ENRIQUE PÉREZ ARBELÁEZ, SCIENTIFICAL AND CULTURAL SPONSOR

Abstract

On the occasion of celebrating the centenary of his birth, a biographic summary is provided of Enrique Pérez -Arbeláez (* 1-03-1896 - +22-01-1972), the most important Colombian naturalist of this century. Not only was he the author of many books, was responsible for the establishment of much of the scientific infrastructure in Colombia. He established the National Herbarium of Colombia (1929), the lnstitute of Natural Sciences of the National University of Colombia (1936), and the Botanical Garden of Bogotá ( 1954 ). He was a leading advocate in the creation of the Colombian Academy of Sciences (1936), was responsible for the bigovernmental cultural agreement that has permitted the publication of the Flora of the Royal Botanical Expedition of the New Kingdom of Granada (1952), and a pivotal figure in the conservation of natural resources of our environment.