ICARDA News

International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas

P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
Phone: (963-21) 2213433, 2213477, 2225112, 2225012
Fax: (963-21) 2213490, 2225105;
E-mail: ICARDA@CGIAR.ORG
Website: www.icarda.org
15 November 2008
Media contact: icarda-media@cgiar.org
 
Science Week at ICARDA
Refreshingly new breath: ICARDA’s DG Dr Mahmoud Solh delivering the inaugural address at the Science Week.
ICARDA's first ever dedicated "Science Week" October 27 to 29 was very well attended by staff from HQ and regional locations. "While this initiative, the first such event in ICARDA's three decades of endeavor to alleviate hunger and poverty in the world's dry areas, was announced as "Science Week", it turned out to be more of a "science, making a difference" event, commended Dr Mahendra M. Shah, Senior Scientist and United Nations Science and Policy Relations Coordinator, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Austria, who was an invited speaker at the Science Week.

Three eminent guest speakers on the theme "Climate Change" (CC) and its impacts on agriculture and rural livelihoods in the dry areas gave momentum to the deliberations.

Dr Mahmoud Solh, the Director General, dwelling on the goals of the Science Week, highlighted its relevance to present day challenges when CC has become a reality, and poses serious threats to agriculture and livelihood security in the fragile dryland ecosystems. "The highly vulnerable dry areas now face erratic and low rainfall, and extended periods of high and low temperature extremes. They bear testimony to the ominous presence of CC," he pointed out. He also stressed the importance of ICARDA's role in adapting to CC and mitigating its effects through strong research-for-development to foster sustainable agriculture in the fragile areas.
“Science, making a difference”. Participants of ICARDA’s first ever dedicated “Science Week”.

Dr Maarten van Ginkel, Deputy Director General (Research), in his welcome remarks introduced the theme of CC and set the agenda for deliberations by the scientists and the guest speakers. The Science Week brought to the fore key issues for agricultural research in the fields of CC policy and economics, integrated water and management options, biodiversity and integrated gene management, increased threats by pests, diversification and sustainable intensification of production systems, hydroponics-opportunities and potentials and risk management strategies for sustainable rangeland-based systems. It also provided berth for discussions on knowledge management, finance management and carbon sequestration in Central Asia.
The three eminent guest speakers, (from right to left) Dr Ross Kingwell, Dr Delia Grace and Dr Mahendra M. Shah, gave the much desired momentum to the deliberations.
In the first session devoted to Geographic Information Systems, Dr Eddy De Pauw made a presentation on "GISU Research Relevant to Climate Change". He presented an overview of analysis and mapping of historical trends of climate in non-tropical drylands; including using and developing, in association with ARI partners, different methods for downscaling Global Climate Model predictions to more regional and local levels. He also covered the development of new tools and methods for impact assessment: suitability models for crops, varieties and technologies under CC scenarios and optimizing the ICARDA Agroclimate Tool for CC research.
"However, farmers face another challenge. They are also likely to be affected by CC policies that will be developed at national and international levels."
Dr Ross Kingwell, Associate Professor of Agricultural Economics at the University of Western Australia and Chief Economist at the Western Australian Department of Agriculture and Food, Australia, delivered a keynote lecture on "Dryland Farm Management in the Face of Climate Change Policy: the Australian Experience" on the opening day. He said: "We know that farmers in arid regions will be affected seriously by CC as these regions become warmer and drier. To help those farmers, ICARDA is developing crop varieties and agronomic techniques suited for warmer and drier environments. Farmers will, no doubt, benefit from that. However, farmers face another challenge. They are also likely to be affected by CC policies that will be developed at national and international levels."

Presenting his paper on "Vulnerability, Technological Options and Food Security" in the session covering social, economic and policy issues, Dr Aden Aw-Hassan vividly brought out the need for technological updating to meet the challenges posed by CC. "The negative effects of CC hit hardest the poorest in developing countries that are least prepared to adapt to its effects. ICARDA is sharpening its focus on understanding the vulnerability of poor rural communities on the risks and the social and economic impacts of CC," he said. ICARDA's Social, Economic and Policy Research Program is taking up the methodological challenges in analyzing the ex ante effects on the decision making of asset-poor rural households in the face of the risks posed by CC, as well as the ex post effects.

Dr Mohamed Abdelwahab Ahmed made out a case for "Climate Change: Vulnerability, Adaptation and Mitigation Policies". Adaptation to CC requires a new generation of technologies that optimize the trade-offs between productivity gains and yield variability over time, such that optimization of all inputs must be considered simultaneously and that a holistic approach in technology generation must be followed.
"It is ironical that the people who inhabit these areas have contributed the least to the causes of CC, and yet they have to bear the brunt of its adverse effects."
CC is likely to increase uncertainty in rainfed systems as a result of increased incidence of extreme weather conditions especially rainfall and temperature. Analysis of farmers' decision-making under uncertainty suggests that water use per unit area is likely to increase, which is likely to increase pressure on groundwater resources. This will promote the demand for more efficient techniques for improving water productivity. But water productivity is also a function of other inputs, particularly fertilizer. Risk-averse farmers are likely to reduce their nitrogenous fertilizer application with CC, and they will be expected to adopt varieties with high returns and low yield variability," said Dr Ahmed.

The session that followed dealt with water and land issues. Dr Mahendra M. Shah, a guest speaker, delivered a keynote lecture on "Climate Change and Agricultural Vulnerability in Central Asia, West Asia and North Africa" on the second day and said: "CC has the biggest impact on developing countries and particularly their agriculture. It is severe especially in countries with fragile natural resources-base such as scarce water and low soil fertility. It is ironical that the people who inhabit these areas have contributed the least to the causes of CC, and yet they have to bear the brunt of its adverse effects."

ICARDA's work is focused on agricultural research in the most vulnerable fragile ecosystems, not only in the CWANA region, but also in other parts of the world. Its research should be focused on developing new crop varieties that are drought and heat tolerant. But it should not stop there. It has to be accomplished in conjunction with sound natural resources management, especially the critical water-related issues. ICARDA has to integrate these aspects, for crops as well as livestock, of adapting to CC, Dr Shah pointed out.
Gender & Diversity: Participants actively took part in the lively discussions that followed the main presentations.
Research and management are also not sufficient, and functional and vibrant agricultural extension services that would fan out the research results to the farmers is also critical.

Dr Mohammed Karrou in his lecture entitled "How to Manipulate the Source/Sink Relationship in Wheat through an Integrated Management to Adapt to/Mitigate the Effects of Climate Change", succinctly brought out some key issues for new areas of research, such as loss by evaporation during the early vegetative stage of wheat crop, integrated management strategy using early supplemental irrigation to plant, no-till technology and adapted varieties used to cover the soil early and increase transpiration, to be addressed.

Dr Adriana Bruggeman came out with a simple model for assessing "the Effect of Climate Variability and Climate Change on Green and Blue Water for Agriculture". Even simple modeling can help to understand the system and evaluate the effects of different scenarios and uncertainties, according to her. "We need to invest in monitoring to contribute to the reduction of uncertainties," she emphasized.

Under the "Biodiversity and Integrated Gene Management" theme, Dr Mustapha El Bohssini dealt with implications of CC on IPM of insect pests. Monitoring of insect pests and their natural enemies and developing prediction models for the major pests' outbreaks are absolutely essential. "Appropriate gene deployment strategies (genes that are stable under higher temperature regimes) and appropriate IPM options (new formulations of pesticides/biopesticides, adapted biocontrol agents for hotter and drier environmental conditions) should be developed to adapt to climate change," he said.

Dr Francis Ogbonnaya, in his presentation on "Strategies for Improving Wheat Productivity under CC", advocated the need for research that incorporates alternative production systems. The potential benefits of the exploitation of the untapped genetic resources within ICARDA's gene bank for sustainable wheat production under climate change using both conventional and contemporary genomic tools were highlighted.

"Breeding for CC: Food Legume Improvement for Harsh Environments" was presented by Dr Fouad Maalouf. "Climate Change affects food legume productivity mainly in harsh environment, where drought and heat become more frequent. It produces changes in diseases types and frequencies, such as Ascochyta becoming rare and or absent in some areas, while rust is appearing in new areas, in the case of faba bean", he explained.
"With CC our world will become warmer, wetter and sicker in many areas, while drier in others. It is an urgent problem and needs an immediate response."
In the session assigned to cover diversification and sustainable intensification of production systems issues, Dr Delia Grace, Scientist-Veterinary Epidemiologist at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Nairobi, Kenya, delivered a keynote lecture on "A New Prescription for Climate Related Animal and Zoonotic Disease".

"Poor livestock farmers, like all poor farmers, stand to lose from CC. They will lose, because the fodder will become scarcer, disease will become more common and the environment harsher. However, livestock also offers opportunities as a coping mechanism, because they are mobile and thrive even in dry and marginal lands. With CC, our world will become warmer, wetter and sicker in many areas, while drier in others. It is an urgent problem and needs an immediate response," she said.
Outreach well reached! There were engaging discussions and contributions by ICARDA’s outreach scientists.

Dr Ahmed Moustafa made a presentation on "Hydroponics, Opportunities and Potential Impacts to Mitigate the Risks of Climate Change". He pointed out that the productivity per unit of water for high value crops using hydroponics production techniques was high. The system helped to produce high nutritious fruit and vegetable crops in an adequately controlled production environment ensuring good protection against pest and diseases, according to him.
"The Science Week helped in identifying knowledge gaps in our research and it would help in forging a strong alliance among researchers to come out with new coping mechanisms backed up by sound policies."
Dr Ali Nefzaoui gave an account on "Coping with Climate Change and Risk Management Strategies for Sustainable Rangeland-based Systems in WANA Region". Identifying important areas for research he said that elaborate climate models which allow better understanding of CC impacts at local level should be developed, and pastoral species adapted to heat and drought stresses and capable of auto-regeneration should be developed using biotechnology. "Insuring against climatic risks is becoming a powerful tool for risk management, and it will encourage investment in agro-pastoral areas," he explained.

Drs Rolf Sommer and Eddy De Pauw made a presentation on "Carbon Sequestration in Soils of Central Asia". "Preservation of the various agro-ecosystems in Central Asia is inevitable for maintaining a sustainable and productive agricultural resource basis," they argued. The strategy of soil C sequestration as a stand-alone measure is, however, not a viable bridge to a future in which alternative energy sources can substitute fossil fuel burning. "To be effective, Soil Organic Carbon-sequestration must be part of a set of mitigating measures and C sequestration in soil is not the solution to unconstrained fossil fuel CO2 emissions," they pointed out.

In the session on Knowledge Management, Dr Andrea Pape Christiansen explained "What has the Knowledge Manager Done to Improve our Research? - Towards Greater Research Impact, Better Targeting and Improved Institutional Learning". Her presentation included examples of knowledge management and communication activities undertaken for and with ICADRA scientists in order to extend research delivery as well as to preserve the institutional memory.

Mr Bruce Fraser, Director of Finance, made a presentation, which had as its theme the various ways in which the finance function can be made more "user-friendly". This would benefit not only the users of financial information but also all staff (inside and outside the finance department), who have to enter data into the Oracle system. Many examples were given including providing meaningful names to projects, improved project budget reports, and reducing the number of characters in the Oracle account code. There was also explanation of the process for the 2009 budget, as was a stress on the need to develop a stronger budget management culture at ICARDA.

Sharp debates enlivened the sessions and new ideas emerged out of the cross-fertilization of the minds of the participants. The need for an integrated and coordinated approach to science and technology to adapt to CC was underscored time and again by the speakers and the participants. "The Science Week helped in identifying knowledge gaps in our research and it would help in forging a strong alliance among researchers to come out with new coping mechanisms backed up by sound policies," endorsed Dr Solh.

Dr van Ginkel in his closing remarks said that the deliberations opened up new vistas for potential collaboration within and across programs in the center. "The discussions helped in identifying new areas of cross-cutting research and for example highlighted the urgent need for interaction among the crop-livestock-rangelands systems," he summed up.
 

About ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.org) is one of the 15 international research centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ICARDA serves the entire developing world for the improvement of barley, lentil, and faba bean; and dry-area developing countries for the on-farm management of water, improvement of nutrition and productivity of small ruminants (sheep and goats), and rehabilitation and management of rangelands. In the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, ICARDA is responsible for the improvement of durum and bread wheats, chickpea, pasture and forage legumes and farming systems; and for the protection and enhancement of the natural resource base of water, land, and biodiversity.

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) (www.cgiar.org) is a strategic alliance of countries, international and regional organizations, and private foundations supporting15 international research centers that mobilizes cutting-edge science to promote sustainable development by reducing hunger and poverty, improving human nutrition and health, and protecting the environment.

Back