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Australian Nuffield Scholars ask searching questions of CIMMYT researchers

Eleven winners of the prestigious 2006 Nuffield Farming Scholarships in Australia visited CIMMYT during 5-7 March 2007, as part of a study tour covering three continents and diverse farming systems and market arrangements.

The Nuffield Foundation and Trust both derive from the Lord Nuffield (William Morris, 1877-1963), a British engineer and businessman who founded Morris Motors and donated substantial sums during his lifetime to charity. The Foundation initially supported health and social well-being but, in the years immediately following World War II, expanded its objectives to include agricultural advancement, and the first Nuffield Farming Scholarship was launched in 1947. The Trust now exists as a separate body, independent of the Nuffield Foundation, and promotes agricultural, horticultural, forestry, and countryside management education in the United Kingdom and abroad.

Nuffield scholars gain a deep understanding and global perspective of politics, cultures, and challenges associated with agriculture, and typically go on to become highly influential in their fields. Among the worldwide bodies that support Nuffield Scholars are associations in Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, Republic of Ireland, and Zimbabwe. Their questions covered diverse and sometimes challenging topics, such as the purpose and nature of CIMMYT partnerships with private companies, or our methods for conserving diversity in seed collections.