International Quinoa Research Symposium

The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, in partnership with Washington State University, will be organising an International Quinoa Research Symposium, to take place 12-14 August 2013 at Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA.

Set in the context of the United Nations’ International Year of the Quinoa 2013 (IYQ), the symposium seeks to draw attention to quinoa’s biodiversity and nutritional value and will provide an update on the status of quinoa research. There will also be opportunities to visit local field trials.

Travel scholarships to attend the symposium are available for farmers and students. Applicants are advised to write directly to Dr. Kevin Murphy at email hidden; JavaScript is required. Please visit the official website of International Quinoa Research Symposium for more information.

Yale University will be organising the “Yale Food Systems Symposium”, to take place 18-19 October 2013 at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.

The symposium addresses the complex ecological and socio-economic processes of food production, consumption, climate change and rapid urbanisation.

The conveners are now calling for abstracts and workshop proposals before 01 July 2013 on these topics:

• Climate change and the food system
• Urbanisation, land use change, and food systems planning
• Politics, policies, and governance across scales
• Agricultural biodiversity and issues of genetic property
• Sustainable intensification, multi-functional agriculture
• Urban-rural linkages
• Public and market-based approaches to regulating the food system
• Alternative food networks
• The right to food, food justice, and food sovereignty movements
• Industrial ecology approaches to food systems analysis
• Sustainable diets and assessing and forecasting nutrition trends
• Sustainable supply chains
• University-community partnerships

Please visit the official symposium website for more information.

The International Development Research Centre (IDRC) is inviting concept notes for the 2013 call of the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund.

The call aims to support new research on improving food production and distribution, as well as research looking into the health and nutritional dimensions of food security in developing countries.

Submissions may come from new or existing partnerships and the deadline for application is 05 June 2013. Please visit the official website of the Canadian International Food Security Research Fund for more information on the full guidelines, application form, and eligibility criteria. Additional enquiries should be directed to email hidden; JavaScript is required.

By Tyson Deal/University of Georgia, USA

University of Georgia Study:

Moringa as a Solution for Nutrition and Poverty Issues: Identifying its Limitations for Adoption in Agricultural Development

Familiar with Moringa oleifera? I need your help! My name is Tyson Deal, and I am a graduate student at the University of Georgia pursuing a Master’s of Agricultural Leadership. I am very interested in Moringa’s use in agricultural development for increased nutrition and poverty reduction. I am conducting a study about Moringa and the limiting factors of its adoption and use for agricultural development. My overarching question is: Why is Moringa not used more in agricultural development?

I am looking for individuals to participate in a research study for my master’s thesis. The study involves a survey of Moringa experts. If you are interested in participating, the link to the questionnaire is: https://ugeorgia.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_6Xy1dFhvC4VrQcB. It should take approximately 30-45 minutes to complete. There is possibility for one follow up email for clarification or elaboration purposes. If you have questions, or would like more information, please contact me at email hidden; JavaScript is required or the primary investigator (PI) Maria Navarro at email hidden; JavaScript is required.

If you prefer to answer the questions via e-mail or to participate in an interview, please let me know by e-mailing me at email hidden; JavaScript is required.

Your time, participation, and input are greatly appreciated.

First International Conference on Global Food Security

Elsevier, in partnership with European Society for Agronomy and Wageningen University, will be organising the “First International Conference on Global Food Security“, from 29 September to 2 October 2013 in Noordwijkerhout, The Netherlands.

The conference aims to address the issues of food production, access, and the trade-offs between competing environmental, economic or social objectives.

The conveners are now calling for abstract submission for oral and poster presentations before 10 May 2013 on these topics:

• Global and local analyses of food security
• Enabling policies for local and global food security
• Sustainable intensification of food production systems
• Novel ways of feeding 9 billion people
• Learning from the past to understand the future
• Land sparing, land sharing and trade-offs
• Agricultural production as feedstock for renewables
• Lost harvest and wasted food
• Nutritional security
• Labelling, certifying and striving for quality and sustainability of food production

Please visit the official conference website for more information.