Government and University: The Emergence of Academic Biology in Venezuela

Abstract

This article describes the factors that played a role in paving the way for the emergence of the basic sciences, in particular biology, at the Universidad Central de Venezuela in 1946. Account has been taken of the fluid, dynamic situation in the country—at that time undergoing a process of change—that influenced the visions of the players taking part in this project, which unfolded in a university environment that demanded profound changes, both on the political-academic front and in terms of physical infrastructure, to enable it to adapt to the process of modernisation that was taking place. In order to put this research into its proper context, we have examined elements from the world of politics, and from the economic and social fields, as well as aspects of the dominant culture. In existing documentation, moreover, there are indications of agreements and disagreements among members of the university itself, and between the university and representatives of the government, a struggle that reveals personal preferences, given approaches and political commitments, visions of science and even professional jealousies.