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“I have always valued and passionately executed the work of researcher and professor” “I am very proud of the achievements of my entire staff in this period”Dr. Pedro Ferreira Rossi has been CATIE’s director general of for the past eight years. On Feb. 29, he will hand over the post to the successor, Dr. José Joaquín Campos¾who is currently the subdirector of CATIE and director of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment. Pedro Ferreira was born in Uruguay where he initiated studies in industrial engineering. He has a master’s degree in statistics from the OAS’ Interamerican Center for Teaching Statistics (CIENES) in Santiago, Chile, and he has a doctorate in statistics from the University of Waterloo in Canada.
In 1986, he joined the CATIE staff as chief of the Biometrics Unit. Before obtaining the post of director general, Ferreira was head of the Information Sciences Unit, director of the Teaching Program for Development and Conservation, director of Strategic Planning and Foreign Cooperation and a professor and dean of the Graduate School at CATIE. With days to go before he leaves the directorship, Ferreira tells us how he came to CATIE and the experiences of his 22 years here. In what year did you begin working at CATIE and why did you decide to come? In 1986 Brazil was experiencing difficult economic times and EMBRAPA was drastically reducing its staff of international consultants. I was one of the few consultants to be rehired, but when I was told that CATIE needed an expert in statistics and that a long-term position was available, I decided to visit Turrialba. I came for the first time and they offered me the position. What was your experience like as professor and dean of the Graduate School at CATIE? I have always valued and passionately executed the work as researcher and professor. I had excellent relations with my students, who recognized me as an outstanding professor—I have plaques given to me by several generations of students in recognition of my work.
I was able to see that the director of education position offers many opportunities and compensations if done well. There is nothing more important than educating new generations and nothing better than seeing young people develop. This is a task that should be carried out with great respect for the academic body and student population at CATIE, which is comprised of professionals, many with tremendous experience and great potential. At the beginning of your work as director general, did you ever imagine that you would remain in this post for two terms?
What was the biggest challenge you encountered in your time as director general? The major challenge for CATIE comes from its budget structure, where the core budget is very limited, with a high percentage of it not permanent. Changes in donor agency trends led to significant budgetary reductions in 2002 and 2003, in which we lost about 30% of our core budget. Thanks to the enormous proactivity of the thematic groups, offices and other entities and with many innovations, we were able to overcome this, attaining a record total budget in recent years. However, we have never recovered the core budget level we had at the end of the last decade, and this continues to be a major challenge. During your term, what do you think was the most outstanding achievement? One that has filled you with pride.
What at CATIE will you miss the most? CATIE is a very difficult institution as well as one with enormous potential. Undoubtedly what I will miss the most is confronting the challenges that accompany this position. What are your plans after February 29? A friend asked me the same
question and I said, “We’re going to the Caribbean.” He said, “¿De
gavilanes?” (Like hawks?), a Costa Rican saying that implies
flying over, getting the big picture and seeing what you find. I
immediately acquiesced, “Yes, of course, ‘de
gavilanes.’” In these eight years, do you feel that CATIE has left its mark on contributing to poverty reduction, sustainable rural development and knowledge generation? It’s not up to me to judge CATIE’s performance or impacts during my tenure. There was an independent external evaluation in 2007 that can be viewed on the institutional Web page (Report of an independent external evaluation of CATIE). The results were very positive. I am very proud of the achievements of my staff during this period. The CATIE of today is different from the CATIE when you arrived. What are the major or most important differences? As I have said before, I leave a CATIE that works as a team, with numerous leaders who deserve respect and are respected. Verticality is finished. The institution is more dynamic and resilient. The thematic groups have also been greatly modernized. We have excellent scientists and groups in climate change, environmental services, ecoenterprises, environmental livestock production, landscape management, etc.
We have completed funding for a second endowed chair for about $3 million, we paid for the office in Guatemala, and we bought a new farm in southern Costa Rica. Our Botanical Garden has become a preferred tourist destination in our zone. In general terms I believe that we have helped increase the prestige of this noble institution. But there is still a lot to do. We have only taken a few little steps down a long and difficult road. How do you envision CATIE in the next 10 years? I see the center becoming
more international and self-sufficient, playing in the big leagues with
quality research in strategic areas. With a Graduate School offering internationally accredited education
programs of the highest level—hopefully in English. With a foundation in
the United States that connects us to the world of corporations and the
private sector. With a better relationship with our mother institution, IICA, and with better synergies and understanding of our limitations
and opportunities. More information Communications
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