All news and blogs

Organizational change involves not only the technical — but the personal

| Misha Nicholas | 18/2/2022

 It’s often said that life is a rollercoaster, trundling between obstacles and successes. CGIAR is embarking on its own ups and downs as the One CGIAR transformation officially takes hold. There will be successes, and a strong, more impactful organization will be born. But we also expect some twists and turns. As we move down this track, we should consider the words of...

Five ways crop breeding can benefit rural women

Opinion | Misha Nicholas | 12/10/2021

A woman cassava farmer in the Northern Region of Ghana. Credit: Neil Palmer (CIAT)   Too often, agricultural progress is inhibited by innovations designed by and for men. But what would happen if women were involved in design and development? One aspect of...

Strengthening Public Breeding Pipelines by Emphasizing Quantitative Genetics Principles and Open Source Data Management

Opinion | | 26/7/2021

 This opinion piece published in Frontiers in Plant Science briefly presents the breeder's equation and highlights the terms that can be manipulated to increase...

Identifying market segments and aligning breeding pipelines will focus CGIAR investments

Opinion | Adam Hunt | 29/6/2021

There is an urgent need for public breeding programs to prioritize and focus their efforts. Excellence in Breeding (EiB) is working with CGIAR partners to identify market segments and align...

Teaming up for more impactful breeding

| Adam Hunt | 27/4/2021

Breeders, economists, gender specialists, and food technologists are gathering together to advance new approaches to breeding crop varieties that people will want.A two-day online “hackathon” jointly organized by the CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB) and the Excellence in Breeding Platform focused on key improvements to the impact of breeding programs. As these clonally-propagated crops are a foundation of food...

Seeding excellence through breeding excellence

| Adam Hunt | 5/4/2021

Originally published by Asian Seed Magazine. Written by Adam Hunt, EiB Communications lead. CGIAR Excellence in Breeding is working with partners to catalyze a transformation of public crop breeding programs across Asia, Africa and the developing world.When parts of Asia looked to be on the brink of famine in the 1960s, scientists transformed agriculture through the Green Revolution. Catalyzed by the research-for-...

In a water-challenged world, crop breeders must do more than go with the flow

Opinion | Adam Hunt | 22/3/2021

 With water sources dwindling and harsher climate conditions on the rise, farmers in the developing world need both better crop varieties and improved water management practices. This World Water Day, Gustavo Teixeira, EiB Module...

New approaches to breed more inclusive crop varieties

Success story | Sam Storr | 5/3/2021

Hale Ann Tufan, right, inspects a cassava plant with Chiedozie Egesi, program director for the NextGen Cassava project, during a visit to research fields in Namulonge, Uganda. Credit: NextGen Cassava. New crop varieties can help farmers thrive in...

Breeding scientists are women of their word

Opinion | Adam Hunt | 9/2/2021

If you had to choose one word that symbolizes “women in science,” what would it be? CGIAR Excellence in Breeding asked this question to an array of women working across the crop breeding domain. Their answers show us a scientific field full of hope and accomplishment, but still struggling with...

Four ways One CGIAR breeding programs can walk the talk on innovation

Opinion | Adam Hunt | 11/1/2021

By Hugo Campos and Michael QuinnIn the face of accelerated climate change, COVID-19 and growing populations, breeding at One CGIAR has a chance to lead the way towards food security. But to achieve that, breeding programs need to consider not only...