The Research Institute of Biological Resources Alexander von Humboldt is a civil non-profit corporation under the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development ( MADS ) . The Institute was created in 1993 to be the investigative arm of biodiversity in the Environmental System (SINA ) . Under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity , ratified by Colombia in 1994, the Humboldt Institute assesses the state of biodiversity in Colombia and make sustainable choices based on thate same knowledge.