Professor Emeritus of the University of Havana Vicente Berovides Passed Away in Havana

August 3, 2023

This Wednesday, August 2nd, at the age of 82, the eminent biologist Vicente Berovides Álvarez passed away. Born on September 22, 1941 in Santiago de Cuba, he held a Doctorate in Biological Sciences. His death has deeply affected the scientific and academic community, as well as many Cubans familiar with his work.

Full Professor and Professor Emeritus at the University of Havana, during his professional career he achieved various distinctions and recognitions. Berovides made important contributions to several branches of Biology. He was a field researcher and a prolific writer. His bibliographic work comprised dozens of publications, both national and international, in which he appeared as author or coauthor.

He was also known as an engaging science communicator. He regularly attended and collaborated with media spaces dedicated to science. Many will remember him for his frequent participation in the program Pasaje a lo desconocido, of which he became an indispensable panelist for debating documentaries about evolution, the origin of life, life on other planets, and related topics.

He was a teacher to several generations of professionals in the Biological Sciences. From afar, he was also a teacher to many self-taught individuals who were able to approach, through his texts, the fascinating world he investigated for decades. Both within and outside academia, Professor Berovides was a reference point for understanding evolutionary forces, genetic variation, natural selection, evidence of evolution, different species concepts, population dynamics, and other aspects in which he specialized.

One of the books in which he addressed the natural history of humankind—in a didactic manner, but without losing scientific rigor—was Does Man Still Evolve?, published by Editorial Científico-Técnica in the year 2000. This material explains the main milestones in the evolutionary history of Homo sapiens and concludes with reflections, characteristic of the illustrious professor, regarding bioethics.

On one occasion he explained, as part of an interview, that "sometimes an objective interpretation cannot be achieved on certain issues (...) because many analyses lack an evolutionary approach." He was referring to how the relationship should be between Biological Sciences and other specialties such as Psychology, Sociology, and Medicine. Indeed, while for other fields of knowledge it is pertinent to take subjective aspects into account, none should disdain the contributions of Biology, to which the researcher made transcendent contributions.

Berovides was a defender of scientific knowledge from a humanist perspective. In his analyses, he knew how to integrate the naturalist and cultural dimensions. His prestige transcends national borders.