to identify the scholarly discussion regarding language assessment and testing in the country. Findings suggest that Colombian researchers are concerned with fair and democratic assessment practices, and the involvement of students in peer- and self-assessment practices to improve learning and promote autonomy. Also, there is a perceived need for more teacher education in language assessment.

Objective/Context: The year 2021 marked the 50th anniversary of the Regional Indigenous Council of Cauca (CRIC), the first organization established in Colombia to fight for territorial and identity rights of Indigenous Peoples. From a historical perspective and proposing an approach related to the concept of resistance, this paper focuses on how this latter has been expressed through this indigenous movement since its inception. Methodology: The information and reflections presented here are based on a corpus of bibliographical and documentary sources, as well as on a follow-up of the political mobilizations of indigenous peoples in situ, in the media, digital social networks, official minutes, and other statements. Conclusions: The analysis reveals the persistence of indigenous resistance and an expansion of the project that accompanies it, from a struggle for land and territory to efforts carried out along with other actors and social organizations to create a “better world.” Originality: The originality of the article consists of an analysis of the political dimensions of the resistance of Indigenous Peoples, which are still little known. In addition, it offers a novel approach to stress the intersection of (sub) national and global dynamics in which the demands of Indigenous Peoples and issues related to Colombia’s society and the whole world converge.