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Author: Sarah McLaughlin

Partnership approach to maize development praised in new study

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Publications.

Using data from 1995-2015, an empirical study from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), led by Vijesh Krishna, CIMMYT Lead Adoption – Impact Economist, has estimated the economic benefits of new varieties in 18 major maize-producing countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Kevin Pixley, Deputy Director General for Research (Breeding and Genetics), a.i., and Director of the Genetic Resources Program, said, “This was not easy due to the challenges of gathering and analyzing complex data, but it’s a very important milestone for CIMMYT. Peer review in a highly respected journal is a gold standard that gives external critique and endorsement to the impact assessment methods used and estimates reported for CIMMYT and IITA’s work with partners in Africa.”

Around 60 percent of the 1,345 maize varieties released in this twenty-year period had a known CGIAR parentage.

Approximately 34 percent of the total maize area in 2015 was cultivated with CGIAR-related maize varieties from 1995 onwards, equivalent to 9.5 million hectares (ha); 13 percent of the maize area was under CGIAR-related varieties released before 1995.

The new maize varieties hold an economic benefit for the region, with an estimated value of US $1.1-1.6 billion in 2015 equally attributed to CGIAR, public-sector national research and extension programs, and private sector partners. With maximum annual investment in CGIAR maize breeding sitting at US $30 million, the estimated benefit-cost ratio for investment was between 12:1-17:1, depending on the underlying assumptions.

“This paper is a valuable contribution to literature on impact assessment, highlighting the real challenges and approaches to quantify impact of work that is a collaboration among many,” continued Pixley. “Both the methodologies and impact estimates will be valuable to researchers and funders of plant breeding programs.”

Read the study: Impact of CGIAR maize germplasm in Sub-Saharan Africa

Cover photo: Farmer Chana Filimoni harvesting maize in his field in Chakwawa village, Salima District, Malawi. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)

Study explores how to reduce GHG emissions while supporting food security through nitrogen management

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Publications.

Use of fertilizer nitrogen (N) in farming is essential for food production but also contributes to climate crisis through GHG emissions. Synthetic nitrogen fertilizer accounts for 2.4 percent of global emissions, while its supply chain accounts for 21.5% of the annual direct emissions from agriculture.

One potential solution for developing appropriate N management strategies is yield-scaled nitrous oxide (N₂O) emission (YSNE), which has been recognized for its potential to balance food security and mitigate emissions. Improving understanding and use of YSNE under various field conditions is an essential part of widespread adoption of this approach.

Scientist working in the Sustainable Agrifood Systems (SAS) program at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) together with Hawassa University, Ethiopia and Landcare Research, New Zealand  assessed the relationship between N inputs and YSNE with published results and identified response patterns of YSNE to N inputs based on 1,800 observations from maize, rice and wheat crops at global scale.

Type 1 measures: increasing yields without changing N₂O emissions. Type 2 measures: reducing N₂O emissions without changing yields. Type 3 measures: both increasing yields and reducing N₂O emissions. (Photo: CIMMYT)

A positive relationship between N inputs and YSNE was evidenced in more than 60% of the dataset across all three crops, while a small proportion had an optimum N rate that minimized YSNE. Type of crop, annual mean temperature and soil N content affected the background yield-scale N₂O emission with higher soil temperature and N content leading to higher BYSNE. The analyses suggest that YSNE can be reduced by increasing yields, by reducing N₂O emissions and both by increasing yields and reducing N₂O emissions. The results of this study suggest appropriate N management strategies, yields, and N2O emissions.

Read the full article: Understanding response of yield-scaled N₂O emissions to nitrogen input: Data synthesis and introducing new concepts of background yield-scaled N₂O emissions and N₂O emission-yield curve

Cover photo: Woman using spreader for fertilizer application in India. (Photo: Wasim Iftikar/CSISA)

Decolonization should extend to collaborations, authorship and co-creation of knowledge

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in In the media.

In an article forming part of a series on decolonizing the biosciences, Sieglinde Snapp, Director of the Sustainable Agrifood Systems (SAS) program at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), explores how to improve inclusivity in scientific research.

The Global South, where work is more locally contextualized and applied, can end up excluded due to the existing reward structure, which rewards pure science first, then applied research and outreach.

As part of her decolonization toolkit, Snapp recommends ways to champion inclusivity, such as following a participatory research approach to create new knowledge, advocacy through authorship, and using alternative indices for performance evaluations.

Read the original article: Decolonization should extend to collaborations, authorship and co-creation of knowledge

Xinhua News

Feature: Reciprocal cooperation between China, int’l agricultural research agency safeguards food security

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in In the media.

Collaboration between China and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is an example of a mutually beneficial partnership working to safeguard global food security.

Wheat pathologist and geneticist Zhognhu He explained the spread of plant diseases such as wheat scab, which is spreading due to factors such as climate change and could threaten grain security and food safety. His work in wheat disease resistance using the vast germplasm resources in China is helping farmers worldwide.

China has also provided thousands of wheat germplasm resources to CIMMYT’s genebank in Mexico, contributing towards the development of new varieties.

Read the original article: Feature: Reciprocal cooperation between China, int’l agricultural research agency safeguards food security

Analyzing 25 years of maize supply and demand in the Global South

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Publications.

Over the next 10 years, maize is due to become the most widely grown and traded crop globally and is already the cereal with the highest production volume. Its versatility offers multiple purposes – as a livestock feed in both developed and developing economies, as a key component of human diets in several low- and middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and Asia, and for an array of non-food uses worldwide.

To analyze the changes in the supply and demand for maize in the last 25 years, scientists at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) conducted a review of maize production, consumption, and international trade.

The study primarily focused on the Global South, where intensive work is being done to transform the agrifood systems in which maize plays a key role. Through scientific advancements over time, maize yields have increased, although heterogeneously, while the area under cultivation of maize has also expanded due to sharply growing demand.

Research determined that this transformation offers opportunities for investment in maize research and development (R&D) to determine ways that production and productivity can be significantly improved without expanding maize area or creating negative impacts on the environment.

Read the study: Global maize production, consumption and trade: trends and R&D implications

Cover photo: Maize diversity in Tlaxcala, Mexico. (Photo: Thomas Lumpkin/CIMMYT)

Sustainability, quality concerns take center stage at Cereals & Grains 22

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in In the media.

At the Cereals & Grains 22 conference, programming focused on Innovating the Future of Foodand the challenges faced by the grain industry, particularly relating to the effects of climate change on maize and wheat yields and quality.

“Agriculture systems are sensitive to climate change because they are dependent on stable, long-term conditions to determine productivity, quality and yields,” said Bram Govaerts, Director General of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the conference’s keynote speaker. “Farmers are struggling to cope with climate risks and their ability to meet rising global food demands.”

Breeding maize and wheat with traits resistant to the consequences of climate change, such as flooding, drought, and heat, moving growing areas to amenable climates, and promoting soil health and biodiversity were all proposed as solutions to address the challenges highlighted by Govaerts.

Read the original article: Sustainability, quality concerns take center stage at Cereals & Grains 22

Govaerts delivers keynote speech to Cereals and Grains 22

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in News.

Bram Govaerts presents at Cereals and Grains 22. (Photo: María Itria Ibba/CIMMYT)

One of the biggest challenges facing the world today is how to balance a healthy diet for humans with agricultural production that is good for the environment. At the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), scientists work closely with farmers to achieve these aims and contribute towards food security, as well as improving their livelihoods and nutrition.

In an opening keynote at Cereal & Grains 22 titled Risk Mitigation in the Food Chain, Bram Govaerts, Director General a. i. of CIMMYT, focused on the organization’s work towards a world with resilient agrifood systems that protect biodiversity.

Govaerts explored the sensitivity of agricultural systems to the impacts of climate change, which in turn affects farmers’ ability to successfully produce crops and their capacity to meet rising global demand for food. However, agriculture itself is not immune from contributing towards climate change, currently accounting for 24% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The effects of climate change are not the only pressure on agrifood systems, with other system shocks such as COVID-19 and conflict causing disruption to production and yields, prices, and supply chains, said Govaerts. For example, the current Ukraine crisis, which has heavily affected wheat imports and exports, underscores the need for long-term solutions to stabilize global food security. The encroaching cost of living crisis is adding further challenges to an already delicate situation, and hunger is predicted to increase across the Global South.

Investing in solutions

Research and development (R&D) has an essential role to play in addressing this crisis. Evidence shows that for every $1 USD invested in anticipatory action to safeguard lives and livelihoods, up to $7 USD can be saved by avoiding losses in disaster-affected communities. Simply put, proactive investment in agricultural science will save money in the long run by solving problems before they reach critical point.

CIMMYT’s R&D projects focus on extensive research on climate change adaptation and mitigation in maize and wheat-based production systems, helping smallholder farmers adapt to climate shocks and to raise and maintain yields in profitable and sustainable ways, and on capacity building for stakeholders in the development and application of new technologies.

Scientists are also harnessing the power of genebanks and breeding, focusing on safeguarding, characterization, and use of biodiversity to identify characteristics of seeds for genetic gain, adaptation to climate change, and better nutritional quality. This means farmers can access more and better seeds that respond to agrifood needs.

These innovations are only as effective as their level of adoption, which is why CIMMYT works closely with actors at all levels of agrifood systems.

Climate science at work in Africa

Govaerts shared examples of CIMMYT’s climate change adaptation and mitigation work include the introduction of drought-tolerant maize in Zimbabwe, which yielded more than 0.6 t/ha more than previous varieties. This equates to $240 USD more income per hectare, which provides nine months’ worth of additional food security at no extra cost.

In Malawi, drought-tolerant maize varieties planted under conservation agriculture yielded 66% more than non-tolerant varieties planted under conventional tillage. Farmers harvested more maize while spending on average 35-45 fewer days working in the field.

There is also an increase in popularity for stress-tolerant wheat varieties in Ethiopia, such as Danda’a, Kakaba, Kingbird and Pavon 76.

Scientists have also combined tropical fall armyworm (FAW)-resistant maize germplasm, from Mexico, with elite stress resilient germplasm developed in sub-Saharan Africa to successfully breed three FAW-tolerant elite maize hybrids. This is addressing the serious threat of FAW to maize production in eastern and southern Africa.

Transformation through partnership working

Following an Integrated Agrifood Systems Approach (IASA) has given CIMMYT significant edge by building effective partnerships with the public and private sector. Collaboration on responsible sourcing with Kellogg’s and Grupo Bimbo, as well as a new three-year partnership with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Grupo Modelo to encourage water-conserving farming practices, will contribute to a one-system approach.

More than 18 million farmers worldwide benefit through CIMMYT’s improved maize and wheat system farming practices. With so much at stake for the entire world, CIMMYT has no plans to stop now.

Agriculture for Peace platform launches at Borlaug Dialogue

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Features.

Events of the past year have underscored the correlation of food supply chains, and weaknesses that need to be addressed. Tackling threats to global food security caused by COVID-19, conflict, and climate change require joint action and long-term commitments, with approaches based on partnerships, collaborative research and information sharing, and involvement from all actors within agrifood systems.

These topics and potential solutions were integral to the 2022 Norman E. Borlaug International Dialogue, hosted between October 18-20, 2022. With a theme of Feeding a Fragile World and overcoming shocks to the global food system, seminars and workshops explored scalable solutions for adaptation and mitigation to limit global warming and meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

One event which proposed a solution to these challenges was Agriculture for Peace (Ag4Peace): A Call for Action, which marked the official launch of a platform aiming to support national food and agriculture strategies.

The initiative was founded by seven partners: Norman Borlaug Foundation, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Texas A&M University.

During the event, two additional collaborators were announced: World Wide Fund for Nature and Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

The Ag4Peace concept

Ag4Peace is built on the understanding that without peace there is no food, and without food there is no peace. Conflicts and violence severely disrupt agricultural processes and limit access to food, which in turn forces people to take increasingly perilous actions as they attempt to secure their lives and those of their families. High food prices and hunger cause instability, migration, and civil unrest as people become more desperate.

Using a collaborative approach, partners will design holistic strategies that encompass the multi-faceted nature of agrifood systems and their interconnections with nature, nutrition, and livelihoods. This requires broad-based collaborations, so the Ag4Peace partners welcome other institutions, private sector, and non-governmental organizations that share their aspirations to join them.

Partners are co-constructing the Cross-Sector Collaboration to Advance Resilient Equitable Agrifood Systems (CC-AREAS), the first operational plan for the platform. This is a 10-year proof-of-concept program that applies a holistic, systems approach to achieve resilient agrifood systems and accelerate development of the circular bioeconomy in five low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) that are increasingly exposed to food security risks due to climate change and reliance on imported staple foods.

They will support national efforts to upgrade agrifood systems, adopt regenerative agriculture and climate-smart strategies, expand the circular bioeconomy, and achieve nutrition and food security goals.

In all aspects of the initiative (science, planning, implementation, and evaluation), participation priority will be given to small-scale farmers, women, and socially diverse groups, which will maximize positive outcomes and ensure inclusivity.

Benefits for farmers, communities, value chain participants, consumers, and ecosystems will be demonstrated throughout to encourage adoption and continued use of improved technologies and practices and demonstrate effectiveness.

Partner support for Ag4Peace

After the concept was introduced by Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT and recipient of the 2014 Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application, a roundtable discussion with a diverse panel of experts began.

Speakers included Manuel Otero, Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Hon. Sharon E. Burke, Global Fellow of Environmental Change and Security Program at the Wilson Center, Per Pinstrup-Anderson, Professor and World Food Prize Laureate, and Alice Ruhweza, Africa Regional Director of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

Moderated by Margaret Bath, Chair of CIMMYT Board of Trustees, the panelists conveyed Ag4Peace’s aims of building productive, sustainable, and resilient agrifood systems, improving livelihoods for small-scale producers and other value chain actors, and deliver nutritious, affordable diets.

“Hunger is part of the picture of conflict,” explained Burke. “These strapped communities are often competing for resources with each other, within their own boundaries, and sometimes food is a weapon in these places, just as destructive as a bomb or a gun. Without food there is no peace, in the near or the long-term.”

Trade-offs versus win-wins

Pinstrup-Anderson ruminated on the importance of win-wins, which are solutions that work for supporting human health and protecting our natural environment without sacrificing results in one area for results in another. “We do not have to give up improving nutrition just to save the climate or save the earth – we can do both,” he said.

The significance of strong partnerships arose multiple times, such as when Otero explained, “It is not a matter of working just with the agriculture ministers but also with other ministers – foreign affairs, social development, environmental – because agriculture is a sector that crosses across all these institutions.”

Ruhweza explored whether threats to food security, such as COVID-19, conflict, and climate change, can also bring opportunities. “The right action on food systems can also accelerate the delivery of all our goals on climate and nature,” she said. “WWF is looking forward to partnering with this initiative.”

Final remarks from Julie Borlaug, President of the Norman Borlaug Foundation, where the platform will be housed, reiterated a call for more partners to join the coalition. “This is a learning lesson as we go. We will iterate over and over until we get it right, so we need all of you to be involved in that,” said Borlaug. “Join us as we move forward but let us know as we’re going sideways.”

CGIAR scientist honored with award

The winner of the annual Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application award was announced at the Borlaug Dialogue, which this year went to Mahalingam Govindaraj, Senior Scientist for Crop Development at HarvestPlus and at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, a CGIAR research center.

Govindaraj received the award for his leadership in mainstreaming biofortified crops, particularly high-yielding, high-iron, and high-zinc pearl millet varieties. This work has contributed to improved nutrition for thousands of farmers and their communities in India and Africa, and estimates show that, by 2024, more than 9 million people in India will be consuming iron- and zinc-rich pearl, benefiting from improved nutrition.

Cover photo: The historical moment when Manuel Otero, Director General of IICA, joins the Agriculture for Peace initiative with Bram Govaerts, Director General of CIMMYT. (Photo: Liesbet Vannyvel/CIMMYT)

Research shows impact of root and crown rot in wheat

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Publications.

Kazakhstan is the ninth largest country in the world and the fourteenth largest producer of wheat; in 2021 alone, the country produced 14.3 million tons (t) of wheat on 12.1 million hectares (ha). Despite this impressive figure, wheat yield in the country falls below average at 1172.5 t/ha compared to 3474.4 t/ha globally.

Research into wheat diseases in Kazakhstan has primarily revolved around airborne fungal foliar diseases, such as stem rust, leaf rust and stripe rust, which can be devastating for farmers and their crops. However, the effects of fungi relating to wheat root and crown root were yet to be examined – these diseases affect yields, stands and grain quality due to infections that cause damping-off, blight, necrosis, and dry rotting.

Using plant samples taken during the 2019 growing season, scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) conducted a quantitative survey to determine the distribution of this fungi. Using morphological and molecular tools on 1,221 samples from 65 sites across the central, eastern, and southeastern region, scientists found that Bipolaris sorokiniana and Fusarium acuminatum were the most predominant fungal species isolated.

In total, 74 isolates from 16 species were tested, revealing that F. culmorum and F. pseudograminearum, B. sorokinaiana, Fusarium sp., R. solani, F. redolens, C. spicifera, C. inaequalis, and N. orvzae were virulent fungi.

Results show the diverse spectrum of pathogenic fungal species linked to wheat crown and root rot in Kazakhstan and is highly likely to be the first report from the country on the presence of F. seudograminearum, Fusarium sp., C. spicifera, and C. inaequalis.

With this new data, scientists can develop mitigations to prevent crop loss and improve wheat yield across Kazakhstan.

Read the study: Fungal Pathogens Associated with Crown and Root Rot of Wheat in Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Kazakhstan

Cover photo: The scientists from Turkey researching root and crown rot in Kazakhstani wheat: Abdelfattah A. Dababat (CIMMYT), Mustafa Imren (Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University), Göksel Özer (Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University) and Rauan Zhapayev. (Photo: Abdelfattah A. Dababat/CIMMYT)

Opening the door to commercial fodder production

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Features.

The paired challenges of population growth and climate change have put smallholder farmers in Zambia in a squeeze. In the Southern Province, the center of agricultural production for the nation, smallholder dairy farmers struggle to increase their production of fodder to commercially viable levels in the face of a long dry season that climate change is intensifying.

Smallholder farmers looking to support their families, enhance the local food supply, and sustain economic growth in their areas are at a distinct disadvantage because agriculture in Zambia is dominated by massive commercial operations with plentiful capital, large tracts of land, and expensive machinery, with most of their output marked for export.

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) is partnering with the German development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and the University of Hohenheim to identify key barriers and sustainable pathways to smallholder farmer success through a mechanization working group. This work is being carried out through the global initiative One World No Hunger, which launched Green Innovation Centers for the Agriculture and Food Sector (GIC) in 15 member countries in 2014.

“Mechanization is a critical aspect of responding to these problems and the core business of the GIC is to develop knowledge,” said Chimuka Mulowa, a GIC cooperative development advisor based in Choma, Zambia. “Our efforts provide training to smallholder farmers with a focus on adaptive mechanization as a critical ingredient in a holistic approach. Projects in the past have purchased equipment, but we integrate knowledge with existing infrastructure.”

Smallholder homestead with irrigation and fencing to protect developed pasture, Namwala, Southern Province, Zambia. (Photo: Vuyo Maphango)

In Zambia, the GIC works with 22 cooperatives to reach 10,000 small-scale farmers with training sessions on fencing land to grow grass, climate smart breeding, irrigation, and more. The GIC has reached their training goal, but implementation of new practices has been more difficult, with only about half the farmers adopting what they have learned so far.

To better understand the challenges smallholder farmers face in Zambia, Mulowa and the GIC partnered with researcher Vuyo Maphango, who was completing his master’s degree in agricultural economics at the University of Hohenheim under the supervision of Lennart Woltering, a senior scientist at CIMMYT. Woltering developed a tool called Scaling Scan which analyzes barriers to growth for successful innovations in the pilot stage and brings focus to key ingredients for expansion.

Mulowa and Maphango used Scaling Scan to assess the progress of the GIC efforts in Zambia. As they expected, for smallholder farmers trying to get into commercial fodder production, financing was a challenge. At $35,000 USD for a machinery like hay balers used once per year, it can take a farmer up to a decade to recoup such an investment. But Scaling Scan also identified surprising challenges, such as a lack of collaboration and uneven dissemination of knowledge and skills.

Tractor carrying hay bales, Choma, Southern Province, Zambia. (Photo: Vuyo Maphango)

“There was a lot of progress coming out of the Scaling Scan process,” Maphango said. “Growing the cooperatives of farmers is a critical GIC focus now, and this helps with the finance issues as well. Where farmers can’t afford to buy or develop high-quality seed, they can come together, share which seeds are working best for them, and help each other adopt best practices. Staying close as a cooperative also gives farmers stronger bargaining power with the ability to pool together finances.”

More affordable equipment will also help. Smaller, less expensive choppers and chuff cutters ($1500-2000 USD) are already available for silage production, but there is not a well-established tradition of employing silage production in Zambia, and farmers there have struggled to adopt it. Similar machines are making their way onto the market for fodder production and will require farmers to develop a new set of technical skills.

Mulowa and Maphango are also rethinking approaches to training. As an incentive, non-government organizations (NGOs) often pay participants for their time when they attend training sessions, but government ministries can’t sustain this practice beyond the end of a project due to lack of funding. For a deeper level of skill and knowledge development, GIC wants to help farmers see the benefit of training as providing its own incentive–continuing professional education will pay off, both in terms of better agricultural and business practices, and better financial outcomes. The key to this transition is results. When farmers see their yield improving because of skills and practices they developed in training, they will be hungry for more.

Success, for Zambian smallholders, is a door that is opening slowly but surely. “Early adopters are making progress,” Maphango said. “Some are growing their own grass, others are fencing their land and developing irrigation.” As these practices take root, and farmers share victories with cooperative members; the value of ongoing training becomes clear, and the door may open further for others to walk through.

Cover photo: Hay bales on a commercial farm, Chisamba, Central Province, Zambia. (Photo: Vuyo Maphango)

New WIRES initiatives to advance women’s careers in science and research

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in News.

IITA women nutrition scientists perfecting a new recipe. (Photo: IITA)

The CGIAR Women in Research and Science (WIRES) employee-led resource group recently had a virtual engagement to discuss the progress and new happenings in the group. The meeting, themed “Connecting and Mentoring, What’s new with WIRES!” was held on October 24.

Giving the opening remarks, The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT Knowledge Sharing Specialist Arwen Bailey stated that the group was launched in July 2020 to empower and increase the visibility of women research and science professionals across CGIAR.

Bailey and other co-coordinators, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) Technical Program Manager Aparna Das, IITA HarvestPlus Cassava Breeder Elizabeth Parkes, and International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) Communication Consultant Nada Abdelhamid, shared their reasons for volunteering in WIRES. Participants also highlighted their expectations for the meeting.

Explaining the vision and mission of the group, Das stated that WIRES aims to provide tools and knowledge that support professional development. She added that this would create visibility for CGIAR women in science and research so their voices are heard and their contributions recognized. “We are an open community that accommodates both men and women who are willing to support the vision of WIRES,” she said.

HarvestPlus Cassava Breeder Dr Elizabeth Parkes is one of the WIRES coordinators. (Photo: IITA)

Discussing her reason for sponsoring WIRES, CGIAR Executive Managing Director Claudia Sadoff said she admires the efforts and engagement of the team in supporting women despite having other personal life activities. She added that the increase in the percentage of women scientists calls for more effort to train and empower these women. “Thanks for allowing me to be your sponsor,” she said. International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Director General Jimmy Smith, also a sponsor, stated that his motivation to join the cause stems from his experience raising daughters.

Highlighting how intending volunteers can support WIRES, Das spoke on mentorship as a promising strategy to advance Gender, Diversity and Inclusion (GDI) in the workplace as it offers access and advocacy for women. Explaining the criteria for engagement, she stated that a mentor must be passionate about advancing GDI, while the mentee must be a middle to senior-level career woman researcher/scientist with an appetite to learn. “Registration for the program will begin in November, and the program will kick off in December. Interested mentors and mentees who meet the criteria can register and be trained,” she said.

Other new WIRES initiatives coming up before the end of 2022 include “Random coffee,” where members can schedule to meet physically or virtually to build a vibrant relationship and network, and “Focus groups” for discussions that will ensure continuous improvement for WIRES.

Closing out the meeting, CGIAR Global Director of People and Culture, Fiona Bourdin-Farrell, summarized ways volunteers can help to advance women in science and research in CGIAR. She mentioned that it starts with joining the WIRES team, being a part of the mentoring program, engaging in the random coffee pilot, and joining focus groups. “You can contribute to the information in the newsletter. You can also register as both mentor and mentee as long as you meet the criteria,” she concluded.

Read the original article: New WIRES initiatives to advance women’s careers in science and research

Contributed by Ochuwa Favour Daramola.

The democratization of innovation

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Features.

When the Norwegian Red Cross hired Kristian Wengen and his consulting firm Tinkr to launch a “Scaling for Success” initiative, he found himself at a crossroads. From international aid projects aiming to address the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to private companies seeking to expand their market, everyone was talking about the challenges of scaling up – expanding and sustaining successful programs to reach a greater number of people – but there were few clear paths to solutions.

Wengen worked with CIMMYT to adapt the Scaling Scan. (Photo: Kristian Wengen)

The Scaling Scan has solutions to offer

But when Wengen came across a project using a tool called the Scaling Scan that identifies and analyzes 10 critical elements for assessing the scalability of any pilot project, he knew he had found a way forward. He was excited, but also worried because the project using the Scaling Scan had concluded.

Concerned he would lose access to the best tool he had found by far, Wengen connected with Lennart Woltering, who created the Scaling Scan for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in collaboration with a Dutch-supported project on private-public partnerships called the PPPLab. Woltering and Wengen began a dialogue regarding repurposing the Scaling Scan for Wengen’s context.

“What I like about the Scaling Scan is that it works on a very detailed level to produce systemic results,” said Wengen. “It brings a simple approach to the complex problems of scalability, which allow organizations to achieve efficient solutions, regardless of their geographic or demographic context.”

The Scaling Scan focuses attention on discrete components – from finance and business cases to technology and skills – which are necessary to successfully scale an innovation. But it also spurs insight into how each of these necessary ingredients complement each other as a project prepares to successfully transition, reproduce, and expand.

Wengen believes the most effective work of the Scaling Scan happens in team conversations, and it helps deliver clear feedback that can form the basis of discussions that go straight to the heart of the matter. While the challenges of scaling an innovation are complex, the Scaling Scan cuts through the noise and focuses attention on solving the most important problems, whether related to leadership, collaboration, or public sector governance.

Scaling the Scaling Scan

In their conversations, Wengen and Woltering identified opportunities for improving the Scaling Scan. For example, Wengen is building a digitized, web-based version that, like the original Scaling Scan, will be freely available. He calls it a scorecard, a smaller version which capitalizes on the ability of the Scan to promote productive dialogue that moves a project forward. “I am thrilled to help broaden the reach of the Scaling Scan, as making it available for a much wider audience will democratize innovation,” Wengen said.

“Kristian’s adaptations are exactly how I designed the Scaling Scan to work,” said Woltering. “I wanted it to be straightforward enough to be useful across a broad range of business and development applications and flexible enough to be tailored to the specific needs of a particular region, culture, or marketplace.” Seeing how Wengen has utilized the Scaling Scan across a variety of markets has spurred Wennart to develop the Scaling Scan website, where other interested practitioners can download the tool and share their own innovations. “The Scaling Scan truly has utility across the broadest geographies and socioeconomic ranges,” said Wennart.

Wengen is hoping his scaling scorecard will help drive success in a new collaboration he is undertaking with Innovation Norway, a state-owned organization that helps Norwegian businesses grow and export promising products and services. Wengen believes his scorecard will add immense value to a diverse set of projects ranging from business management software helping bakeries reduce waste and increase profits to zero-carbon ocean-going ships and virtual medical training systems.

This kind of transfer and growth shows that even the Scaling Scan itself can be scaled up from the tropics to the Arctic Circle, and Woltering can’t wait to see where the next successful adaptation will spring up.

Kenya: Scientists team up to control fall army worms

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in In the media.

The Government of Kenya is working with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) to develop eco-friendly pest management technology and contain the fall armyworm (FAW) pest.

Since the outbreak of FAW was reported in 2016, maize yields have dropped by between 30-50 percent, increasing the country’s challenges for food security.

Prasanna Boddupalli, Director of the Global Maize Program at CIMMYT, said, ″We want farmers to dissociate from application of synthetic toxic pesticides and chemicals but revert to use of combined approaches like use of resistant varieties, bio-pesticides and related biological control methods that are environmentally friendly.”

Preliminary assessment of the viability of naturally tolerant maize varieties from Mexico suggests that at least two or three resistant varieties may be approved after certification from the regulator.

Read the original article: Kenya: Scientists team up to control fall army worms

Plant health data is critical for effective policy change

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in News.

Learning to evaluate wheat stem rust, a significant cause of crop loss, in the field in Kenya. (Photo: Petr Kosina/CIMMYT)

With rising demand for food, it is more critical than ever to address the challenge of crop losses due to pests and diseases. Current limited understanding of the extent of the problem prevents the advancement and implementation of plant health solutions. Global scientific collaboration is integral to ensure policy recommendations are well-informed by robust evidence and therefore more likely to succeed in the long-term.

The issue of global burden of crop loss closely correlates with the objectives of the One CGIAR Plant Health Initiative, which aims to prevent and manage major pest and disease outbreaks through the development and deployment of inclusive innovations and by building effective national, regional, and global networks. The Initiative, which is being led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), will support low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to reduce crop losses due to pests and diseases, and improve food security and livelihoods for smallholder farmers.

Data-driven approaches

The Global Burden of Crop Loss project, which is run by the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI), is working to ensure that there is accurate data on the challenges posed by plant pests and diseases. Questions to understand include where crop losses are the highest, the causes behind these losses, and how best these they can be addressed.

Cambria Finegold, Global Director, Digital Development, CABI said, “If you are not measuring crop loss well, then you don’t know if the extraordinary $25.8 billion spent annually on agricultural research and development is working, or if we are spending it in the right ways.”

Research by the Plant Health Initiative will play a significant role in collecting and disseminating data on some major pests and diseases, which can guide scientists on which areas to prioritize, thereby contributing to an impactful research agenda.

Once data is gathered, CABI aims to inform decision-making for actors at the top levels of the plant health system and ensure that appropriate action is taken to safeguard global food security with the limited resources available.

Integrated pest management strategies have been key in dealing with fall armyworm in Africa and Asia. (Photo: B.M. Prasanna/CIMMYT)
Integrated pest management strategies have been key in dealing with fall armyworm in Africa and Asia. (Photo: B.M. Prasanna/CIMMYT)

Establishing global networks

The value of a data-driven approach was emphasized at a session organized by the Global Burden of Crop Loss on October 14 exploring evidence-based systems to tackle food security. This session was a side event of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Science and Innovation Forum, which this year focused on highlighting the centrality of science, technology and innovations for agrifood systems transformation.

Prasanna Boddupalli, One CGIAR Plant Health Initiative Lead and Director of CIMMYT’s Global Maize Program, explained how the Initiative will bridge knowledge gaps, build risk assessment and rapid response capability, improve integrated pest and disease management, design and deploy tools to prevent contamination of food chains, and promote gender-equitable and socially inclusive innovations for plant health.

With six devastating plant epidemics in Africa alone during the last decade and an increased number of climate change-induced droughts and floods, Boddupalli proposed a revitalized strategy using the objectives of the Plant Health Initiative.

Built on a foundation of partnerships, there are more than 80 national, regional, and international organizations involved in the Initiative across 40 countries in the Global South, in addition to the CGIAR research centers. Through this rapidly expanding collaboration, the focus will be on establishing regional diagnostic and surveillance networks and implementing Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and integrated mycotoxin management.

To address the need for evidence-based policy recommendations, Boddupalli explained the purpose of the Plant Health Innovation Platforms in Africa, Asia and Latin America, leveraging the partners’ research sites. Combining innovations from the CGIAR system, national partners and the private sector, these platforms will enable the co-creation and validation of pest and disease management packages, with the aim of significantly improving adoption of effective and affordable plant health innovations by smallholder farmers.

Removing the barriers for data sharing

The Plant Health Initiative team has recently collected and collated information from national partners and the private sector on actions needed to remove constraints on sharing pest and disease surveillance data. Potential solutions include improved training of national partners, joint research projects, pre-defined processes for data sharing, and focusing on work that meets national and regional priorities.

These approaches will inform the sharing of data collected through the Initiative. For example, researchers are gathering surveillance data on 15 crop pests affecting seven different plants in 25 countries, with the expectation of collecting more than 44,000 samples from 2,100 sites in 2022 alone, with plans for sharing the results with partner institutions.

Boddupalli also emphasized the importance of ramping up remote sensing and drone usage, wherever feasible, for diagnostics and surveillance. However, the current gaps in accessing data and computing facilities in the Global South need to be addressed to make this a reality.

“The OneCGIAR Plant Health Initiative and the Global Burden of Crop Loss project have excellent complementarity,” said Boddupalli. Both have an opportunity to generate and share robust data on crop loss due to existing and emerging crop pests and diseases and use this data to drive effective policy change on plant health management.”

About the Global Burden of Crop Loss:

The Global Burden of Crop Loss initiative is modelled after the Global Burden of Disease initiative in human health, which has transformed health policy and research, over the last 25 years through better use of data. 

The initiative aims to have a similar impact in agriculture, providing evidence to enable the global plant health community to generate actionable information and lead to a dramatic reduction in crop loss, resulting in increased food security and trade.

About the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI):

CABI is an international, inter-governmental, not-for-profit organization that improves people’s lives worldwide by providing information and applying scientific expertise to solve problems in agriculture and the environment.

Their approach involves putting information, skills and tools into people’s hands. CABI’s 49 Member Countries guide and influence their work which is delivered by scientific staff based in their global network of centers.

Is food security possible without peace?

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in News.

The intersection between agriculture and peace has been brought to the forefront of the news agenda this year due to the Ukraine crisis, which has caused widespread disruption to wheat supply chains – disruptions that are contributing to food insecurity for millions of people worldwide.

Agriculture was therefore a compulsory topic for the International Week of Science and Peace, and formed the main theme for an online fireside chat between Bram Govaerts, Director General of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), and the Hon. Sharon Burke on November 8.

Burke was the director of New America’s Resource Security program and a senior advisor to New America’s Future of War project in the Department of Defense. She served in the administrations of Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton.

Futureproofing security and food

“[Food] is a foundational element of all security,” explained Burke, when asked about the connection between the two. “We are facing global pressures. Everything that’s made us successful has also made us vulnerable – with biodiversity loss, with climate change. The challenge of having that foundational element of food security has never been harder than it is right now.”

This is a central vision of CIMMYT as a Wallace center, which Burke referenced to highlight how conflict and food insecurity drive one another: “It’s this terrible knot where things are connected. But when we add in climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution and other elements of our modern life, it’s more important than ever to understand how these elements fit together.”

“Peace, prosperity, and equity… are more relevant than ever in the environment we are working in,” agreed Govaerts.

Govaerts then invited Burke to offer recommendations for the development of CIMMYT’s new strategy. She suggested three points to consider:

  • How is climate change going to shift what agricultural production and productivity means – 10 years from now, 20 years from now, 30 years from now?
  • In that world, how does that reflect through your research and development priorities?
  • How do you continue to have that dialogue with farmers, so that you affect them, and they affect you, and what are the ways to make sure that you deepen that and the equity that’s inherent in that conversation?

Govaerts reflected on recent examples from history where conflict destabilized the global food system, such as the Arab Spring as provoked by consecutive droughts that heavily impacted wheat crops. Burke agreed that it was essential to build peace and secure food supplies simultaneously, always having peace as the end goal before any conflict even begins, and the importance of showing the systems effect to donors to encourage future investment.

“One of the reasons that I really love what CIMMYT does, is that you’re talking about not just food security as some abstract concept but as the people and the places where it’s created,” shared Burke.

CIMMYT’s role in peacebuilding

Burke highlighted the commitment from the United States Government to invest money in food security and food assistance, not just for necessary emergency aid but also for improving food production, farming, and last mile technology.

“How can we leverage this investment that is being made now in an emergency to be one that also builds resilience for this longer-term emergency that we are all facing?” she asked, encouraging research and development organizations to always evidence the impact of their work.

In her closing words, Burke expressed high levels of admiration for our scientists. “You get to actually touch the problem and deliver the solution and work in that two-way dialogue with farmers and that you get to bring that all together – how we think about a problem, how we come up with novel science and technology for solving the problem, and then you get to actually carry it to the field and make it work.”

“You’re not just thinking about peace or researching about peace – you’re delivering it!”