Healthier plants for a better life – Innovations in plant science to support food security
Public award ceremony organized by SFIAR and hosted by University of Bern (10 December 2024)
Presentations
Photos
Subject
To increase yields, smallholders need healthier plants. One way to reach this goal is to improve soil fertility management. Another one is to protect plants against damage from pests. Both winners of this year’s SFIAR Awards are making important contributions to achieving these two goals.
Helena Ström has looked at soil fertility management in yam cropping systems in Côte d’Ivoire. She studied different aspects of soil fertility management: 1) biochar as a soil amendment with the potential to improve crop productivity and soil properties; 2) farmers’ perceptions about soils and soil fertility management; and 3) the use of a serious game as a tool to disseminate knowledge.
Daria Odermatt has investigated the effects of the leguminous intercrop Desmodium on the fall armyworm, a major pest devastating maize crops in Africa. She wanted to know whether Desmodium intercrops release potentially bioactive volatiles and if these can explain a repellent effect in oviposition and flight behavior of the Fall Armyworm.
Before the winners present their projects, two thematic experts will place their research in a broader context.
Program
| 16:15 | Welcome Dr Lindsey Norgrove, SFIAR President |
| 16:20 | Sustainable intensification of yam production in West Africa: the need for inter- and transdisciplinary research Prof. Dr Emmanuel Frossard, Professor of Plant Nutrition, ETH Zürich |
| 16:40 | SFIAR PhD Award Laudatio Dr Lindsey Norgrove |
| 16:45 | Soil fertility management in yam cropping systems in Côte d’Ivoire: exploring perceptions, solutions and knowledge transfer Dr Helena Ström (ETH Zurich), winner SFIAR PhD Award |
| 17:00 | Questions and discussion |
| 17:15 | Break |
| 17:35 | Push-pull systems: is it possible to provide sustainable food security with the help of plant odors? Prof. Dr Ted Turlings, Director of the centre of competence in chemical ecology, University of Neuchâtel |
| 17:55 | SFIAR Master Thesis Award Laudatio Dr Lindsey Norgrove |
| 18:00 | Determination of the Functional Role of Desmodium Volatiles on the Fall Armyworm in Push-Pull Systems Daria Odermatt (University of Zurich), winner SFIAR Master Thesis Award |
| 18:15 | Questions and discussion |
| 18:30 | Presentation of the awards and apéro |