IBM and U.S. Peace Corps work with IRRI to strengthen its technical capacities

LOS BAÑOS, Philippines—IBM and U.S. Peace Corps volunteers recently worked hand-in-hand with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to further strengthen the institute’s effectiveness in securing global food security. Their recommendations for achieving the improvements were presented at the closing rites of IBM’s Corporate Service Corps (CSC) program at IRRI headquarters on 21 July.

The 15 CSC volunteers from the U.S., Brazil, South Africa, Slovakia, Italy, Spain, Mexico, the Netherlands, and India arrived in June to collaborate with their counterparts at IRRI in developing blueprints for four different sectors.  A parallel program was also conducted at the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA).

The teams at IRRI presented strategic plans for transitioning the institute’s library resources into a virtual, fully digitized, and network-based facility; providing data storage and computing infrastructure to meet the institute's processing needs; developing a “one-stop shop” where IRRI staff members could update country dossiers using existing resources with minimal manual input; and transforming IRRI's Training Center into a world-class Rice Science Academy (IRRI RSA).

“As global scientists, we here at IRRI often think that we are the only ones who can solve the problems,” said Bruce Tolentino, IRRI deputy director general for communication and partnerships. “But that’s not the case. IRRI requires a lot of collaboration and a lot of potent, fresh minds to solve the problems. Working with them has been a valuable experience.”

Corinta Guerta, IRRI director for external relations, agreed. “IRRI and IBM have been interacting with each other since the late 1970’s,” she said. “But this is the first time we’ve worked with them under their CSC program. We’re very fortunate that we were selected.”

“At the beginning, we thought that this would be quite risky,” Dr. Tolentino said. “Why bring in a set of people who don’t know anything about rice research to solve our problems? But it turned out to be good.”

“The CSC teams approached some of our challenges using tools they had and provided potential solutions,” he added. ”If you try to value the amount of time the team spent at IRRI and translated it monetarily—it’s a huge amount and we need to see it for that value. We hope that it pays off for all of us here.”

CSC is IBM’s pro bono consulting program, which was created in 2008 to help solve some of the most challenging problems in communities around the world while providing top-performing IBM employees with unique leadership development. IBM’s CSC at IRRI and SEARCA was conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Peace Corps and PYXERA Global.

“I do want it to demonstrate how serious IBM’s commitment is to social responsibility,” said Richard Chang, one of the CSC members. “We were chosen from thousands of volunteers but we also chose this because we wanted to give back.”

(This news item was written by Dan Christian M. Marinay, IRRI intern.)

Photos

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Role of women in rice research and food security highlighted during IWD 2016

LOS BAÑOS, Philippines—The contributions of women to rice research and food security were acknowledged during the 2016 International Women’s Day (IWD) celebration on 8 March at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

Poster by J. Lazaro, IRRI. Pledge for Parity exhibit 

Although movements to increase gender equality have brought women increasing power in the workplace—40% of all IRRI staff worldwide and 36% of nationally recruited staff are women—gender biases persist in many organizations.

IWD symposium guest speaker Esther Velasco, team leader of the European External Action Services Instrument for Peace and Stability Gender Facility, challenged IRRI staff to recognize conscious and unconscious gender biases embedded in the organization's culture.

“Men and women are assessed very differently," said Velasco. “Women with strong personalities are often criticized as aggressive and over-ambitious while men are never described as over-ambitious.” She challenged IRRI staff to start thinking about such unconscious gender biases based on culture. "Let us continue to inspire leaders to remove these barriers," she emphasized.

IRRI Director General Matthew Morell stressed the importance of making the institute an employer of choice for women in research at all levels, from leadership positions through its activities. “We are committed to enhancing gender equity and the role of women at the institute,” he said in a prerecorded message presented at the symposium.

“Engaging with women's issues is a critical part of delivering IRRI's mission. Many rice farmers and researchers are women,” Morell added. “We need to continue to empower them and facilitate the achievement of impact through them and for them.”

Source: FAO
Infographic by C. Calamlam, IRRI 

A study by the Food and Agriculture Organization showed that in 97 countries, only 5% of women are directly reached by agricultural extension services. “We need to embody gender issues into our research programs not as an afterthought, but as a key part of the planning and project development process,” said Morell.

Christine Croombes, head of IRRI's Human Resources Services, encouraged women and girls to achieve their ambition. George Kotch, head of IRRI's Plant Breeding Division, called for a gender-balanced leadership. Inez Slamet-Loedin (photo below), IRRI senior scientist and head of the Genetic Transformation Laboratory, shared her experience as the first Indonesian globally recruited staff at the institute and how important it is to have flexible and inclusive cultures.

In addition, Pieter Rutsaert, IRRI social scientist, and Slamet-Loedin participated in a live Periscope broadcast on gender equality. Rutsaert discussed how women rice farmers in South Asia are benefiting from shared resources (view on YouTube). Slamet-Loedin reiterated her views on creating flexible and inclusive cultures (view on YouTube). 

A poster exhibit, Pledge for Parity, was unveiled at IRRI Headquarters. The exhibit, opened by Croombes and Corinta Guerta, director of External Relations, focuses on the promises of the symposium speakers to further boost gender equality at IRRI. The exhibit is open to the public until 25 March.

View a video of the IWD highlights at IRRI.
See IWD 2016 Photos 

ADB and IRRI to strengthen partnership on shared food security goals

LOS BAÑOS, Laguna – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) are set on bringing their 40-year partnership to a new level.

“It is a good idea to formalize our partnership,” said ADB President Takehiko Nakao, who was at IRRI yesterday (17 December 2015) with members of the bank’s leadership to visit experimental sites and discuss with IRRI management and scientists collaboration on agricultural development and food security across Asia.

ADB and IRRI have worked together since 1975, with ADB financing 33 projects involving USD 26 million in grants for research, capacity building, and infrastructure development.

Philippines: Riceworld Museum and Learning Center celebrates 20th anniversary with school children

The Riceworld Museum and Learning Center at the International Rice Research Institute
(IRRI) Headquarters celebrated its 20th anniversary by hosting a fun, educational party for 60 students and teachers from five public schools in Bay and Los Baños, Laguna on 21 November.

The event, Riceworld@20: Where Rice is Twice as Nice, featured entertaining ​ interactive activities including storytelling, learning stations on rice and a healthy diet, a discussion on different insects found in rice fields, planting rice and rice sorting games, and making rice art.

Corinta Guerta, director of External Relations at IRRI, described Riceworld@20: Where Rice is Twice as Nice as the most important occasion of the year for the Events, Visitors and Exhibits Office at IRRI. She also expressed the Institute’s pleasure in celebrating the museum’s 20th anniversary with the children and their teachers.

“We are very proud to showcase artifacts from different countries who shared the vision of educating young children like you and attracting you to the career of science,” Ms. Guerta said. “It is IRRI’s hope that the children will become the next scientists and researchers, and that they will appreciate the importance of science and agriculture.”

The special event ended with the children sharing their newfound knowledge on rice farming, beneficial insects found in rice fields, eating a balanced diet, and an appreciation for the work of rice farmers around the world.  Photos

​Related links
Riceworld Museum and Learning Center celebrates 20th anniversary with public school students
Visit the Rice Museum

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