Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt

What Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt does

Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt is a Colombian government non-profit research institute founded in 1993 and headquartered in Bogotá, dedicated to the study, conservation, and dissemination of knowledge about Colombia's biodiversity. It serves as the national scientific authority on biodiversity under Colombia's Sistema Nacional Ambiental (SINA), with mandates including CITES scientific authority and environmental monitoring responsibilities. The institute maintains a headcount of 501–1,000 staff and is governed through partnerships with the Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo Sostenible, the Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación, and the Presidencia de la República.

Its core offerings are an integrated digital platform ecosystem comprising SiB Colombia (the national biodiversity information system aggregating open biodiversity data), Reporte Bio (an annual status-and-trends publication covering over 35 thematic areas with interactive visualizations), Colecciones (a digital portal to its biological collections including the largest oological collection in Latin America with 17,801 nests from 1,319 bird species), Repositorio (institutional repository of scientific publications), and Ecosistema Humboldt (internal staff platform). Underlying technology includes biodiversity data management systems, biological collection digitization infrastructure, ecological monitoring tooling, and open-data publishing portals. Supporting assets include the Tienda Humboldt e-commerce store for conservation merchandise and outreach.

The institute operates a publicly funded revenue model with services provided free of charge to all users. Its core "customer" base is the Colombian government as primary funder, with downstream users spanning government policymakers, academic researchers, conservation organizations, educators, students, and local communities. Strategic partnerships span national ministries, peer research institutes (IDEAM, Invemar, Instituto SINCHI, Instituto de Investigaciones Ambientales del Pacífico), regional environmental corporations (Corpoamazonia, Corponor), and leading academic institutions (Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Universidad de Antioquia, Universidad del Valle).

Name

Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt

Legal name

Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt

Website

https://humboldt.org.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

1993

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

The Instituto Humboldt is a Colombian government non-profit research institute, founded 1993 and based in Bogotá, that studies and conserves Colombia's biodiversity. It operates SiB Colombia, biological collections, Reporte Bio, and scientific repositories, serving government policymakers, researchers, and the public free of charge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biodiversity Research Services

NAICS

Administration of Conservation Programs (92412)

akta.pro primary industry

Wildlife, Biodiversity & Habitat Conservation Administration (BPAIAMAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Biodiversity Baseline Studies & Long-Term Monitoring Programs (EUAHAHAE), Nature & Biodiversity Reporting (TNFD, natural capital) (EUAHAJAM)

Keywords

• Biodiversity research
• Biological collections
• Ecological monitoring
• Conservation science
• Scientific publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Bogotá

HQ country

Colombia

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Research Funding: As a Colombian government research institute, the organization operates as a public institution funded through government budgets. Services are provided free of charge to users.
2. Scientific Publications and Resources: The institute produces and disseminates scientific publications, reports, journals, and educational content on biodiversity, available for free download from their website and repository.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Instituto Humboldt is a Colombian government-affiliated research institute that studies and conserves Colombia's continental biodiversity. It maintains biological collections, conducts ecological and taxonomic research, and operates digital data platforms (SiB Colombia, Reporte Bio, Colecciones, Repositorio) to disseminate open biodiversity data, scientific publications, and knowledge to support evidence-based decision-making and conservation.

Product overview

The Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander von Humboldt operates a unified platform ecosystem consisting of multiple interconnected digital products focused on biodiversity research and data sharing. The core offerings include SiB Colombia (national biodiversity information system), Colecciones (biological collections portal), Repositorio (institutional repository for scientific publications), and Reporte Bio (biodiversity status and trends reporting platform). Supporting products include Tienda Humboldt (e-commerce store for conservation merchandise) and Ecosistema Humboldt (internal intranet). These products work together to fulfill the institute's mission of generating data, information, and knowledge about Colombia's biodiversity to support informed decision-making for societal and environmental well-being.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Reporte Bio: Biodiversity status and trends report of continental Colombia - an annual publication tracking Colombia's biodiversity
• SiB Colombia
• Colecciones Biológicas
• Repositorio Humboldt

Products and services

• SiB Colombia (Sistema de Información sobre Biodiversidad de Colombia) National biodiversity information system that aggregates and shares open biodiversity data through standardized formats and portals for researchers, government agencies, and institutions.
• Colecciones Biológicas (Biological Collections Portal) Digital portal providing access to the institute's biological collections, including the largest oological collection in Latin America with 17,801 nests from 1,319 bird species, and the bird collection exhibiting 76% of Colombia's 165 hummingbird species.
• Repositorio Humboldt Institutional digital repository hosting scientific publications, research outputs, catalogs, and production materials generated by the institute, accessible for free download.
• Reporte Bio Annual biodiversity status and trends report for continental Colombia, providing comprehensive analysis and data visualization across over 35 thematic areas, including maps, infographics, videos, and interactive tools.
• Tienda Humboldt Online store selling biodiversity-themed merchandise, publications, and educational materials to support conservation awareness.

Quantifiable outcome

• 17,801 nests from 1,319 bird species documented
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

15 partnerships are on record, tiered core and regional.

• Pontificia Universidad JaverianacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership for biodiversity research and education initiatives.
• Universidad Nacional de ColombiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership for biodiversity research collaboration.
• Instituto SINCHIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Amazon research institute for biodiversity studies.
• Instituto de Investigaciones Ambientales del PacíficocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for Pacific region environmental research.
• InvemarcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMarine and coastal research institute collaboration.
• IDEAMcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies for environmental data.
• Ministerio de Ambiente y Desarrollo SosteniblecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership with Colombia's Ministry of Environment for national environmental policy support.
• Ministerio de Ciencia, Tecnología e InnovacióncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Colombia's Ministry of Science for research initiatives.
• Presidencia de la República de ColombiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPresidency level collaboration for national biodiversity agenda.
• CorpoamazoniaregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional environmental corporation for Amazon region collaboration.
• CorponorregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional environmental corporation for northern Colombia collaboration.
• Gobernación de BoyacáregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional government partnership for Boyacá department biodiversity initiatives.
• Universidad de AntioquiaregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership with regional university for biodiversity research.
• Universidad del ValleregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership with Valle del Cauca university for research.
• Fundación ProsierraregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation partnership for Sierra Nevada conservation efforts.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CONABIO (Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad): Mexico's national biodiversity commission operating under a comparable government-affiliated mandate to aggregate, generate, and disseminate biodiversity data and knowledge for policy and conservation.
• INPA (Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia): Brazilian government research institute conducting biodiversity and ecological research in the Amazon — directly comparable to Instituto Humboldt's role as a state biodiversity research body in a megadiverse Latin American country.
• INBio (Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad): Costa Rica's national biodiversity research institute, with a similar mandate to inventory biodiversity and provide scientific data to support conservation decisions, including bioprospecting and biological collections.
• GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): International open-data network enabling biodiversity data sharing — SiB Colombia is a GBIF participant, making GBIF a direct platform peer for the institute's data infrastructure role.
• South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI): South Africa's statutory body for biodiversity research, monitoring, and reporting — comparable national-scale mandate and biodiversity status reporting function similar to Reporte Bio.

Broad incumbents

• Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History (NMNH): A globally dominant natural history institution operating extensive biological collections and biodiversity research at far larger scale — represents the broader-incumbent archetype against which Instituto Humboldt's collections are benchmarked.
• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew: A leading global botanical research and conservation institution with extensive collections, open-data publishing, and a comparable biodiversity monitoring and scientific authority role at a much larger scale.
• IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature): Global authority on species conservation status and biodiversity policy; Instituto Humboldt contributes species data to IUCN Red List-style processes, making IUCN a broader incumbent in the same conservation ecosystem.
• CABI: International not-for-profit organization producing open scientific data and research on biodiversity and agriculture — broadly comparable as a publishing and applied-research organization with open data outputs.

Regional players

• IIAP (Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana): Peru's government research institute focused on Amazonian biodiversity — a regional peer operating in a neighboring megadiverse country with a comparable biodiversity research mandate.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/inst_humboldt
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/InstHumboldt
• Facebookfacebook.com/instituto.humboldt
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/institutohumboldt
• Instagraminstagram.com/instituto_humboldt/?hl=en
• TikToktiktok.com/@instituto_humboldt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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