China: Rice planthopper project plans for 2013, holds international conference

Key partners of the ADB-IRRI Rice Planthopper Project from China, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines met on 19-20 November 2012 to report on the progress of the various applications of ecological engineering, insecticide resistance monitoring, and upscaling activities in their respective countries.

Datasets were consolidated, data analyzed, and cross-country comparisons made in preparation for publication.

The project was granted a no-cost extension until December 2013, and partners also presented their respective work plans for the final year.
The International Conference on Rice Planthoppers followed on 21-23 November 2012, still in Hangzhou, China. New findings from research on ecological engineering, virus diseases, and plant-insect relationships, as well as studies on the economic, social, and policy implications of planthopper outbreaks, were presented during the conference.

Robert Zeigler, IRRI director general, cited in his keynote address the importance of strengthening rice research in addressing climate change, hunger, and poverty.

Also during the conference, a new spider species found in Hainan Island was named after Jiaan Cheng of Zhejiang University, in recognition of his contributions in rice pest management. The newly discovered spider is named Mallinella chengjiaani. A plaque was presented to Dr. Cheng by Dr. Zeigler and Zhang Guoping, dean of the Faculty of Agriculture of Zhejiang University. 



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