Noted Indian Researcher to Address Crops and Climate Change at Colorado State University

A seminar by M.S. Swaminathan, chairman of the National Commission on Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Security of India, will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, June 20, at Colorado State University. The seminar will explore the relationship between orphan crops and climate change. Orphan crops are regionally important crops that are critical in many developing countries as part of their strategies for alleviating poverty.  

A plant geneticist by training, Swaminathan’s contributions to the agricultural renaissance of India have led to his being widely referred to as the scientific leader of the green revolution movement. His advocacy of sustainable agriculture leading to an ever-green revolution makes him a world leader in the field of sustainable food security.

In 1987, Swaminathan was awarded the first World Food Prize, which recognizes individuals who have increased the quality, quantity and availability of food in the world. Swaminathan was honored for introducing high-yielding wheat and rice varieties to India. He is known by his motto, "If conservation of natural resources goes wrong, nothing else will have a chance to go right."

Swaminathan also has served in the Indian Parliament and is the chair of the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation based in Chenni, India.   

Swaminathan’s June 20 address in Room 104 of the Yates Building on campus is supported by Colorado State University Agricultural Experiment Station, the university’s Cell and Microbiology Program, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Center for Genetic Resources Preservation.

For more information, contact Lee Sommers, director of Colorado State University Agricultural Experiment Station, at Lee.Sommers@ColoState.edu or (970) 491-1421; or David Ellis, USDA-ARS, at David.Ellis@ars.usda.gov or (970) 495-3227.

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