What if the economic wellbeing of many people could be improved, while at the same time the planet could benefit?
Researchers at the Con Vida Foundation in Medellin, Colombia are launching a pilot project that will compare the amount of water required by avocado trees – an increasingly popular crop in the country – to that of the native trees of the Tropical Andes rainforests to figure out how to protect this sensitive region without affecting the income of Colombian farmers.
“All of the Tropical Andean countries are low- to middle-income, and agriculture is the base of those economies,” Sebastian Gonzalez Caro, a researcher at Con Vida, says.
In the past decade, as demand for avocados was tripling, more and more Colombians took to avocado farming, which has raised the income level of rural areas. “The concern is the amount of land and water required to grow avocados in a significant way,” Gonzalez Caro said.
“We know there are positive economic and social outcomes, though we don’t yet know how much. The big question we hope to answer is what effect avocado farming will have on our environment,” he said.
Con Vida Foundation, a non-governmental organization (NGO) focused on sustainable development projects across Colombia, is one of 10 organizations receiving a grant this year from Scotiabank’s $10-million Net Zero Research Fund (NZRF). The fund was set up in 2021 to provide up to $100,000 to individual research projects to further research for positive environmental outcomes as part of Scotiabank’s Climate Commitments.
Con Vida’s project will create a web application that measures the negative and positive environmental impacts of the avocado crop and, depending on where a farmer is located in the Tropical Andes (ie. how high up on the mountain), help them determine the number of trees they can plant on their land in order to use as little as possible water and be carbon neutral.
“Climate change is a high priority for Scotiabank as we continue to enable leading Canadian and international academic institutions to drive positive environmental action through their research,” says Meigan Terry, SVP and Chief Communications and Social Impact Officer at Scotiabank. “We are proud to empower organizations such as the Colombia-based Con Vida Foundation and the other recipients of Scotiabank’s Net Zero Research Fund that are conducting innovative research that will have a tremendous impact in the transition to a low-carbon economy.”
Mexico, Chile and California have been filling the North American market’s demand for avocados. In these places, crops tend to be planted in dry regions, which requires more water, Gonzalez Caro noted. Colombia, which is the new kid on the block, grows them in the Tropical Andes, which is much wetter. Another factor is that the avocado tree is native to the region and so its water consumption may be similar to other native trees, he said.
We know there are positive economic and social outcomes.… The big question we hope to answer is what effect avocado farming will have on our environment.
The Tropical Andes region, which spans from western Venezuela to northern Chile and Argentina, and includes significant portions of Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Bolivia, is crucial in the fight against climate change. It is also one of the most overlooked carbon sinks (meaning it absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases) on the planet, storing above-ground carbon amounts per hectare similar to Amazon rainforests. However, only 500,000 hectares of the rainforest remain after decades of deforestation for fuel and animal grazing, and now rapidly expanding avocado crops.
“This project allows us to share scientific knowledge with companies and governments to help halt climate change,” said Alejandra Muñoz Rivera, Executive Director at the Con Vida Foundation. “And it’s a good project, because it provides a practical solution that addresses both the environment and socio-economic problems.”
Gonzalez Caro said that the team hopes that within a year its web and cellphone applications will be available for farmers and governments in Colombia to better plan and manage the planting of avocado trees. From there, the model could roll out in other Tropical Andean countries, he said.
Other recipients are:
- Centre for Sustainable Transport of Mexico, Mexico City The NGO will analyze energy consumption and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to define technology and policy interventions for members of the automotive cluster of the State of Mexico;
- Circular Opportunity Innovation Launchpad (COIL), Guelph, Ont. Guelph-Wellington’s Smart Cities’ pilot research and development project will develop a circular economy (CE) assessment methodology to advance the global transition from a linear economic model (take-make-waste) to a resilient, less-wasteful circular economy;
- Construction’s Technological Innovation Centre, Santiago The centre aims to contribute to the definition of a national baseline of embodied and operational carbon for new and existing residential buildings that meets the commitments established for Chile’s transition to carbon neutrality;
- Ean University, Bogota, Colombia Through a series of school laboratories in Bogota and Manizales, the university’s Food System Resilience Lab aims to strengthen sustainability education and innovation in the country to ensure food producers follow sustainable practices that respect workers and the environment;
- Pollution Probe Foundation, Toronto Pollution Probe’s electric school bus pilot, run in Calgary in partnership with fleet operator Southland Transportation and electrical utility ENMAX, will produce an unbiased report to be shared through provincial and national stakeholders that are supporting transformation of Canada’s approximately 50,000 school buses.
- Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, Santiago The university’s project looks to inform policymakers on how to encourage households to substitute electric heaters for wood-burning stoves, and to provide information on the health benefits and ways to make it affordable through access to low-interest credit;
- Reef Aquaculture Conservancy, Morelia, Mexico Reef Aquaculture Conservancy is developing a pilot project to restore coral reefs and lagoons with aquaculture corals and seagrass. Worldwide, 50% of coral reefs have been lost;
- Institute of Technology and Higher Studies of Monterrey, Monterrey, Mexico The aim of this research project is to find a way for the cement industry to decarbonize by using CO2 to obtain methanol through thermal catalytic conversion;
- The University of Chile’s Energy Center (CE) and Center for Climate and Resilience Research (CR)2, Santiago Its Carbon Neutrality Observatory of Chile project will allow for annual monitoring of Chile’s emission-reduction commitments to address climate change at the national and international levels;
To read more about these projects visit Scotiabank’s Climate Change Centre of Excellence.
Click Net Zero Research Fund recipient says industrial energy efficiency is an overlooked opportunity to read about last year’s grant recipients.
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