Born in Colombia Botanist, summa cum laude in biological sciences from the University of Munich. He was ordained a priest. Researcher and specialist in botany and the Colombian flora.
In 1930, he created and directed the Colombian National Herbarium. He also founds the Botanical Institute of the National University for the year 1936, for the year 1953, he worked a lot until he saw published, the Prince of Flora edition of Mutis, which comprises nearly fifty volumes, this also thanks to the collaboration with the Institute of Hispanic Culture of Madrid. In 1955 he created the Botanical Garden of Bogotá. In the scientific taxonomy the Perezia genus takes its name, as well as several plant species.
Father Pérez Arbeláez dispersed in many activities, which prevented him from finishing works that were important at the beginning. Pérez was a true pioneer and promoter of several topics related to research and culture; Most of the time, in a conjunctural way. Perez became part of a research group created by UNESCO to advance a survey of the Amazonian Amazonian Forest, together with scientists from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, the three Guianas, Peru and Venezuela; which was grouped in the International Institute of the Amazonian Hylea.
Pérez Arbeláez issued important statements there on the need to know objectively this important region of the world; it was necessary to prepare human material, capable of devoting its vital effort to researching and analyzing the Amazon scientifically, which implied planning long-term research; only in this way was it possible to reveal the immense content of the nature of that still powerful portion of the planet.
The teaching work of Pérez Arbeláez was very broad, centered mainly in the National University. He was professor of biology, botany and zoology of the Faculty of Medicine; professor of botany and pharmaceutical zoology at the School of Pharmacy; founder and director, in 1938, of the Department of Botany; it also included the old faculty of Education (1932) and the Higher Normal School (1946). In the same way, he was director of the Floral Exhibition of the fourth centenary of Cali (1936), head of the Vegetal Biology section of the Department of Agriculture (1937) and permanent collaborator of the newspaper El Tiempo. All these works were carried out simultaneously with the pastoral exercise.
He was director and founder of the Interdiocesan Secretariat of Catholic Education (1938), chaplain and professor of religion of the Santander General School (1940), vicar and treasurer of the Fontibón parish (1941), chaplain of the Presidential Guard battalion between 1947 and 1948.
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