Three CFAES faculty members, under the leadership of the college’s Office of International Programs in Agriculture, have been awarded international research fellowships through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship Program.
By working with a distinguished visiting international scholar from a developing or middle-income country, these CFAES faculty will not only broaden their own network of international collaborators, but will also embark on long-term research endeavors that promote improved food security and economic growth.
Rattan Lal, the Philippines
Rattan Lal, Distinguished University Professor of Soil Science, School of Environment and Natural Resources, and director, Carbon Management and Sequestration Center, will work with Kristine Pascual, senior research specialist at the Philippine Rice Research Institute in the Philippines, on “Climate-smart agriculture: Researching wetting-dry production systems to sustain rice yield and reduce methane emissions through improved water and nutrient management.”
Michael Cressman, South Africa
Michael Cressman, assistant professor-professional practice, Department of Animal Sciences, will work with Thobela Nkukwana, researcher in poultry nutrition at the Agricultural Research Council in South Africa, on “Assessing the effects of exogenous enzymes in high fiber diets on the gut health, nutrient utilization and body weight gains of broilers.”
Rafiq Islam, Burkina Faso
Rafiq Islam, soil and bioenergy program leader and research scientist at the Ohio State University South Centers in Piketon, will work with Alimata Bandaogo, research specialist at the Institute of Environment and Agronomic Research in Burkina Faso, on “Improving efficiency and profitability of fertilizer use within the framework of integrated soil fertility management for smallholder farmers.”
The three international researchers will be visiting Ohio State this autumn for three months, during which time they will also attend the 2017 Borlaug Dialogue International Symposium in Des Moines, Iowa, to witness the awarding of the 2017 World Food Prize.
Borlaug details
For more information on the USDA Borlaug Program, please contact Beau Ingle, program manager in CFAES’s Office of International Programs in Agriculture, at ingle.16@osu.edu.