The agreement between the Department of Economics at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, and the University of Gothenburg ended in December 2024. The former EfD Colombia center will now be a partner of the network.
REES (Research Group on Environmental, Natural Resource, and Applied Economics Studies) hosted at the Department of Economics at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá, Colombia, was founded in 2015 by a group of professors from Colombian universities specialized in environmental economics. The group’s main purpose was to increase the interaction among them and enhance the visibility of their research results. In the beginning, REES-EfD Colombia had eight members. By the end of 2024, REES had 23 members, out of which 12 were women.
Thanks to the EfD support, during 2016 – 2024, REES conducted 11 research projects in mining, forestry, air quality, energy, fisheries, aquaculture, and payment for ecosystem services. REES also participated in the research programs Sustainable Fisheries and Aquaculture Management and Assessing Global Aquaculture Production Systems. Several academic articles derived from this support were published in peer-reviewed journals.
In 2021, EfD Colombia took over the helm of the collaborative program WinEED (Women in Environmental Economics for Development). From 2021 to 2024, the WinEED program held two workshops at EfD Nigeria to build the capacities of women researchers. WinEED also contributed a report on gender to the Research Agenda for Inclusive Low-Carbon Transition in the Global South.
Concrete research and broader networks
The EfD support has strengthened the REES capacity to develop a research agenda in three areas: protection of natural resources, environmental governance, and consumption and production impacts on the environment. EfD’s focus on policy impact has guided the researchers’ work by considering the effects of their research on policymaking.
REES members have also accessed broader scientific networks through EfD centers and collaborative programs. Being part of an international network of researchers has also allowed REES to meet researchers in other countries with whom they can work on collaborative projects in an international context.
Policy interaction and increased public visibility
EfD gave REES a platform for increasing its interaction with national and local stakeholders. One example of this policy engagement is the continuous communication with stakeholders on research on air pollution. REES was involved in the policy debate on air pollution control in Bogotá and Medellin. REES researchers found that, in the case of Bogotá, paving roads in the southwest of Bogotá is the most effective policy to reduce air pollution. This finding has been included in the definition of the zones for better air in Bogotá, where the local authority will prioritize actions for improving air quality in the city. This research received a “Certificate of Excellence” from EfD due to its policy impact.
Another example of vivid interaction with stakeholders is associated with the research theme of sustainable fisheries and aquaculture management. REES researchers engaged stakeholders from the beginning of the research formulation. Policy interaction involved data sharing, discussions, and site visits. This engagement contributed to obtaining impactful and relevant research results.
Finally, prizes such as Gunnar Köhlin’s Best Master Thesis Award have increased the visibility of REES master students’ work and have stimulated researchers to foster the connection between teaching, research, and student supervision.
In the future, REES will continue developing its member’s research agendas and policy interaction activities. REES will continue its collaboration with the EfD centers around common research interests and projects, as well as policy interaction.
EfD Director Gunnar Köhlin gives the following reflection on the transition:
”REES has been one of EfD’s strongest and most successful centers in terms of their research applications, peer-reviewed publications, and quality of graduate students. The network has benefited immensely from the collaboration with researchers at REES. We are, therefore, very happy that REES will continue as an academic partner in our EfD network. Last year Peking University made this transition from center to academic partner, and we are very happy to see that our network remains wide and strong”.
By: Manuela Fonseca and Jorge Bonilla.