PPBio-AmOc coordinator, Dr. William Magnusson, participated as a guest at the 2nd National Conference on Indigenous School Education (II CONEEI)

Axis 5, in which the coordinator participated, deals with the access and permanence of indigenous students in higher education. A fundamental theme of the Axis is that of Intercultural Undergraduate Courses. In 2005, MEC started a series of actions to stimulate the creation of Indigenous Intercultural Licentiate courses by Higher Education Institutions, in conjunction with the Education Secretariats. These courses aim to qualify indigenous teachers by areas of knowledge and promote the appreciation of the study of relevant themes, such as mother tongues, management and sustainability of indigenous peoples' lands and cultures. They also aim at the political training of indigenous teachers to act as intercultural agents in promoting and carrying out projects in their communities. There is also an increasing demand for professional training in other areas that support territorial management, health and environment projects. Another important theme is that of affirmative action policies and Quotas, which have provided opportunities for indigenous students to access Universities.

 

However, it is necessary to think about courses with intercultural curricular proposals and aimed at the technical qualification needs of young people and indigenous adults to work in their territories.

 

Although biodiversity is an integral and critical element for integrating modern science with traditional knowledge in indigenous cultures, so far there are few indigenous people trained in Biology and none at graduate level. Even among those trained in biology, few are following specializations relevant to biodiversity or local cultures.