ximelondo@gmail.com

Ximena is an Agricultural Engineer who graduated from the National University of Colombia and received specialized training in Bamboo Taxonomy at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. As an independent researcher, she has authored over 70 research articles published in indexed journals, focusing on the systematic botany of neotropical bamboos. Ximena has also authored and co-authored several books and educational primers. Together with her colleagues, she has described 5 new genera, 58 species, 2 varieties, and 2 subspecies of bamboos for the Americas.

A strong advocate for bamboo research, Ximena has co-led national and international projects and promoted various research initiatives on Guadua and other bamboos. She has been instrumental in including bamboos as an agricultural resource in Colombia and is a member of the National Council for the Guadua/Bamboo Production Chain. She co-founded and currently serves as president of the Colombian Bamboo Society and is the president of Colombian Commitment 178 Guadua-Bamboo for Standardization-ICONTEC. Additionally, she is a member of INBAR's Task Force on Sustainable Bamboo Management (TFSBM).

In recognition of her contributions to the field, Ximena received the World Bamboo Pioneer Award at the XI World Bamboo Congress in Xalapa, Mexico, in 2018. She is also the owner of "El Paraíso del Bambú y la Guadua," an educational tourism destination in Montenegro, Quindío, where she promotes the environmental, cultural, social, and economic value of bamboo.

Orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1577-1356