The Program

Science Forum 2018 (SF18), Win more, lose less: Capturing synergies between SDGs through agricultural research, will be held from 10-12 October 2018 in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

The objective of SF18 is to identify substantial interactions between the SDGs (both positive and negative), the role of agricultural research in augmenting synergies and managing trade-offs, and the ensuing implications for the science-policy interface. Results will contribute to the discussion of developing research themes and frameworks in CGIAR.

We are delighted to announce our draft program is now online. Check out what we have in store for SF18 here!

  • Day 1

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    PLENARY - Setting the scene: how are synergies and trade-offs between SDGs being addressed in policy and research?
    Chair: Jennifer Thomson, ISPC Member; Emeritus Professor, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of Cape Town, South Africa

    Opening welcome

    • Maggie Gill

      ISPC Chair; Professor of Integrated Land Use, School of Biological Science University of Aberdeen, UK

    • Shadrack Ralekeno Moephuli

      President and Chief Executive Officer Agricultural Research Council (ARC), South Africa

    Keynote speakers, Alexander Müller, TEEBAgriFood Study Leader (TBC)

    • Eugene Owusu

      Special Advisor on the SDGs to the President of Ghana Government of Ghana

    • Jean-Pascal van Ypersele

      Professor of Climatology and Environmental Sciences Université catholique de Louvain, Earth and Life Institute

    Discussion

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    COFFEE/TEA BREAK

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    PLENARY - TOPIC 1 (Interactions between increasing staple crop productivity, resilience to climate change, improving nutrition and sustaining agro-biodiversity)
    Chair: Patrick Webb, ISPC Member, Professor of Nutrition, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University, USA

    Presentations

    • Ruth DeFries

      Professor of Ecology and Sustainable Development Columbia University, New York

    • Melinda Smale

      Professor of International Development Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics, Michigan State University

    Panel, Steve Godfrey, GAIN (TBC); Chris Surridge,Chief Editor, Nature Plants (TBC) 

    • Marianne Bänziger

      Deputy Director General for Research and Partnership (DDG-RP) International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)

    • John McDermott

      Director, CGIAR Agriculture for Nutrition and Health Program International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

    Discussion

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    LUNCH

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    PLENARY - Foresight and SDG interactions
    Chair: tbc

    Presentation

    • Prabhu Pingali

      ISPC Member; Professor, Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management Cornell University, USA

    Respondents

    • Keith Wiebe

      Senior Research Fellow International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)

    • Ana Paula Aguiar

      Research Fellow Stockholm Resilience Center
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    TRANSFER

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    15:30-18:00 BREAKOUT SESSIONS

    1. Breeding for multiple objectives - multi-funder initiative to achieve SDG2 
    2. Assessing the impact of CGIAR research on interactions: methods and guidance - SPIA
    3. Foresight  and SDG interactions - ISPC

  • Day 2

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    PLENARY - TOPIC 2
    Interactions between intensifying livestock and aquaculture production for food and nutrition security, and: a) increased vulnerability to antimicrobial resistance and zoonoses; b) land use change

    Chair: Maggie Gill, ISPC Member; Professor of Integrated Land Use, School of Biological Science, University of Aberdeen, UK

    Presentations 

    • Jonathan Rushton

      Professor of Animal Health and Food Systems (N8 Chair) Institute of Infection and Global Health, University of Liverpool

    • Mario Herrero

      Chief Research Scientist and Office of the Chief Executive Science Leader Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)

    Panel, Vincent Gitz, CIFOR (TBC); Walter Vergara, World Resources Institute (TBC)

    • Delia Grace

      Program Leader Food Safety and Zoonoses International Livestock Institute, Nairobi

    • Marius Gilbert

      Head of Spatial Epidemiology Lab; FNRS Research Associate Université Libre de Bruxelles

    • Boulanouar Bouchaib

      Principal Livestock Officer African Development Bank (ADB)

    Discussion

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    COFFEE/TEA BREAK

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    PLENARY - TOPIC 3
    Grappling with complex systems: the water-energy-food nexus experience
    Chair: Holger Meinke, ISPC Member; Head, School of Land and Food; Director, Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA), University of Tasmania, Australia

    Presentations

    • Mathew Kurian

      Head of Unit, Capacity Development and Governance (CDG) United Nations University (UNU-FLORES)

    • Francesco Fuso Nerini

      Assistant Professor, Department of Energy Technology KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden

    Panel, Agnes Rola, University of the Philippines Los Banos (TBC); Seleshi Bekele, Minister of Water, Irrigation and Electricity (MOWIE), Ethiopia (TBC)

    • Izabella Koziell

      Program Director CGIAR Research Program on Water, Land and Ecosystems, Sri Lanka

    • Manuel Barange

      Director, Fisheries and Aquaculture Division Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    • Jacques Wery

      Deputy Director General and Director of Research International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)

    Discussion

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    LUNCH AND TRANSFER

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    BREAKOUT SESSIONS

    1. Towards a circular economy/bioeconomy: Feeds and forages for livestock and fish - ILRI, WorldFish and FAO
    2. Climate change and challenges for food production systems - CCAFS and Sustainable Amazon Foundation
    3. Integrating the WEF nexus in sustainable intensification approaches - IWMI and UNU-FLORES

  • Day 3

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    PLENARY - report back from breakout sessions
    Chairs: Nighisty Ghezae, ISPC Member; Director, International Foundation for Science, Sweden and Rodomiro Ortiz, ISPC Member; Faculty (Chair) Professor of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Sweden

    Rapporteurs from the 6 breakout sessions (10 min each)

    Discussion

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    COFFEE/TEA BREAK

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    PLENARY -  Strengthening the science-policy interface
    Chair: Karen Macours, Chair, Standing Panel on Impact Assessment (SPIA); Associate professor at the Paris School of Economics and researcher at French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA)

    Panel, Zhiyun Ouyang, Chinese Academy of Sciences (TBC), IFAD (TBC)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

    • Lindiwe Majele Sibanda

      Vice President for Country Support, Policy, and Delivery Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)

    • Purvi Mehta

      Deputy Director and Head of Asia for Agriculture Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, India

    • Ruben G. Echeverría

      Director General International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)

    Discussion

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    LUNCH

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    PLENARY - Implications for CGIAR and way forward
    Chair: Leslie Lipper, Executive Director, ISPC Secretariat

    Panel, Bernard Rey, European Commission (TBC)

    • Maggie Gill

      ISPC Chair; Professor of Integrated Land Use, School of Biological Science University of Aberdeen, UK

    • Margret Thalwitz

      Board Chair International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)

    • Andrew Campbell

      Chief Executive Officer Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR)

    • Xifeng Gong

      CGIAR System Council Member; Director General, Department of International Cooperation Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS)