Colombia Calling - The English Voice in Colombia

Adventurer Daniel Eggington is back! After completing the crossing of the Darien jungle along the Pacific side from Colombia to Panama in 2022, Eggington has decided to return to Colombia to embark on a three-month expedition along the Rio Negro all the way to Manaus in Brazil. The Rio Negro is over 1400 miles long with its widest point in Brazil at around 18 miles wide that is based around the Anavilhanas National Park. Eggington will face dangers from gold miners, illegal logging groups and perhaps come across unknown communities. Much of this expedition is uncharted territory. Hear us discuss his planned trip, his fears and hopes and why he wants to do this. Foolhardy, very possibly...adventurous, almost certainly. Watch this space as we will be detailing Eggington's progress via GPS reports. The Colombia Briefing is reported by Emily Hart. Support us at www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

On this week's Colombia Calling podcast we hear about British photographer Natasha Johl's work in photographing the Arahuacas in Colombia's Sierra Nevada. Descendents of the Tairona, an ancient South American civilization, indigenous group, the Arhuacos, reside in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. The Arhuaco have developed an understanding of the earth which gives equal measure to the human mind and spirit and the forces of nature. The Sierra Nevada is a microcosm of earth: A seamless gradient of life that changes with each upward step. Because of this unique feature, it is known as the ‘Heart of the World’ to the indigenous communities who inhabit the mountains and valleys. The Arhuaco say that when the world was created, they emerged from this very spot. They call it the Mother. Johl uses the quiet and quotidian nuances in life to present an intimate picture. Looking at the smaller, seemingly insignificant or unnoticed things, makes us appreciate the complex and delicate moments of everyday life. Tune in for a wonderful narrative from the foothills of Minca where Johl now lives and hear how she has succeeded in earning the confidence of the Arahuacas, to be able to spend significant time with them. Check out her website: https://sanctuaryartstudios.com/

Paula Delgado-Kling takes us to her homeland, Colombia, where she finds answers to the country’s drug wars by examining the life of Leonor, a former child soldier in the FARC, a rural guerrilla group. But, this story doesn't begin with Leonor, it commences during Delgado-Kling's childhood, when Colombia’s violence also touched her family and her brother was kidnapped and held in captivity for six months. It becomes intensely personal. Our conversation spans decades of the author's life as she follows the life and hardships of Leonor, but also, becomes aware of her upbringing in the context of Colombia's conflict, what is means for her identity, her family and how she sees her home nation today. Buy the book: Leonor: The Story of a Lost Childhood https://a.co/d/ikaDRuX The Colombia News Brief is reported by Emily Hart.

This week on the Colombia Calling podcast, we discuss Colombian food and observe it through the philosophically tilted lens of expert Juliana Duque. Halfway between the abstract and the tangible, Colombian cuisine is the taste and the colour of abundance. The fertile soils of the American continent shaped pre-Colombian food cultures. Changes over the centuries have shown the influence of the Andes, running the length of South America, the Pacific coast extending for thousands of kilometres, and the glorious Caribbean, universally loved for its sunshine and warmth. We discuss elements of place and time in addition to the importance of food in its context as well as some of the consequences of colonialism on a culinary landscape. Juliana Duque is a writer, editor, and critic of contents about food and culture. She holds a Ph.D. in Sociocultural Anthropology from Cornell University with emphasis on Latin America. Duque has collaborated with platforms such as Netflix, Condé Nast, Eater, KCET, Life & Thyme, New Worlder and Fine Dining Lovers and is the author of the book "Sabor de Casa (Intermedio Editores, 2017)," which tells the stories and visions of fourteen Colombian chefs who have led the revitalization of Colombian cuisine in the last thirty years, and former editor of Cocina Semana Magazine. Check her out at: https://newworlder.substack.com And support us at: www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

This week, we are exploring the underground and invisible networks of Colombia – along with some of its strangest and least-understood creatures: fungi. We’ll be talking about zombie fungi, shamanic fungi and magic mushrooms, the Wood Wide Web, sunscreen spores, makeup fungi, and eco-warrior fungi – plus why this fascinating mega-science has been so neglected, and why it’s more urgent than ever that mycology gets the awareness, resources, and respect that it deserves. Emily Hart interviews two of Colombia’s top scientists and leaders in their fields: mycologist Aida Vasco is Assistant professor at the School of Microbiology at the University of Antioquia and Co-Chair of the Colombian Association of Mycology; botanist Mauricio Diazgranados is Chief Science Officer and Dean of the International Plant Science Center at the New York Botanical Garden. Mauricio led the Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia project, including the development of the Colfungi portal and the Catalogue of Fungi of Colombia, on which Aida also worked. There are an estimated 300,000 species of fungi in Colombia, the huge majority of which are unstudied. In fact, fungi in general remains one of science’s great mysteries: it is known as a ‘neglected mega-science’. They change animal behaviour, connect the forests, feed humans and animals, and may even be a key weapon in the fight against climate change. Battling this vast gap in knowledge is the Useful Plants and Fungi of Colombia project - an initiative led by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in collaboration with the Humboldt Institute. The projects aim to increase, consolidate, and make accessible the knowledge of the country’s useful plants and fungi for the benefit of local communities. Fungi have played a vital role in shaping the Earth’s biosphere, and have directly impacted human society and its cultural evolution for the past 300,000 years - used as food, for ritualistic purposes, or as medicinal products. In Colombia, fungi - in the form of wild edible mushrooms - are primarily used as a nutritional source, having long played a role in the food security of indigenous people and local communities: representations are found in the iconography of several pre-Hispanic cultures throughout the country, showing knowledge and a close cultural relationship with fungi. Shamanic and spiritual uses are also common in the country. Habitat loss, habitat fragmentation, overuse of pesticides and fungicides, and of course climate change affect fungi as well as fauna and flora, but fungi are not explicitly included in biodiversity legislation, biodiversity action plans, and conservation policies in Colombia. The Colombian government only recognises three components of biological diversity: Fauna, Flora, and microorganisms. But there is cause for hope – we are only just starting to understand fungi but the field is gaining momentum, and experiments show their potential is even grander than we have imagined – they are not only a sustainable food source to fight hunger and the industrial food which accelerates climate change: mushrooms can also decompose waste – including nappies and cigarette butts, and can be used in ‘myco-fabrication’ - manufacture of e.g. architecture and furniture. They are incredibly adaptive, and provide ways for plants and animals to survive even in extreme and degraded environments.

This week, Emily Hart speaks to Cristina Fuentes La Roche, International Director of the Hay Festival, about arts curation and festival-making in the era of Artificial Intelligence and social media - and bringing one of the world's most successful literary festivals to Colombia for the last two decades. The Hay Festival is known as 'the Woodstock of the Mind': Nobel Prizewinners and novelists, scientists and politicians, historians, environmentalists and musicians take part in the Festival’s global conversation, sharing the latest thinking in the arts and sciences with curious audiences. The festival kicks off in Colombia this month, with chapters this and next week in Medellín and Jericó, Antioquia, then in Cartagena at the end of the month. At this year's festival are Juan Manuel Santos, Wade Davis, Brigitte Baptiste, Rebecca Solnit, André Aciman, Héctor Abad Faciolince, Amalia Andrade, Margarita Rosa de Francisco, Humberto de la Calle, Juan Gabriel Vásquez, Los Danieles and more! Emily and Cristina chat all things Hay, Colombia, and the arts - delving into the importance of spontaneity, connection, and conversation - and how the upcoming global challenges we face will prove to be, above all, challenges of the imagination... Tune in and support the podcast: www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

It's Episode 500 of the Colombia Calling podcast! Celebrate with us as we chat to Colombia's most famous dancer, Fernando Montaño. Fernando Montaño was born in Buenaventura on the Pacific coast of Colombia and at the age of 14 won a scholarship to the National Ballet School of Cuba where he won several prizes at the International Ballet Contest in Havana, Cuba, and then joined the Cuban National Ballet. He also trained at La Scala and Teatro Nuovo di Torino, Italy where he was spotted by the Director of the English Ballet School and invited to the UK to audition, following which he joined the Royal Ballet in 2006 where he was mentored by Carlos Acosta. We discuss his life as an artist - dancing, painting, designing - and his work supporting the charity, Children Change Colombia, the question of identity and being from Colombia's pacific coast. Join us to hear and experience Fernando's unique energy, his reflections on life and opportunities and how he wishes to be remembered. The Colombia News Brief is reported by journalist Emily Hart. Support the Colombia Calling podcast: https://www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

On the final episode of 2023, the Colombia Calling podcast welcomes back Colombia Risk Analysis' director Sergio Guzmán and Daniel Poveda to discuss their latest report: "Understanding China's Tech Footprint in Colombia - Challenges and Opportunities," and also discuss 2023 in terms of Colombia's politics. Hear Guzmán and Poveda discussing the strategic - or lack thereof - plans created by the Colombian government led by President Gustavo Petro, to court China but at the same time, not alienate their key partner...the United States. We discuss Chinese tech investments and infrastructure investments, Colombia's relationship with Venezuela, where the government stands on the aggression towards Guyana and much more. Check out Colombia Risk Analysis: www.colombiariskanalysis.com Support the Colombia Calling podcast: www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

Kidnapped by the FARC guerrillas whilst birding, Diego Calderon may just be Colombia's most famous birder. This week on the Colombia Calling podcast, Calderon sits down with myself and journalist Natalia Malaver, to discuss how birding in Colombia can be a tool for reconciliation, his experience of being kidnapped, what the peace accord with the FARC means and all sorts of information about birdwatching in Colombia. Tune in for this and the Colombia News brief reported by journalist Emily Hart. Watch the NatGeo documentary of Calderon and his kidnapping experience here: https://youtu.be/ZF9rfNphh5I?si=7nAZMzJvYFtOJrLi Tune in to the Birders Show: https://www.youtube.com/@TheBirdersShow and support us here: www.patreon.com/colombiacalling

This week, Emily Hart takes you on a sonic tour of Colombia, with the Humboldt Institute’s Natural Sound Collection: not only are we going to be hearing about this amazing project, we are going to be listening to some of the more unusual and noteworthy sounds from the collection itself and exploring what they tell us about Colombia’s natural environments and those who inhabit them. We’ll hear a giant otter’s bark, the snore of a fish, a frog cocktail party, and mosquito love songs, plus bizarre and beautiful birds – along with a few other Colombian nature noises. We are joined by the collection’s curator, Hoover Pantoja – expert in bioacoustics, technological development, and innovation; and Curator of Birds, Gustavo Bravo - evolutionary ornithologist and expert in the systematics, ecology, and evolution of Neotropical birds. This soundbank – known as the Mauricio Álvarez Rebolledo Collection - is the second largest repository of natural sounds in Latin America, with more than 24,000 audio recordings - of 20 species of mammals, 1064 birds, 131 amphibians, 17 insects, and numerous ambient recordings of Colombia’s innumerable ecosystems. It has been built sound by sound since the 1990s, providing a crucial resource on a vastly underrated dimension of Colombia’s biodiversity, and ecology more generally. We’ll be talking about its evolution, from one man in the wilds of Colombia wielding a tape recorder through to the high-tech solutions – including of course artificial intelligence – being applied to the collection and the discipline more widely today. This sound bank is open to everyone - we'll be sharing the links so you can explore it for yourselves too. We are going to be journeying through the unseen universe of natural sound – sounds we often don’t or even can’t hear - talking about which animals have evolved to make and hear sounds - and why, and how sound can be used to understand evolution and measure the health of ecosystems. In the next hour, we’ll travel across Colombia from the Amazon to the Eastern Plains and beyond – with an unplanned but somewhat inevitable detour through Central Medellin.