IRRI training Tag

Los Baños, Philippines — Twenty-seven first graders from Keys School Manila Inc. immersed in IRRI Education’s Rice Planting Experience (RPEx) Program of IRRI Education where they experienced how to plant rice firsthand. By immersing themselves in these activities, the students not only learned about the vital role of rice in food security but also developed teamwork and community spirit through collaboration with their peers and families. This year, Keys School Manila Inc. participated for the second time, underscoring its goal of providing students with practical agricultural experiences as part of their curriculum.

The RPEx Apprentice Journey 1 program offers a variety of engaging activities for students who are in pre-school to grade school, such as:

1. Seedbed preparation
2. Pulling of seedlings
3. Seed broadcasting
4. Manual transplanting
5. Grid marking
6. Plowing using carabao
7. Operation of the mechanical transplanter

The day began with an orientation where training facilitators provided basic information on rice planting and what to expect in the field. During this session, students raised their curious questions about rice and rice farming such as the period of growing rice, the currently available colors of rice, and the differences between good and bad insects in the rice field, among others.

After dressing in appropriate attire, the students traveled to the rice planting field, eager to participate in various hands-on stations. Each station has a designated IRRI Research Technician who provides demonstration and support services to the students, teachers, and the attending parent or guardian of the students.

At the seedbed preparation station, the children were tasked with picking up soil and creating a suitable environment for planting. At the seedling pulling station, they carefully uprooted young rice plants, learning the importance of gentle handling. During the seed broadcasting station, students scattered seeds over the prepared fields, gaining insight into planting techniques. At the manual transplanting station, they worked together to place seedlings into the soil, reinforcing teamwork and coordination.

The grid marking station taught them how to properly space the seedlings for optimal growth. At the mechanical transplanter station, the young farmers watched the machine efficiently transplant seedlings.

Parents also joined in the planting, showing that farming is a community effort. “That’s how farmers make the rice we eat!” cheered one parent, highlighting the event’s educational focus.

Essentially, the RPEx Program transcended mere education; it was an event of curiosity, collaboration, and community spirit. By engaging young learners and their families in the hands-on experience of rice farming, IRRI not only highlighted the vital role of rice in global food security but also inspired a sense of stewardship for the environment. Such initiatives foster a deeper understanding of agriculture, encouraging the next generation to appreciate and pursue sustainable farming practices that will shape the future of food production.

Interested in experiencing the same program? Schools and organizations can engage with RPEx by reaching out to IRRI Education for tailored experiences that suit their educational goals! Email us at education@irri.org or visit our website education.irri.org for more information.

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), through IRRI Education as its capacity development vertical, hosted a three-day training workshop on Self-Sufficiency, Food Security, and Agricultural Transformation from September 10 to 12, 2024. The training aimed to enhance understanding of food security and self-sufficiency and explore policy approaches for achieving these goals.

“We are excited to finally host this program, a vision that began in 2019 that aims to provide participants with a deep understanding of the key concepts, policies, and trade-offs that shape food systems around the world,” shared IRRI Education Head Dr. Anilyn Maningas. IRRI Director General Dr. Yvonne Pinto emphasized the importance of the course in addressing current food security challenges, highlighting the interplay between technology and policy. “Ensuring that policies have the right feedback and we are responsive to that feedback is critical,” she stated.

Key sessions included a presentation by IRRI Senior Scientist II for Agricultural Economics Dr. Valerien Pede and Senior Economist for Food Policy Analysis Dr. David Dawe on food security and self-sufficiency. A panel discussion featuring Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) Director Dr. Glenn Gregorio, Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) Senior Research Fellow Dr. Roehlano Briones, Former Private Sector Member, Monetary Board at Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Dr. Bruce Tolentino, and Former Member of the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) Advisory Council Dr. Fermin Adriano. The panel examined the Philippine Rice Trade Liberalization (RTL) law, noting its role in lowering rice prices for consumers while reducing input costs for farmers and the importance of ensuring competition among rice traders.

The final day featured Dr. Dawe and International Food Policy Research Institute Emeritus Fellow Dr. Howarth Bouis as the main resource persons. Dr. Dawe provided in-depth insights on agricultural and structural transformation, while Dr. Bouis focused on the importance of agricultural policy in promoting nutrition security.

The event brought together 23 participants from IRRI, DA-PhilRice, the Department of Finance, the Department of Agriculture, Caraga State University, and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). A post-course assessment will be conducted to gauge the effectiveness of the training workshop and to inform potential improvements for future offerings.

Learn more about this training course and other programs offered by IRRI Education, visit education.irri.org

In an effort to share the current research, knowledge, and practices, IRRI Education, the educational and capacity building arm of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), recently organized a comprehensive training on genomic prediction and data-driven crop breeding. Held from August 5 to 9, 2024, the training attracted a diverse group of participants from Asia and Africa, to learn about the genomic selection and other data-driven strategies in crop breeding.

This training course was conceptualized and initiated by IRRI’s scientists Dr. Waseem Hussain, IRRI’s Senior Scientist I in Plant Breeding, Dr. Eduardo (Giovanny) Covarrubias-Pazaran Senior Scientist II – Quantitative Genetics and Biometrics; Dr. Mahender Anumalla, Scientist I – Breeding Long Duration Rice; Dr. Parthiban Thathapalli Prakash, Scientist I – Breeding Optimization; Ms. Leilani Nora, Specialist – Statistics; and Ms. Alaine Gulles, Lead Specialist – Biometrics and Breeding Analytics It aimed to integrate knowledge in quantitative genetics, predictive breeding, and innovative breeding methods. This includes a comprehensive understanding of quantitative genetics and statistical genomics, enabling participants to apply these tools for genomic selection effectively. A total of 20 scientists and crop breeders from India, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Philippines, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Senegal, and Nepal participated in this 5-day course.

Over the course of five days, the participants engaged in intensive discussions involving theoretical concepts as well as practical and hands-on exercises. Structured into five modules, the training sessions covered topics on the R software and R markdown, quantitative genetics, statistical modeling in predictive genetics and breeding, implementation of genomic selection in plant breeding, dissecting G x E interactions and crossing strategies.

Apart from the classroom sessions where they interacted with the resource persons, the participants also had the opportunity to visit IRRI’s Genotyping Service Lab, which offers trait genotyping with over 100 validated SNP markers for 25 QTLs/genes related to biotic and abiotic stresses, grain quality and yield. They also visited the International Rice Genebank that holds more than 132,000 available accessions, making it the collection of rice genetic diversity in the world. This excursion allowed them to understand the scale and diversity of rice germplasm, which is crucial for applying genomic predictions and breeding methods effectively.

During the course closing program, all the resource persons expressed their gratitude to the participants. They echoed the same sentiments, assuring the participants that all of them are available in case any of them have any additional queries or if they are interested in collaborating.

Dr. Anilyn Maningas, Head of IRRI Education congratulated the participants for completing the intensive training. She hoped that they share the knowledge and skills they have been equipped with with their colleagues in their respective institutions.

After the program, participants shared their thoughts, feedbacks, and key takeaways. Katreena Navea from IRRI headquarters remarked, “As someone involved in pre-breeding, my understanding and exposure to the comprehensive activities of the breeding programs is limited. The training course has significantly deepened my understanding of the modern breeding process and the theories behind it. Aside from the knowledge gained from the modules, the course has also been helpful in looking at the processes in a holistic perspective, and how our team’s pre-breeding efforts contribute and align to the overall goals IRRI’s breeding strategies”

Md. Moniruzzaman from IRRI Bangladesh commented, “We have received a lot of essential R scripts as well as soft copies of the training materials. Besides this, we also did hands-on practice and ran the analysis with demo data, which was very interesting and will be useful for my own program”.

Another participant shared, “[This is a] highly recommended course. All the RPs are well equipped and provide a practical approach on the modern breeding models and tools. It can improve one’s approach on conducting breeding programs”.

Learn more about this training course and other programs offered by IRRI Education, visit education.irri.org

Earlier this year, IRRI Education opened applications for the Fundamentals of Genomic Predictions and Data-Driven Crop Breeding training course. On 5 August 2024, 20 researchers and plant breeders from India, Ethiopia, Bangladesh, Philippines, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Senegal, and Nepal convened at IRRI headquarters in the Philippines to participate in the training.

The five-day training was designed to provide participants with knowledge and understanding of genomic selection and other data-driven strategies in crop breeding, including a comprehensive understanding of quantitative genetics and statistical genomics. By the end of the program, participants are expected to apply these tools for genomic selection in their own breeding programs effectively.

The training was officially inaugurated by Dr. Yvonne Pinto, IRRI’s new Director General. She remarked, “I know this is a very intensive 5-day course, I hope that this will be an opportunity for you to learn from each others’ experiences as well as to see what we have here at IRRI and the progress we’re making in multiple capacities. For IRRI, in terms of the next 10 years, this field, combined with novel technologies in the form of AI and environmental interactions including omics – that is really where I see the future going. If you talk to Hans [Bhardwaj] about some of the work that his team is doing, they have been accelerating breeding opportunities at the same time, and we are in the process of building a SpeedBreeding facility here. So I think there are plenty of different angles that you can look at in order to advance your understanding. I hope that you take the opportunity, make use of the team, and enjoy your stay here and I look forward to hearing about your experiences following the course”.

Dr. Hans Bhardwaj, Research Director and Head of IRRI’s Rice Breeding Innovations platform, was also present during the opening ceremony. He discussed the recent changes in plant breeding as a science, emphasizing the need for breeders to maintain a product pipeline in their programs to ensure more precise, targeted, faster, cost-effective, and impactful varieties. He assured the participants that they would be learning from IRRI scientists actively working in the field and hoped they find the topics interesting, educational, and informative.

Over the next five days, the participants will be engaged in synchronous and asynchronous discussions involving theoretical concepts, practical and hands-on exercises, and self-paced e-learning activities.

Dr. Waseem Hussain, Senior Scientist I – Plant Breeding; Dr. Eduardo (Giovanny) Covarrubias-Pazaran Senior Scientist II – Quantitative Genetics and Biometrics; Dr. Mahender Anumalla, Scientist I – Breeding Long Duration Rice; Dr. Parthiban Thathapalli Prakash, Scientist I – Breeding Optimization; Ms. Leilani Nora, Specialist – Statistics; and Ms. Alaine Gulles, Lead Specialist – Biometrics and Breeding Analytics are the resource persons for the Course

The course will conclude on 9 August 2024 with participants expected to have gained an enhanced understanding of quantitative genetics, statistical models used in performing genomic predictions, and how to perform genomic selection in breeding programs.

Learn more about IRRI Education and its programs at education.irri.org or email us at education@irri.org