The Herbarium has samples of 7.000 botanical specimens of the department. Its inauguration will take place on 25 September 2013 and will have the presence of the Minister of Environment, Luz Sarmiento Villamizar.

Training group in drying and assembly of plants in Cañaverales

With the support of the Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Development, the University of La Guajira, Corpoguajira, various organizations in the private industrial sector and NGOs; work went ahead to consolidate the Herbarium of La Guajira "Wunü'ülia” (The plants), which has 7.000 botanical specimens, which represent 287 species distributed in 108 families, between higher plants (with flowers) and lower (ferns, lichens and fungi).

this Herbarium, whose launch will take place tomorrow 25 September, brings together a significant number of representative samples of dry forest ecosystem, one of the most threatened country. The initiative called Naturaguajira, Colombia led by Conservation International with the support of Corpoguajira and the Ministry of Environment, Housing and Territorial Development, It was supported by organizations such as Cerrejon, CCX y Pacific Rubiales.

The opening of the Herbarium of La Guajira, It will take place at the headquarters of the University of La Guajira (Riohacha), from the 2:00 pm, the event will be attended by the Minister of the Environment, Luz Sarmiento Villamizar. This important work is the result of a strategy that allowed generating strong ownership of the need to preserve the diversity of the flora of the region by local communities.

For several months people from various villages in the municipalities of Uribia, Manaure, Riohacha, Dibulla, Hatonuevo, India, Barrancas, Fonseca, San Juan del Cesar, Villanueva, Urumita and El Molino; They collected botanical specimens, after being trained by professionals and technicians of the Institute of Natural Sciences of the National University of Colombia and Conservation International. The plants were pressed and dried for subsequent assembly by women heads of household and other members of associations, Canatur and Multiactiva Cooperative Cañaverales and Dibulla, respectively.

This strategy will be consolidated as a hotbed of research in the region. It has the support of the Instituto Alexander Von Humboldt, the Colombian Association of Herbal and the Colombian Academy of Exact Sciences, Physical and Natural.