The GIGA group aims to carry out from engineering and environmental sciences - supported in teaching – research and outreach in the environmental area that responds to the needs of global, regional, and local environmental management.
Research Areas and Topics
Air quality
Water quality
Environmental change
Hydrogeology
Waste
Environmental sustainability
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
Group Coordinator
Juan Fernando Salazar Villegas
PhD in Hydraulic Resources, master’s degree in Hydraulic Resources, Civil Engineering. Universidad Nacional of Colombia, Medellín campus.
Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Medellín campus.
Notable Projects
SOS-Cuenca (basin): Sustainability of ecological and social systems in the Magdalena-Cauca basin under scenarios of climate change and forest loss.
REDRÍO, Monitoring on the Aburrá - Medellín river, from its source in the municipality of Caldas to its mouth in the Porce river.
Assembly of models to estimate human exposure to air pollutants.
Evidence4Policy: Developing the evidence-base in support of water resources management policy for sustainable agriculture development and environmental protection.
Main Research Results
Climate change: Professor Paola Arias of the GIGA group is the author of the latest IPCC report, and the only Colombian woman scientist to have served on this panel. She has also led national discussions in this regard, for example, on the Third National Communication on Climate Change. Two articles resulted from this, the second with broad participation of teachers and professors of GIGA:
Arias, P., Bellouin, N., Coppola, E., Jones, R., Krinner, G., Marotzke, J., ... & Zickfeld, K. (2021). Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group14 I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change; Technical Summary.
Arias, P. A., Villegas, L. D., Mesa, O. J., Pabón, J. D., Arango, J., Arango-Aramburo, S., ... & Zuluaga, M. D. (2022). Implicaciones metodológicas e inconsistencias de la Tercera Comunicación Nacional sobre Cambio Climático de Colombia. Revista de la Academia Colombiana de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas y Naturales.
EXCHANGE and discussions on peace and environment. A few years ago, the GIGA led, alongside EAFIT and Purdue University, the realization of the EXCHANGE event that has led to multiple collaborations, including discussions on the peace process in Colombia and the environmental implications. Three articles resulted from this, as well as a wide participation of teachers and professors of GIGA which have received attention from the national and international press:
Salazar, A., Sanchez, A., Villegas, J. C., Salazar, J. F., Ruiz Carrascal, D., Sitch, S., ... & Dukes, J. S. (2018). The ecology of peace: preparing Colombia for new political and planetary climates. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 16(9), 525-531.
Salazar, A., Salazar, J. F., Sánchez-Pacheco, S. J., Sanchez, A., Lasso, E., Villegas, J. C., ... & Dukes, J. S. (2021). Undermining Colombia's peace and environment. Science, 373(6552), 289-290.
Salazar, A., Sanchez, A., Dukes, J. S., Salazar, J. F., Clerici, N., Lasso, E., ... & Arias, P. A. (2022). Peace and the environment at the crossroads: Elections in a conflict-troubled biodiversity hotspot. Environmental Science & Policy, 135, 77-85.
The results of the Evidence4Policy Project (Follow the links), and two articles led by the GIGA group:
Bolaños Chavarría, S., Werner, M., Salazar, J. F., Betancur, T. (2022). Benchmarking global hydrological and land surface models against GRACE in a medium-sized tropical basin. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, 26(16), 4323-4344.
Bolaños, S., Salazar, J. F., Betancur, T., & Werner, M. (2021). GRACE reveals depletion of water storage in northwestern South America between ENSO extremes. Journal of Hydrology, 596, 125687.
Specialized advice on climate change, environmental change, air quality, hydrology, water quality, hydrogeology, environmental sustainability, and waste.
Technical services and/or analysis in climate change, environmental change, air quality, hydrology, water quality, hydrogeology, environmental sustainability, and waste.
Training in climate change, environmental change, air quality, hydrology, water quality, hydrogeology, environmental sustainability, and waste.
Advice, analysis, auditing, and development of environmental management plans of different types, including basin management plans, water (surface and underground), and air quality.
Numerical modeling and data analysis.
Measurement and monitoring of environmental variables.