Hambre cero

Developing genomic and biotechnological tools to confront high-impact phytosanitary diseases in Musa crops represents a strategic priority for the agricultural sector. Within this scope, the oral defense was held for the postgraduate thesis in the Master’s Program in Applied Biosciences with a concentration in Biodiscovery, presented by researcher Estefany Margarita Paredes Salgado.

During its 24th Ordinary Session, held on August 11, 2026, the Plenary of CACES officially recognized the international accreditation of the on-campus Nutrition and Dietetics program at ESPOL.

This distinction ratifies the accreditation previously granted by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (United States). With this resolution, the international credential is fully recognized within Ecuador’s higher education system and will remain in effect until January 30, 2030.

As part of their practical coursework and community engagement activities, students from the Nutritional Assessment II and Community Health courses in the Nutrition and Dietetics program at FLS-ESPOL carried out a nutritional assessment and counseling session targeted at priority groups.

On August 1, 2026, the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) celebrated the start of academic activities with the 16 students of the second cohort of the Master’s in Plant Health, a postgraduate program designed to strengthen technical and scientific capacities in crop protection, integrated pest management (IPM), and agricultural biosecurity across the country.

An outstanding delegation from the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) represented ESPOL at NUTRITION 2026, the annual meeting of the American Society for Nutrition (ASN), held from June 25 to 28 in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. Recognized as the world's premier global forum for nutritional science, the event brought together thousands of international experts, scientists, and healthcare professionals to discuss the most innovative advances in clinical nutrition, public health, and molecular research.

With the objective of aligning university science with the territorial demands of Ecuadorian agriculture, the Soil and Plant Nutrition Laboratory at Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral hosted an inter-institutional technical forum titled "Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue: Investing in Applied Cocoa Research."

As part of the practical activities designed to complement classroom learning, students from the Faculty of Life Sciences (FLS) participated in a technical field visit to an organic banana plantation currently being established in the Santa Elena Peninsula. The tour was guided and supervised by professor José Rivas, Ph.D., who accompanied the future professionals throughout the day of observation and hands-on learning in the field.

Technified irrigation and chemical water conditioning are decisive factors in boosting nutrient uptake in high-value, non-traditional export crops. Within this framework, the oral defense was held for the postgraduate thesis titled: “Effect of irrigation water acidification using 3 types of acid on pitahaya (Hylocereus undatus) crop yield, Manabí Province, Ecuador,” presented by Alex Muñoz.

Water resource optimization in agricultural areas represents an essential pillar for agricultural resilience and the sustainability of Ecuador's rural sector. Grounded in this focus, the oral defense was held for the postgraduate thesis project titled: "Spatial modeling and analysis of crop water requirements for efficient irrigation management in Bolívar canton, Manabí", presented by Yaser Galarza.

Food security and agricultural sustainability across the inter-Andean region demand predictive modeling tools to adapt water management to the impacts of climate variability. Grounded in this objective, the oral defense was held for the postgraduate thesis titled: “Projection of potato, maize, and quinoa water requirements under climate change using CROPWAT 8.0 in Pichincha province, Ecuador,” presented by Julio Espinoza.