News from the Drylands         
International Conference on Drylands
A number of global meetings in which ICARDA was involved, were held in 2006, to mark the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. The first major event was the 8th International Conference on Dryland Development, held in Beijing, China, in February 2006. The conference was organized by the International Dryland Development Commission, hosted by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and cosponsored by the United Nations University in Tokyo, ICARDA, and other institutions.

Panel discussion on UNCCD implementation, co-chaired by Prof. Dr Hans van Ginkel, Rector, United Nations University, and Prof. Dr El-Beltagy, ICARDA Director General (third and fourth from right, respectively).

The theme of the conference: ‘Man and Nature – working together for sustainable development in the drylands’. There were over 200 participants from 26 countries and five international organizations; and a total of 150 presentations. A panel discussion involving some of the world’s leading experts, focused on ways to strengthen implementation of the UNCCD.

The discussions covered a range of issues: soil and water conservation, dust-storm processes, range management, forage and livestock production, biodiversity and ethnobotany, stress physiology, renewable energy, indigenous/traditional knowledge, sustainable development of oases, socioeconomic studies of desert communities, the role of NGOs, and application of new technologies and technology transfer methods for crop improvement in dry areas.

ICARDA was well represented at the conference. Director General Prof. Dr El-Beltagy and Board Chair Dr Margaret-Catley Carlson chaired or co-chaired several key sessions. Assistant Director General Dr Mohan Saxena played a key organizational role as Executive Secretary of the International Dryland Development Commission. A number of ICARDA scientists made presentations: future challenges to sustainable resource management, agricultural water consumption in relation to aridity and drought incidence, the potential of biofuels, development of forage legumes in China, and protected agriculture in the Arabian Peninsula.

Prof. Dr Li Jiayang, Vice President of CAS, described some of the efforts being made to combat desertification – a significant problem in China. Later, participants visited CAS research units, where considerable work is being done in geography and resource management research, remote sensing and GIS, and biotechnology.
 
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