With the exhibition “Drawing Diversity: Art, Science and Plant Genetic Resources,” AGROSAVIA commemorates the 70th anniversary of the La Selva Research and Technology Transfer Center

• The artistic and scientific exhibition, which will be open to the public on the first floor of the Government of Antioquia until September 21, is part of an agenda of activities that will highlight the contributions of the La Selva Research and Technology Transfer Center to research, innovation, and agricultural development in Colombia over seven decades.
• The exhibition brings together art and science, bringing citizens closer to agricultural biodiversity, the conservation of plant genetic resources, and the impact of agricultural research on everyday life.
• Researchers, artists, and decision-makers participated in a panel discussion where, together with attendees, they reflected on this strategy for the social appropriation of knowledge. In addition, the publication Carota 360° – An Integrated Model for the Development of the Carrot Value Chain in Eastern Antioquia was launched.

 

Rionegro, Antioquia. September 11, 2026. Corporación colombiana de investigación agropecuaria (AGROSAVIA) opened the exhibition “Drawing Diversity: Art, Science and Plant Genetic Resources” on the first floor of the Government of Antioquia in Medellín. The exhibition is an initiative that brings together art, science, and the social appropriation of knowledge to bring agricultural research and agricultural biodiversity closer to citizens.

The exhibition is part of the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the La Selva Research and Technology Transfer Center, one of Colombia’s agricultural research centers with the longest history and greatest impact. Through the works and content that make up the exhibition, art becomes a language for fostering new perspectives and encouraging dialogue about science, nature, biodiversity, and their importance for the future of Colombian agriculture.

 

Discussion Panel on Art, Science, and Society, and the Launch of Carota 360°

As part of the exhibition, researchers, artists, and decision-makers held a discussion panel to reflect on the connections between art, science, and society, and their potential to generate new forms of dialogue and social appropriation of knowledge.

In addition, on this occasion, Carota 360° – An Integrated Model for the Development of the Carrot Value Chain in Eastern Antioquia, was presented. This outreach publication invites readers to discover the fascinating world of this crop and understand the value chain that makes it possible in eastern Antioquia. Throughout its pages, producers, researchers, students, and people interested in rural life will find knowledge about its genetic diversity, establishment, nutrition, agronomic management, plant health, harvesting, postharvest management, processing, and use.

This work brings together the experience of those who work the land with advances in scientific research, recognizing in each seed an opportunity to innovate, strengthen rural communities, and build more sustainable production systems. Its photographs, illustrations, data, and recommendations reveal the richness of an everyday crop that, when observed closely, proves extraordinary.

Opening this book means embarking on a journey through the carrot's colors, flavors, challenges, and possibilities. It means coming closer to the efforts of farming families and discovering how knowledge can transform rural areas. Through the following link, we can access the full content of Carota 360°: https://editorial.agrosavia.co/index.php/publicaciones/catalog/book/539

La Selva, 70 Years of Building Science for Agriculture

Caja Agraria acquired the La Selva Research and Technology Transfer Center, located in the municipality of Rionegro (Antioquia), in 1956. Since then, it has supported the transformation of Colombian agriculture by generating knowledge; developing, validating, and transferring technologies; co-innovating; and collaborating with producers, organizations, public and private entities, universities, research centers, and companies in the agricultural sector.

Throughout its history, La Selva has hosted different institutions and agricultural research processes, including the Department of Agricultural Research (DIA, for its Spanish acronym) in its early years, followed by the Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA, for its Spanish acronym) beginning in 1963 and, since 1993, Corporación colombiana de investigación agropecuaria, now AGROSAVIA. This trajectory has consolidated the Center as a national benchmark in research, development, and innovation for the agricultural sector.

Its work has helped strengthen production systems in cool and temperate climates, develop technologies to improve the productivity and sustainability of the agricultural and agro-industrial sectors, and conserve agricultural biodiversity through research and stewardship of genetic resources of strategic importance to Colombia.

Through these activities, AGROSAVIA reaffirms its commitment to continuing to generate knowledge, innovation, and solutions for agriculture, and to maintaining the La Selva Research and Technology Transfer Center as a benchmark for science at the service of rural development and the sustainable transformation of the agricultural sector.