The scholarship was aimed at professionals who work associated with municipalities and considers 100% of the tuition and fees.
Jean Pierre Molina Medina, Journalist.- A total of 35 applications received the scholarship awarded by the Diploma in Strategic Planning of Water Resources of the Catholic University of the Santísima Concepción (UCSC), which will soon carry out its second version. A very competitive group of professionals linked to municipalities belonging to the Chilean Association of Municipalities (ACHM) and the Association of Municipalities of the Biobío Region (AMRBB) participated in the process, whose selection was Cristián Toro.
The winner of this year’s scholarship is an agronomist, has a master’s degree in Business Innovation and is in charge of the Office of Water Affairs of the Municipality of Los Vilos. “I found out about this diploma thanks to my participation in the second version of the ACHM Water School. We created a WhatsApp group where those of us who participate and are involved in water management at the municipal level are linked. Through that means I found out and applied”, commented Cristián Toro.
His main motivation to participate in this instance is to improve and update content, which is directly linked to his professional work. “I am in charge of the Municipality’s Water Management Office, it is a new unit created in May of last year. For several years we have been suffering the consequences of water scarcity at a productive, social and environmental level, but there was no deeper involvement in these issues on the part of the Municipality, but the current administration was convinced to establish a unit dedicated to this ” , he added, highlighting that the work is carried out in a participatory manner with various social actors and services.
The main challenge for Cristián Toro is to face the blows of the water shortage in the Coquimbo Region. “We are fortunate that we are in the south of the Coquimbo Region, we have had more rainfall than La Serena or Coquimbo. But, due to the characteristics of our commune, we do not have a mountain range, it is fed by rainwater. We do not have surface water, our rivers and estuaries are dry”, he highlighted regarding the current reality of his commune.
In this way, all human activities that depend on water are associated with its underground extraction, which is accelerating the depletion of aquifers. Currently there is even a shortage of water for human consumption. There are sectors that depend on tanker trucks.
His main idea when studying is to generate new strategies to face the water scarcity in his commune, with current and robust tools, knowledge that he hopes to acquire in the diploma course. “I hope to improve my own knowledge on this subject, which is so broad, I also intend to generate links with the participants of this instance, since it helps a lot to have networks today and it is important to implement better solutions”, he concluded regarding his expectations .
