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CIMMYT scientist wins award from Crop Science Society of America

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MEXICO CITY, MEXICO (26 October 2012) — CIMMYT (The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center) announced today that the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) has given CIMMYT’s Dr. Ravi P. Singh its 2012 Crop Science Research Award.The award was presented at the CSSA annual meeting in Cincinnati, OH and recognizes Dr. Singh’s work fighting wheat diseases. The award is given to one person annually. Dr. Singh is the first CIMMYT scientist to receive the honor.

Dr. Singh is recognized as one of the foremost authority on rust diseases of wheat. He has identified 20 genes for different traits in wheat and molecular markers for several major and minor rust resistance genes. Singh’s contributions to wheat genetics, pathology and breeding have resulted in the release of over 200 wheat cultivars, including 20 that are resistant to Ug99 stem rust, in numerous developing countries. His methodology for developing high yielding cultivars with durable rust resistance and the breeding lines derived from this work have changed not only wheat breeding at CIMMYT but also in numerous breeding programs both in developing and developed countries. His competence and the respect of fellow scientists are widely recognized, and Singh has helped train over 500 developing country scientists and served as advisor for 18 MS and PhD students.

Dr. Singh is a Distinguished Scientist and the Head of Bread Wheat Improvement at CIMMYT. He received B.S. and M.S. degrees from Banaras Hindu University, India, and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Sydney. Singh has authored or co-authored 150 refereed journal articles, 24 book and book chapters and reviews, 77 symposia proceedings, and 182 abstracts. He is a fellow of numerous scientific organizations, including ASA, CSSA, APS and National Academy of Agricultural Science of India, and has received awards such as International Service in Crop Science Award from CSSA, Outstanding CGIAR Scientist, E.C. Stakman Award from the the University of Minnesota, and Jinding and Caiyun Medals from the Sichuan and Yunnan Province Governments of China.

The Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), founded in 1955, is an international scientific society comprised of 6,000+ members with its headquarters in Madison, WI. Members advance the discipline of crop science by acquiring and disseminating information about crop breeding and genetics; crop physiology; crop ecology, management, and quality; seed physiology, production, and technology; turfgrass science; forage and grazinglands; genomics, molecular genetics, and biotechnology; and biomedical and enhanced plants.

About CIMMYT
Headquartered in Mexico, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (known by its Spanish acronym, CIMMYT) is a not-for-profit agriculture research and training organization. The center works to reduce poverty and hunger by sustainably increasing the productivity of maize and wheat in the developing world. CIMMYT maintains the world’s largest maize and wheat seed bank and is best known for initiating the Green Revolution, which saved millions of lives across Asia and for which CIMMYT’s Dr. Norman Borlaug was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. CIMMYT is a member of the CGIAR Consortium and receives support from national governments, foundations, development banks, and other public and private agencies.

For more information, please contact:
Chris Cutter, CIMMYT, c.cutter@cgiar.org, +52 (1) 595 104 9846

Gender integration in CGIAR Research Programs

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The move to integrate gender in the organizational and research agenda of the CGIAR Research Programs (CRPs) and Centers is gaining speed, also due to the formation of the ‘CGIAR Gender and Agriculture Research Network’ earlier this year. The network consists of Lead Gender Specialists from each of the 15 CRPs, as well as other social and biological scientists committed to the integration of gender in agricultural research for development.

This network of highly energetic women and men reunited at a workshop hosted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation during 25-27 July 2012 in Seattle, USA. The objective was to discuss how CGIAR research can contribute to closing the gender gap in agriculture and to explore opportunities for collaboration in gender-responsive research across CRPs. Lone Badstue, CIMMYT Gender Specialist, represented the MAIZE and WHEAT CRPs, and CIMMYT Socioeconomist Tina Beuchelt also participated.

NetworkGroupPhoto“The workshop was a great opportunity to share ideas and lessons learned, to exchange concepts of different gender strategies, as well as to discuss the latest gender-related research methods,” said Beuchelt. The workshop identified four themes for cross-program research on gender and agriculture: (1) engendering agricultural value chains; (2) gender-transformative approaches; (3) gender and technology adoption and diffusion; and (4) gender and nutrition. The participants also agreed upon a shared set of gender-responsive research outcomes that can be jointly monitored to assess progress towards CGIAR System Level Outcomes. Furthermore, they discussed how to measure these outcomes and agreed to continue collaboration on the development and measurement of a shared set of genderresponsive indicators.

An inspiring presentation by Eve Crowley, Deputy Director of the Food and Agriculture Organization´s Gender, Equity and Rural Development Division, provided valuable insights on critical success factors for mainstreaming gender in the CRPs and identified good practices that promote mainstreaming.

Topics to work on were many and time flew by in the workshop. As a follow-up to the workshop, a set of joint CRP concept papers on the integration of gender in the CGIAR research agenda will be developed. The group parted sharing the spirit of working together on this topic highly relevant to all CRPs.

Ravi Singh receives prestigious prize

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The University of Minnesota recently announced CIMMYT distinguished scientist Ravi Singh as the recipient of its 2010 E.C. Stakman Award.  Established in 1955 by plant pathologist E.C. Stakman, a pioneer in combating wheat diseases, the award is given to individuals for outstanding achievements in plant pathology. Stakman was also a former professor of Norman Borlaug.

“I feel extremely honored and humbled to receive this highly prestigious award,” Singh said. “Dr. Stakman was a mentor to Dr. Borlaug and is largely responsible for sending him to Mexico in 1944. You wonder whether Dr. Stakman knew or even guessed that this decision was going to change history and save millions of lives.”

Singh, who has been with CIMMYT for over 25 years, is world-renowned for his efforts to control wheat rusts and has trained over 400 young scientists. With this award he joins a long list of notable scientists, including I. A. Watson, who was dean of Sydney University’s College of Agriculture and a former pupil of Stakman himself, and 2007’s recipient, the late Bent Skovmand, former head of wheat genetic resources at CIMMYT, director of the Nordic Gene Bank, and key player in the development of Svalbard International Seed Bank.

Congratulations, Ravi!

Matthew Reynolds becomes a Fellow of the ASA

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We are delighted to announce that in October, CIMMYT Wheat Physiologist Matthew Reynolds will be recognized as a Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy (ASA) for 2011. The position of Fellow is the highest honor bestowed by the society, and is awarded to a maximum 0.3% of its members. Candidates can be nominated by other members of the society, in recognition of “outstanding contributions in an area of specialization whether in research, teaching, extension, service, or administration and whether in public, commercial, or private service activities.” “It is always helpful and gratifying to be acknowledged by an important, professional organization like the ASA,” said Reynolds. Congratulations!

Matthew Reynolds talks about climate change

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The US government has temporarily satisfied its hunger for information on how to adapt agriculture to climate change. On 14 September 2009, Matthew Reynolds, CIMMYT wheat physiologist, joined around 15 other agriculture experts just outside of Washington, DC, USA, to present at a conference titled: “Adapting Agriculture to Climate Change: What Will It Take?”

The conference, sponsored by the US Department of State, opened with a keynote by John Holdren, science adviser to the President of the United States, and was followed by four main panel topics: Impacts of Climate Change on Agriculture; Research in the Public Sector; Research in the Private Sector; and Alternative Crops, Sustainable Management, and Integrative Strategies. The goal of the event was to explore strategies and raise awareness about adaption measures that are required—or will be required in the future—to maintain sufficient global food production.

“It is reassuring to know that the US government is taking the issue of food security in the context of climate change seriously,” said Reynolds, who presented on adapting the major cereal crops (including maize and wheat) to climate change. “The State Department was not the only government program represented at the conference; the broad spectrum of speakers and government officials (including USDA and USAID) present shows that they are considering a comprehensive approach to the issue.”

A position paper based on the outcomes of the conference will be prepared for the US government. It will also be published in Science magazine.

Raun named OSU Sarkeys Distinguished Professor

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Former CIMMYT wheat agronomist (1986-91) Bill Raun has been named the 2007 recipient of the Sarkeys Distinguished Professor Award by the Oklahoma State University (OSU) Division of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. The Sarkeys award is based on outstanding contributions to agriculture through teaching, research or extension efforts. The award was established by the Sarkeys Foundation in 1980 to honor Elmo Baumann, an agronomist who worked with the foundation after his retirement from OSU. Raun was named a Fellow of the Soil Science of America and American Society of Agronomy and has received many prestigious honors, including the ASA Werner L. Nelson Award, the Robert E. Wagner Award, the OSU Regents Distinguished Research Award and the OSU James A. Whatley Award for Meritorious Service in Agricultural Sciences.

Ohio State University honors Kevin Pixley

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On 16 October 2007, CIMMYT maize breeder and assistant director of the center’s global maize program, Kevin Pixley, was given the G.H. Stringfield Award from Ohio State University, USA, in recognition of “his outstanding contributions to the science of maize breeding and genetics.” The award was made on behalf of the OSU Department of Horticulture and Crop Science and the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. “Stringfield was arguably the most important maize breeder in Ohio history,” says Pixley, who is only the second person to receive the award. “He was instrumental in early hybrid research and in leading the transition from OPVs to hybrids in Ohio.”

Borlaug: green revolution to gold standard

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On Tuesday at a ceremony in the United States Congress, Norman Borlaug was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal of Honor, the highest civilian award the American government can give.

Global Wheat Program Director Hans Braun represented CIMMYT at the ceremony. “It was a fantastic setting for a fantastic honor,” he said. “It was his will, his bold vision, and the solutions of science, by which Dr. Borlaug used the timeless resources of one farmer and one field to feed more people than ever before,” said speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, who with President Bush presented the gold medal to Borlaug.

In his remarks Bush said “Wealthy and prosperous nations have a moral obligation to help poor and struggling people find their own paths to progress and plenty.”

In accepting the medal, Borlaug agreed with Bush and challenged the United States to stop its own funding reductions and put funds back into agricultural research for development.

“My plea today to the members of Congress and to the Administration is to re-commit the United States to more dynamic and generous programs of official development assistance in agriculture for Third World nations, as was done in the 1960s and 1970s,” he said. “Ever-shrinking foreign aid budgets in support of smallholder agriculture, and especially to multilateral research and development organizations such as the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) where I have worked for 40 years, as well as its sister research institutes under the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), are not in our nation’s best interest, nor do they represent our finest traditions.”

Borlaug joins civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. of the United States, Mother Teresa of India, Nelson Mandela of South Africa and World War II Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel as a recipient of three prestigious awards — the Congressional Gold Medal, the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom, and the Nobel Peace Prize.

Borlaug to receive highest US honor

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Norman Borlaug will receive the highest civilian honor the United States of America can bestow at a ceremony in Washington DC this coming Tuesday, 17 July. The Congressional Gold Medal will be presented by President Bush and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi. An original gold medal has been created by the United States Mint commemorating Borlaug’s achievements.

The United States Senate first passed the legislation on September 27, 2006. The United States House of Representatives voted to honor Borlaug with the Medal, on December 6 last year in the final days of the 2006 legislative session.

The first Congressional Gold Medal was awarded in 1776 to General George Washington. Borlaug will join an illustrious list of recipients that includes Thomas Edison, Pope John Paul II, and Martin Luther King Jr.

Texas A&M students step out into the wider world, visit CIMMYT

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During 19-29 June 2007, eight students from the Faculty of the Soil and Crop Science Department, Texas A&M University toured CIMMYT-El Batán and talked with center staff as part of an introductory trip to learn about international agricultural research. Accompanied by Ronald Cantrell, former Director of the CIMMYT Maize Program and Director General of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and Steve Hague, Texas A&M Professor in Cotton Breeding, the students are expected among other things to develop an understanding of the challenges and opportunities in underdeveloped agriculture systems. Their program included visits to the facilities of Mexico’s National Institute of Forestry, Agriculture, and Livestock Research (INIFAP) and of Pioneer-Hibred in Mexico, as well as interacting with subsistence farmers in Tlaxcala State.

The trip came about when Cantrell was invited to give a seminar for Soil and Crop Science Department graduate students. “Participants expressed interest in study abroad,” Cantrell says, “and this coincided with a grant from Dr. Norman Borlaug for this purpose. They decided to use the grant to visit an international center, and asked me to coordinate it. Students applied for this ‘scholarship,’ and these are the ones chosen.” The group includes students from the undergraduate through PhD levels, and crop breeders, agronomists, and molecular biologists.

Dhananjay Mani, arrived at the University a year and a half ago from Muzaffarpur, Bihar, India, and is studying for an MSc in plant breeding. He likes the emphasis on breeding at Texas A&M and the opportunity for contact with the University’s Distinguished Professor, Norman Borlaug. “Regarding CIMMYT, I observe one thing,” he says. “Everyone here is talking and thinking about the whole world, not just local issues, and especially people who really need agriculture.”

Jennifer Winn, an MSc student from Denton, Texas, USA, became interested in crop breeding after reading an autobiographical account of a medical missionary in Africa who was treating the major diseases that affect the poor. “He’d give his patients medicine, then hear a couple of days later that they died from malnutrition,” she says. “The book makes the point that malnutrition is the main cause of death in the developing world, and this emphasizes the importance of agriculture and agricultural research.” She has been impressed with the level of organization she observes in CIMMYT: “Programs are collaborating on a wide range of work—biofortification at the molecular level, then there’s Ken Sayre’s work at the field level. You cover every aspect of the plant!”

FAO joins Global Rust Initiative

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The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) announced Thursday that it would join CIMMYT and ICARDA in the Global Rust Initiative (GRI). “Global wheat yields could be at risk if the stem rust spreads to major wheat producing countries,” said FAO Director-General Dr Jacques Diouf. The statement also said that FAO had confirmed the findings announced in January by CIMMYT, ICARDA and the Agricultural Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS) that the virulent wheat stem rust strain known as Ug99 had moved from Africa into the Arabian Peninsula. FAO went on to say that FAO, ICARDA and CIMMYT would support countries in developing resistant varieties, producing their clean quality seeds, upgrading national plant protection and plant breeding services and developing contingency plans. FAO urged countries in the potential path of the airborne fungus to increase their disease surveillance.

The FAO announcement follows close on the heels of the publication of two major stories about the wheat stem rust problem, one in Science and another in New Scientist and on visits to FAO by GRI coordinator, Rick Ward and by DG Iwanaga.

USDA visits CIMMYT

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Michael Yost, Administrator, of the Foreign Agricultural Service of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) paid a brief visit to CIMMYT El Batán on Saturday, 24 March. He was accompanied by Suzanne Heinen the Agricultural Minister-Counselor of the Foreign Agriculture Service at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City and Erich Kuss the Senior Agricultural Attache at the Embassy.

After an introduction to CIMMYT given by Peter Ninnes, the group toured both the Wellhausen-Anderson Plant Genetic Resources Center and the Applied Biotechnology Center (ABC). During the ABC visit Marilyn Warburton talked about the support role the lab plays in important CIMMYT research projects as well as the new research that comes out of the lab itself. She also highlighted the limitations imposed by the age of some of the equipment.

The visit was arranged by Victor Villalobos the General Coordinator for International Affairs of the Ministry of Agriculture of Mexico (SAGARPA).

Assistance for resistance

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One of the questions Norman Borlaug often asks when talking about rusts in the major cereals is why rice is not susceptible to rust fungi but wheat, barley and other cereals are. That question inspired a workshop on rust immunity systems organized by Ronnie Coffman of Cornell University and held last week at the CIMMYT Obregón station. Among the participants were representatives of the United States Department of Agriculture, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Texas A & M University, Purdue University, the University of Minnesota and of course CIMMYT. Rob Horsch of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation also participated. As a result of the workshop, the participants have been asked to prepare a concept note for submission to the Foundation for potential funding for rust resistance work.

Whistle-stop tour

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Sixteen members of the Illinois Farm Bureau paid a brief visit to El Batán on Wednesday. The group included maize, wheat, and soybean farmers and they are on a study tour to learn about Mexican agriculture. At CIMMYT they heard presentations from Kevin Pixley about CIMMYT’s Maize Program, Javier Peña about nutritional enhancement in maize, and Pedro Aquino about our impacts and targeting work in Mexico. The tour was capped with visit to the Wellhausen- Anderson Plant Genetic Resources Center with Tom Payne acting as guide. For many the tour was an eye-opener, and the visitors had many questions about agriculture in the developing world. After two and a half hours at CIMMYT, the group moved on to the University of Chapingo.

Transparency and transmission: wheat quality in the marketplace

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According to Erika Meng, CIMMYT economist and organizer of a workshop on wheat quality held at El Batán during 7-8 December 2006: ‘“We’ve worked on wheat quality at CIMMYT for a long time, but usually from the supply side. What we tried to do at this workshop is bring information from the supply and demand sides closer together, because with urbanization and income growth in developing countries, a more segregated demand for types of wheat products and quality is emerging.” The 20 participants included experts from the US and Canada, to draw on their expertise in enabling wheat quality demands to be transparent and transmitted through the marketplace. Outcomes included a prioritized agenda for research and outlines for three concept notes to seek funding for the work.