"Our Visit Changed My Vision of Agriculture"

“Our Visit Changed My Vision of Agriculture”

Graduate students from the University of Florida visited CIMMYT-Mexico in July 2001 as part of a new class designed to heighten awareness of work at an international research center. James Jones, a distinguished professor in the University’s Agricultural and Biological Engineering Department, collaborated with Jeff White of CIMMYT’s Natural Resources Group to bring the students to Mexico. The students, who are getting their degrees in a range of disciplines, interacted with CIMMYT researchers in the field and lab. On returning to Florida, they wrote to CIMMYT about their visit.

P.B.Ramkrishnan: The trip to CIMMYT was a visionary investment in the future for young, aspiring professionals like me. This eye-opening experience will help me to choose or bend the direction of my research. The challenges for the third world countries are still large, and this trip further emphasized the need to take this mounting challenge through working closely with CGIAR scientists.		Ayse Irmak: I was intrigued by the quality protein maize program (QPM). My primary interest about QPM was the positive effects that might occur on pregnant woman. In developed countries, pregnant women can get additional nutrients from pharmacies, but what about a lady in Africa who can’t even buy enough food? At least she can grow quality protein maize in her little yard.

Andres Ferreyra: Our recent visit to CIMMYT and the course…changed my vision of agriculture, affected my perception of the most pressing world problems, and affected my research and thus possibly my future. I am an electronic engineer, and my perception of agriculture is biased accordingly. My entrance into agriculture has been through the attempt to understand and model causal relationships. This is an engineer-friendly process, but gaps remain in my understanding of the agricultural “big picture.” I found that my perception of the complexity of the most pressing world problems—and underlying issues, such as the AIDS crisis in Africa—has been enhanced. My own research has benefited: I have been able to incorporate results of discussions in CIMMYT directly into my on-farm research and have been exposed to concepts, such as adaptability analysis, that will enrich my dissertation research.		Soonhoo Kim: Before going to CIMMYT, I was very nervous because I have no background of wheat and maize production; my specific area is Information Technology. I learned a lot about what CIMMYT is doing in GIS and database management, as well as about wheat and maize. First, I learned what a great thing it is to help other people. Before taking this course, I studied only for myself. Now, I can see what poor people need and how I might help. Second, I learned how I might help to unify my country (North Korea and South Korea). North Koreans suffer from hunger. If they have new technology for production of maize and wheat, they will increase yield. If I cooperate with the CGIAR, it is possible to help them indirectly. Third, it is important to develop a good database management system in the CGIAR. I would be interested in helping the CGIAR develop database systems for making their research results available for generations to come.

David Carter: Participating students saw how a research agenda can be constructed in a culturally diverse environment among scientists from many disciplines. CIMMYT is located in an area characteristic of the developing world. Consequently, the research has an immediate focus and scientists are keenly aware of the problems they aim to alleviate. CIMMYT activities are more client-driven than research conducted in a university setting, so results tend to be well defined in terms of useful products rather than conceptual or theoretical advances. The tours and seminar series provided an opportunity to learn about the broad range of wheat and maize research being conducted at the Center. The student presentations allowed the class members to share their work with CIMMYT scientists and gave them an opportunity to practice their skills in a professional setting.		Jawoo Koo: The trip to CIMMYT has changed my life. After learning that CIMMYT is working with students and scientists fr om North Korea, I realize that there is a lot of potential for someone like myself, fr om South Korea, to contribute to agricultural development. Personally, this trip gave me a big motivation to study and pursue research related to North Korea’s agricultural problems. Since many political issues were involved, information about North Korea was very restricted to most South Korean people, including me so far. Thanks to information I got from the trip, now I'm thinking that helping North Korea’s agricultural problems through international research centers, like CIMMYT, will be meaningful, not only for myself but also for our country, or countries. I ’m now thinking of potential possibilities to work on North Korea's agriculture with GIS and our crop growth models.

John Bellow: I found the opportunity to discuss my approach and objectives with other researchers such as Mauricio Bellon and Jorge Bolaños to be invaluable. They provided insight into the farming system of the region from first-hand experience. I was pleased that CIMMYT recognizes the importance of exposing young researchers to ongoing efforts in the CGIAR to address the problems of small-scale, resource limited-farmers in the developing world. Several of the discussions motivated me to modify my research to more effectively address current issues. I encourage the effort to promote broader collaboration between CIMMYT and university students.		Carlos Messina: The visit to CIMMYT was an enlightening experience, from the words of wisdom and hope from Nobel Laureate Norman Borlaug to the cutting-edge presentation in molecular biology from Jean-Marcel Ribaut. The experience exposed me to technical issues as well as made me question the relevance of my research in the context of global problems in agricultural research. I have been exposed to a diverse array of methods used in international agricultural research, which all have the objective of addressing global problems. I had the chance to discuss approaches in molecular biology, learn about techniques for the study of germplasm-by-environment (GxE) interactions, and initiate collaborative research.

Suat Irmak: CIMMYT ’s effort to orient its research based on local farmers’ needs should be practiced in other research centers globally. About 40% of the wheat grown in developing countries is produced under irrigated conditions, yet there is not a sustainable and efficient crop production system developed for irrigated wheat. CIMMYT has been working on a new wheat planting system called raised bed planting. I discussed the possibility with Ken Sayre of CIMMYT for collaboration between CIMMYT, University of Florida, and Çukurova University in Turkey to work on irrigated wheat production systems.

Annual Report 00-2001