CFAES Faculty and Scholars to represent Ohio State at 2017 World Food Prize Event

Oct. 10, 2017

The World Food PrizeNine faculty, staff, and visiting scholars in the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) have been invited to attend the 2017 Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium in Des Moines, Iowa from October 18-20, 2017.

Representing CFAES this year are:

Cathann A. Kress, Vice President for Agricultural Administration and Dean, College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences, who will address the symposium on Friday, Oct 20th during a panel discussion on entitled “Breaking Down Silos: Encouraging Transdisciplinary Problem Solving for Global Food and Nutrition Security”.

Kristina Boone, Director of OSU-ATI

Beau Ingle, Program Manager, International Programs in Agriculture, who coordinates the USDA Borlaug Fellows at Ohio State

Kristine Pascual, 2017 Borlaug Fellow and Senior Research Specialist at the Philippine Rice Research Institute, the Philippines, is working with Dr. Rattan Lal (School of Environment and Natural Resources) on a project entitled “Climate Smart Agriculture: Research wetting-dry production systems to sustain rice yield and reduce methane emissions through improved water and nutrient management”.

Alimata Bandaogo, 2017 Borlaug Fellow and research specialist at the Institute of Environment and Agronomic Research, Burkina Faso, is working with Dr. Rafiq Islam on a project entitled “Improving efficiency and profitability of fertilizer use within the framework of integrated soil fertility management for smallholder farmers”.

Rafiq Islam, Soil & Bioenergy Program leader, Ohio State University South Centers, and the Borlaug faculty mentor to Alimata Bandaogo.

Emmanuel Amoakwah, 2016 Borlaug LEAP Fellow and research scientist at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research’s Soil Research Institute in Kumasi, Ghana, is working with Dr. Rafiq Islam on a project entitled “Biochar Impact on Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics, Soil Quality, Crop Yield and Greenhouse Gas Emissions”.

Thobela Nkukwana, 2017 Borlaug Fellow and lecturer in poultry nutrition at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, is working with Dr. Michael Cressman and Dr. Michael Lilburn (Animal Sciences) on a project entitled “Assessing the effects of exogenous enzymes in high fiber diets on the gut health, nutrient utilization, and body weight gains of broilers”.

As the world’s premier conference on global agriculture, the theme of this year’s dialogue is "The Road out of Poverty", and will emphasize the agricultural sector as means to lift millions of people out of poverty.

The Borlaug Dialogue, more commonly referred to as the World Food Prize, occurs each October around World Food Day, and attracts 1,200 people from more than 65 countries to address the most advanced issues in hunger and food security. Participants often include scientific experts, policy leaders, business executives, and farmers. 

Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji AdesinaThe World Food Prize is seen by many as the “Nobel Prize for Food and Agriculture” and has inspired and encouraged the most important achievements in improving quality, quantity and availability of food all over the world. This year’s laureate is Dr. Akinwumi Ayodeji Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank, who is known for transforming African agriculture through the expansion of agricultural production, thwarting corruption in the Nigerian fertilizer industry, and increasing available credit for Africa’s smallholder farmers.

Concurrently, the Global Youth Institute will be held from Oct 19-20, 2017. This forum gathers superb high school students nationwide and from the other countries to present their projects related to food security, interact with international experts and their peers, visit cutting-edge industrial and research facilities, and participate in the Borlaug Dialogue. Sally McClaskey, 4-H Program Manager in Ohio State University Extension and organizer of the Ohio Youth Institute - a subsidiary of the Global Youth Institute that is convened annually by CFAES - will be accompanying ten Ohio high school students who took part in the Ohio Youth Institute at Ohio State University in April 2017.