Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research.The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) was originally created at the initiative of the Rockefeller Foundation, which had sponsored international meetings of agronomists at its Bellagio Conference Center in Lake Como, Italy, from 1968 onwards. (CGIAR CGIAR Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research ) was established in 1971 with the mission of eradicating poverty and ensuring food security within developing countries. Encompassing 58 public and private members, along with a network of 16 international agriculture research centers, the CGIAR focuses on increasing productivity for sustainable agriculture sustainable agriculture n. A method of agriculture that attempts to ensure the profitability of farms while preserving the environment. , developing natural resource management, and improving public policies that influence the spread of new technologies affecting agricultural producers. The CGIAR also works to develop biodiversity within food crops, forestry, livestock, soil and water nutrients, water management, and policy research. The 16 agricultural research centers supported by the CGIAR serve as a consortium of international donor agencies to increase agricultural productivity Agricultural productivity is measured as the ratio of agricultural inputs to agricultural outputs. While individual products are usually measured by weight, their varying densities make measuring overall agricultural output difficult. in an environmentally protective, sustainable way. On the CGIAR's Web site, located at http://www.cgiar.org/, visitors can click on the CGIAR Research Centers link to access the home pages of each of the 16 centers. Each home page describes the projects and initiatives for that center. At the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) was established in 1967 as a non profit organization to find solutions for hunger and poverty through research for development activities. Web site, for example, visitors can read about improved maize production and soil fertility management studies going on in the northern Guinea savanna savanna or savannah (both: səvăn`ə), tropical or subtropical grassland lying on the margin of the trade wind belts. . Or visitors can click on the International Water Management Institute Web site to learn about a project in which Sri Lankan meteorology meteorology, branch of science that deals with the atmosphere of a planet, particularly that of the earth, the most important application of which is the analysis and prediction of weather. and irrigation irrigation, in agriculture, artificial watering of the land. Although used chiefly in regions with annual rainfall of less than 20 in. (51 cm), it is also used in wetter areas to grow certain crops, e.g., rice. specialists are using satellite remote sensing tools to track water resources. And at the site for the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas Established in 1977, the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) is one of 15 centers supported by the CGIAR. ICARDA's mission is to improve the welfare of poor people through research and training in dry areas of the developing world, by increasing , visitors can learn about work to fight insect pests that ravage food crops in West Asia and North Africa. Visiting the individual research center sites can also lead visitors to useful online tools. By clicking on the Centro International de Agriculture Tropical link and choosing the Library option, for instance, visitors can access SINGER (the System-Wide Information Network for Genetic Resources), the CGIAR's information exchange network. This network provides searchable access to the combined genetic resources held by the CGIAR centers. In all, these collections are made up of over 500,000 samples of crop, forage, and tree germplasm of major importance for food and agriculture. By going deeper into the page and choosing the International Databases option, visitors can access multiple databases such as AGRICOLA (Agricultural Online Access), which contains over three million bibliographic citations. Another view of the work done at the 16 centers is available through the CGIAR Research link on the group's home page. Under the Impact link, visitors can select from impact statements for each institute, describing how the work done by that institute is benefiting and improving the developing world. Back at the main page, clicking on the Publications links allows visitors to view the CGIAR Secretariat publications, including annual reports, financial reports, and meeting documents. his link also offers access to CGIAR newsletters and study papers. From the Publications page, visitors can also view documents and information resources published by each of the 16 research centers. |
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