Newsletters

July 2020

Top Story:

BGRI Video Outlines "12 Years of Wheat Research and Variety Adoption: The Impact of the DRRW and DGGW"

BGRI has focused on delivering rust-resistant varieties of wheat to the farmers around theworld who depend on agriculture and wheat production for their livelihoods," says Ronnie...


June 2020

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BGRI hosts "Take It to the Farmer"

The virtual "Take It to the Farmer" event featured videos and discussion with farmers and experts from around the wheat-growing world.


May 2020

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The BGRI will host "Take It to the Farmer," on June 25, from 10-11:30 am EDT.

In the second in its series of 2020 Virtual Workshops, the BGRI will examine 12 years ofwheat improvement in farmers' fields under the DRRW / DGGW projects and exploreopportunities to make wheat research even...


April 2020

Top Story:

Roll with the Virtual and Keep Your WITs About You

The BGRI's collective hat is off to the medical and essential personnel who are on thefrontlines of this battle with COVID-19. There are striking parallels between wheat rust andglobal human epidemics, as Dave Hodson points out in his...


March 2020 Newsletter

Top Story:

Be Safe, Be Well, Be Hopeful

The BGRI's first virtual online event in what we hope will be a series of events will honorand celebrate the 2020 Women in Triticum Early Career and Mentor awardees


February 2020

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DNA fingerprinting determines varietal adoption in Bangladesh and Nepal

To study the varietal adoption of all the wheat varieties across each country, DNAfingerprinting was deployed as part of a DGGW study led by the Bangladesh Wheat andMaize Research Institute (BWMRI) and the Nepal...


January 2020

Top Story:

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop

The BGRI is thrilled to announce the keynote speakers for the 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop in the UK. Dr. Theo De Jager, President of the WorldFarmers' Organization, Dr. Sarah Gurr, Chair in Food Security, Exeter University, Dr. Hale Ann...


December 2019

Top Story:

Appreciation for a tremendous decade!

As 2019 draws to a close and we enter a new decade in the fight for food security, Jeanie Borlaug and I and the rest of the BGRI leadership team want to thank you, our partners, and the cooperating institutions all over the world who engage with us...


November 2019

Top Story:

Early Warning System for Wheat Rust in Ethiopia

New research developed by a global collaborative team describes the revolutionary early warning system using field and mobile phone surveillance data.


October 2019

Top Story:

2020 BGRI Technical Workshop: Register now!

Register NOW for the global 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop, June 1-4, 2020 in Norwich, UK at the John Innes Centre, an international centre of excellence in plant science, genetics and microbiology!


September 2019

Top Story:

Researchers turn to barberry for clues to wheat disease

There are an estimated 500 species within the highly diverse barberry genus. Some of these species are susceptible to the stem rust pathogen, but many others are not.


August 2019

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Smarter deployment of disease-resistance genes critical for safeguarding world's food supplies

To ensure durable disease resistance in wheat, scientists must embrace a globally integrated strategy, say experts at the All India Wheat and Barley meeting in August. "If we don't change our...


July 2019

Top Story:

Global unity needed to prevent next hunger crisis

Global food security depends on the free movement and open sharing of plant genetic resources," BGRI vice-chair Ronnie Coffman said at the International Wheat Congress (IWC) on July 23 in Saskatoon, Canada. He called for increased...


June 2019

Top Story:

Rust outbreaks threaten European wheat production

Wheat rusts are causing serious damage across Europe. Reports of yellow rust, leaf rust, and stem rust are emerging from several collaborators in the H2020 EU RustWatch project, including the UK, Denmark, Belgium, Italy, and Spain.


May 2019

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DGGW builds seed system capacity in Nepal for young agricultural professionals

Despite plentiful opportunities for seed sector development, trained personnel have been one of the serious bottlenecks in uplifting the seed sector in Nepal


April 2019

Top Story:

Farmer Field Schools: Innovative, Effective Training in Nepal

Under the aegis of the Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat project, the Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU) has established a seed system in Nepal for the purpose of creating access to quality certified seeds for...


March 2019

Top Story:

2019 Women in Triticum Winners Announced

The 2019 Women in Triticum awardees were announced on March 20, during the International Center for Maize and Wheat Improvement (CIMMYT) Visitor's Week


February 2019

Top Story:

2020 BGRI Technical Workshop to be held June 1-4 in the UK

It is our pleasure to announce that the 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop will be hosted at the John Innes Centre at the Norwich Research Park in Norfolk, England. Pre-workshop meetings and events will take place from 30-31 May 2020...


January 2019

Top Story:

Save the Date: 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop

It is our pleasure to announce that the 2020 BGRI Technical Workshop will be held in the United Kingdom in June 2020.


December 2018

Top Story:

Year-End Highlights from the BGRI Community

As 2018 comes to a close, we take a moment to once again reflect on the strides that the international wheat community has made in developing the technologies and systems that will help face the challenges of tomorrow's food needs.


November 2018

Top Story:

#AidWorks: Reflections on 10 Years of Wheat Improvement

This month, the Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom's #AidWorks social media campaign highlights the real impact that aid-funded scientific and technological innovations are making in development...


October 2018

Top Story:

BGRI Training Website Launches

The BGRI Training website brings together videos and other assets produced by the BGRI multimedia team.


September 2018

Top Story:

Call for Nominations:

2019 Women in Triticum Early Career and Mentor Awards


August 2018

Top Story:

Fully annotated wheat genome: A breakthrough in wheat research

For the first time, scientists have produced the most comprehensive map of a wheat genome, opening up new possibilities for this important staple crop.


June/July 2018

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Course Announcement: Standardization of stem rust field notes and germplasm evaluation, with discussions on stripe rust and leaf rust

The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in collaboration with Kenya Agricultural Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) and...


May 2018

Top Story:

Reflections on the BGRI Technical Workshop and looking to the future of wheat

"The when and the where of the next high-impact wheat rust race incursions are not known," said Emma Quilligan, Cornell Institute of Public Affairs graduate student, in her summation of the 2018 BGRI Workshop...


April 2018

Top Story:

Largest BGRI Technical Workshop concludes

Workshop participants in the field at the INRA/ICARDA Tassaout Experiment Station, Morocco.From 14-17 April, 333 wheat researchers from all over the world attended the 2018 BGRI Technical Workshop in Morocco. With 51 countries represented and 33...


March 2018

Top Story:

Francisco Barro, developer of gluten-free wheat, to deliver keynote address at BGRI Technical Workshop

A few years ago, the idea of gluten-free wheat was more theoretical than real. But last year, Francisco Barro, a plant scientist at the Institute for Sustainable Agriculture in Spain,...


February 2018

Top Story:

Recognizing Women in Wheat Science

February 11 was the United Nations International Day of Women and Girls in STEM. Many notable women have contributed to wheat research around the world. The BGRI is proud to support their work and take this opportunity to highlight some of their...


January 2018

Top Story:

Celebrating 10 Years of Wheat Research

2018 marks a decade since the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative was launched with the goal of creating a global wheat community working together to reduce the world's vulnerability to wheat rust and make genetic improvements to wheat.


November 2017

Top Story:

Building a more collaborative community of wheat researchers in Ethiopia

High-level officials from CIMMYT, Cornell University and ICARDA visited farmers' fields and wheat research centers of the Ethiopian Institute for Agricultural Research (EIAR)


October 2017

Top Story:

Apply by Oct 30 for the Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum Early Career Award

Jeanie Borlaug, Chair of the BGRI, invites women in wheat to apply for the Women in Triticum (WIT) Early Career Award.


September 2017

Top Story:

Online Manual for Protocols for Race Analysis of Wheat Stem Rust

A new publication outlining a protocol for wheat stem rust identification is now available online.


August 2017

Top Story:

Register now for the 2018 BGRI Technical Workshop

Registration is now open for the 2018 BGRI Technical Workshop to be held in Marrakech, Morocco, 14-17 April 2018.


July 2017

Top Story:

Call for Abstracts: 2018 BGRI Technical Conference

The 2018 BGRI Technical Workshop -- held in Marrakech, Morocco, 14-17 April 2018 -- will focus on wheat scientists' efforts to secure the world's wheat crop and manage disease vulnerability. It is an opportunity for the wheat community...


June 2017

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Multimedia spotlight: Wheat blast in Bangladesh

The incursion of wheat blast in South Asia presents a significant challenge to the scientific community because there are many things we do not know about the disease.


May 2017

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Tackling new challenges in wheat research

Wheat research is an ever-evolving field, and each year brings new challenges and problems for breeders and farmers. Last month, Maricelis Acevedo, DGGW associate director for science, visited the fields of Morocco and the International Center...


April 2017

Top Story:

Revolutionizing wheat phenotyping with drones

n a new program supported in part by the Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW)project, the USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab at Kansas State University (KSU), and the US Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and...


March 2017

Top Story:

2017 Women in Triticum (WIT) Award Winners Announced

On March 22, Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) associate director for science Maricelis Acevedo presented the 2017 Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum (WIT) Early Career Award to five promising women in the field of wheat...


February 2017

Top Story:

DGGW inaugurates new seed systems initiative in Nepal

On January 23, the DGGW launched its Seed Systems for Nepal initiative. The main event of the launch was the inauguration of a new seed processing facility, attended by 200 farmers selected to be the first to access the equipment....


January 2017

Top Story:

UK aid supports scientists fighting threats to global wheat supply

With the new year comes new opportunities and developments for the BGRI. We are pleased to announce that the four-year Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) project will receive $10.5M in UK aid nvestment. This funding...


December 2016

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A look back at 2016

As 2016 draws to a close, the BGRI takes a look back at some of the people and stories that made this an exciting year. And we feature a blog post about Dr. Pablo Olivera and his work in Ethiopia.


November 2016

Top Story:

Three Ethiopians pursuing Phds in wheat pathology and breeding

As part of its Talent Pipeline Objective in the Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat project, is supporting three Ethiopian students to complete PhD degrees in areas relevant to wheat research.  All three currently work with the...


October 2016

Top Story:

Taking the Scientists to the Rust

Saha Bir Rai doesn't see stem rust in his fields in Bhutan. "We have wheat varieties but we don't understand levels or types of rust," said the senior plant protection officer in the Division of Pest Surveillance at Bhutan's National Plant Protection...


September 2016

Top Story:

Wheat and Wheat Rust Communities Features in Cornell MOOC on GMOs

Join Cornell University and edX in the GMO-focused Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) that explores the political debate around GMOs and society. Genetically Modified Organisms, or GMOs, have transformed the way we produce...


July 2016

Top Story:

Ron DePauw Donates WIT Award to FINCA

When Ron DePauw was awarded the 2016 WIT Mentor Award for his dedication to gender parity in agricultural science, he decided to donate the $3,000 cash prize to FINCA International, an organization dedicated to providing women with microloans. FINCA...


June 2016

Top Story:

The BGRI lost one of its own when Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad passed away on June 3

Dr. Ahmad was a former chairman of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council and served on the BGRI Executive Committee from 2012-2015. He also received the Norman Borlaug Award for Plant Protection in 2006. His...


March 2016

Top Story:

Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) launches

What makes the BGRI great are collaborations among scientists and institutions. This new phase of the BGRI will continue that effort as we fight more wheat stresses and over the next four years we hope to expand the BGRI community.

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