Chapter 30: The Uw-Madison-Colombia Connection

UW–Madison has had research and training collaborations in Colombia on tropical diseases since 1969. In the first phase, an agreement was established between the UW–Madison and the University of Antioquia (UdeA) in Medellín, Colombia. The agreement established research and teaching initiatives between the UW–Madison Department of Veterinary Science directed by Professor Thomas Yuill and the Dean of the UdeA Faculty of Veterinary and Animal Science. Laboratories were established in the UdeA’s facilities, a field station built in the Andean foothills forest, and research was conducted in lowland agricultural areas. UW–Madison graduate students did thesis research in Colombia and UdeA junior faculty completed MS and PhD degrees at UW–Madison. The next phase began in 2004 with Jorge Osorio (Professor, UW Department of Pathobiological Sciences) and his research on emerging viral diseases. He re-established the UW–Madison-UdeA agreement and also started new collaborations in other academic institutions in Colombia. In 2015, a new collaboration with Colombia’s Ruta N Corporation (a non-profit, philanthropic organization) was developed and a Center for the Study of Emerging Viral Diseases in Medellín was launched. In 2018, UW–Madison entered into an agreement with the Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNC), Colombia’s largest and most prestigious, and Ruta N creating the Colombia/Wisconsin One-Health Consortium (CWOHC). The Consortium is the third center in South America to be member of the Global Virus Network. Since 2015, Professor Osorio has worked with the GVN ZIKV Task Force as a cochair of the Arbovirus Watch Group.