Past News
Researchers Share Lessons Learned From Peru's Water Management Program
February 2, 2022
Learning, as defined by Ababacar Mbengue and Sedou Sané, is the ability to "detect errors and correct them by changing [one's] theory of action. But what happens when that learning does not produce the expected outcome?
Researchers Share Lessons Learned From Peru's Water Management Program
Purdue Article Highlights Purdue-UNSA Partnership
January 27, 2022
An article written recently by John O'Malley, Purdue Communications Specialist, highlighted UNSA's leadership visit last October, in preparation for the third phase of the major multidisciplinary research partnership between Purdue and UNSA through the Arequipa Nexus Institute.
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Using Pacha Kit to Measure Soil Health Indicators: Nexus Featured Research Tool
October 11, 2021
Soil practices can improve agricultural productivity, but a healthy soil cannot be only defined by crop yield. It is necessary to measure integrated chemical, biological, and physical indicators that are sensitive to management and reflect changes in resilience and adaptation. Soil health is then defined as the ability of the soil to sustain the productivity, diversity, and environmental services of terrestrial ecosystems (ITPS, 2020). Moreover, soil management decisions, crop rotation, and application of agrochemicals lead to changes in physical, chemical, and biological soil properties that require constant monitoring and evaluation. In this context, Peruvian smallholder farmers face limited access to basic farming needs like formal soil analysis, and when done, these analyses can be costly, complex, lacking standardization, and can delay farmer decision-making. To foster knowledge exchange and future collaborations with farmers, the Soil Vulnerability, Impairment, and Health Assessment (SHIVA) group of the Arequipa Nexus Institute has adapted a relatively simple soil kit, the PachaKit, to measure soil health indicators such as physical characterization, bulk density, infiltration, electric conductivity, pH, nitrates, texture, aggregate stability, particulate organic matter (POM), permanganate oxidizable carbon (POXC), extractable phosphorus (P) and macrofauna.
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Nexus Purdue-UNSA ‘Plant-microbe interactions’ team publish paper in Applied Soil Ecology Journal
October 4, 2021
Arequipa Nexus Institute ‘Plant-microbe interactions’ team published a paper on soil fungal communities on farms in Arequipa, which face crop diseases caused by soil-borne fungal pathogens, in the Applied Soil Ecology journal. The composition and potential functional roles of soil fungal communities on 12 farms was characterized using SMRT sequencing and compared based on location and farm age to investigate possible drivers of the pathogens’ structure and function.
Purdue-UNSA ‘Food Safety’ TEAM completes productive stage in research
September 30, 2021
The “Developing good agricultural and manufacturing practices” project recently completed two weeks of productive fieldwork evaluating the microbiological quality of Arequipa’s irrigation water and testing for pesticide residues. Purdue Post-Doctoral Researcher Silvia J R Vargas visited UNSA laboratories to start the project stage related to the determination of pesticide residues in irrigation waters and continue evaluation of their microbiological quality. An irrigation water sampling protocol was established, with training administered to UNSA staff, Mg. Erika Pachari and Mg. Yemina Díaz. 45 samples were obtained from 15 collection points in the Cayma, Tiabaya, and Majes districts of Arequipa.
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Dr. Grethel Choque arrives for month-long research at Purdue
September 20, 2021
UNSA Food Science Professor and Co-PI Dr. Grethel Choque arrived at Purdue on September 19 for a month-long work on the project “Development of low heavy-metal nutritious foods” with Purdue Co-PI and Food Science Professor Dr. Bruce Hamaker.
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Welcome Arequipa Nexus New Co-Directors
September 10, 2021
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Hoagland and Dr. Leon-Salas as the Arequipa Nexus Institute’s new co-directors. Dr. Hoagland and Dr. Leon-Salas will provide leadership to the Nexus research initiatives, capacity training and knowledge exchange activities with the Universidad Nacional de San Agustin de Arequipa, Peru (UNSA). They will continue to strengthen our partnership development and support new initiatives.
Nexus Institute Leadership Travels to Arequipa, Peru to strengthen the Purdue-UNSA Partnership
September 6, 2021
Nexus Institute leadership travels to Arequipa, Peru this week to convene with Universidad Nacional de San Agustin de Arequipa (UNSA) leadership in a meeting on Purdue-UNSA strategic cooperation.
UNSA’s Newly Elected Authorities Take the Oath
August 31, 2021
The Universidad Nacional de San Agustin de Arequipa (UNSA), Purdue’s strategic partner in Peru, holds a ceremony for their newly elected authorities to take the oath of office.
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Congratulations to Dr. Martin Marshall on his new Emeritus appointment
July 16, 2021
We congratulate Dr. Marshall Martin on his new appointment as Professor Emeritus, Assistant Dean and Senior Associate Director of Agricultural Research and Graduate Education Emeritus. He was Professor of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University and the Senior Associate Director of Agricultural Research, Assistant Dean in the College of Agriculture.
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