Enrique Beltrán
Encyclopedia
Enrique Beltrán Castillo (1903 – 1994) was one of Mexico's first conservationists. A student of Alfonso Herrera at the UNAM
in the 1920s, Beltrán was appointed by Herrera "to head two marine commissions (in 1923 and 1926), that were established to study and improve the use of Mexico's coastal fisheries."
In 1932, Beltrán received a Guggenheim Fellowship "to consult oceanographic
archives in the United States and to study protozoology
at Columbia University
.
After completing his doctorate in zoology
at Columbia, from 1939-52 Beltrán headed the Department of Protozoology at Mexico's Institute of Health and Tropical Diseases.
With assistance from the Charles Lathrop Pack Forestry Foundation, in 1952, Beltrán founded the Mexican Institute of Renewable Natural Resources" (Instituto Mexicano de Recursos Naturales Renovables, or IMERNAR), one of Mexico's first conservation organizations, serving as its first director.
In 1966, he received a medal of honor from the IUCN.
National Autonomous University of Mexico
The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México is a university in Mexico. UNAM was founded on 22 September 1910 by Justo Sierra as a liberal alternative to the Roman Catholic-sponsored Royal and Pontifical University of Mexico The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) (National Autonomous...
in the 1920s, Beltrán was appointed by Herrera "to head two marine commissions (in 1923 and 1926), that were established to study and improve the use of Mexico's coastal fisheries."
In 1932, Beltrán received a Guggenheim Fellowship "to consult oceanographic
Oceanography
Oceanography , also called oceanology or marine science, is the branch of Earth science that studies the ocean...
archives in the United States and to study protozoology
Protozoology
Protozoology is the study of protozoa, the "animal-like" protists. This term has become dated as our understanding of the evolutionary relationships of the eukaryota has improved....
at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
.
After completing his doctorate in zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
at Columbia, from 1939-52 Beltrán headed the Department of Protozoology at Mexico's Institute of Health and Tropical Diseases.
With assistance from the Charles Lathrop Pack Forestry Foundation, in 1952, Beltrán founded the Mexican Institute of Renewable Natural Resources" (Instituto Mexicano de Recursos Naturales Renovables, or IMERNAR), one of Mexico's first conservation organizations, serving as its first director.
In 1966, he received a medal of honor from the IUCN.