Symposium on impact of climate resilient agricultural practices
Dr Laurie Craig Tollefson, ICRISAT Governing Board member, greets Dr Wani at the symposium. Photo: S Punna, ICRISAT
A symposium highlighting work done by Dr Suhas Wani, former Research Program Director, Asia Program, ICRISAT, in natural resource management and dryland agriculture was held on 26 September 2018 at ICRISAT India. During the symposium ‘Holistic Resource Use and Delivery of Solutions for Profitable and Resilient Dryland Agriculture’, experts shared their assessments and views on food security, future challenges in dryland agriculture and more.
Dr Ragab Ragab, Vice President, International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, UK, shared his ideas on “Food Security: The challenges and the way forward”. Dr Xuan Li, Senior Policy Officer, Food and Agriculture Organization, Thailand, offered insights into “Future Smart Food: Rediscovering hidden treasures of neglected and underutilized species for Zero Hunger”.
Photo: S Punna, ICRISAT
Dr Paco Sereme, Chair Designate, ICRISAT Governing Board, thanked Dr Wani for his services to the organization and urged scientists to harness Dr Wani’s experiences and learnings. Dr Wani is credited for his contributions to the creation of the Bhoochetana initiative in Karnataka, a strong partnership that reached 4.75 million farmers in five years, with a 20-66% crop increase and total net benefits of US$350 million. Other projects across several Asian countries including China, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam have helped thousands of farmers. He was also recognized as one of “50 Most Impactful Leaders in Water & Water Management” at the World CSR Congress in 2016.
