Vicki's Picks

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Welcome to my blog! On this page, you’ll find a collection of recommended reads, links, reports, and other resources that I hope will inspire and challenge you in your vital work as African agricultural scientists who serve other women. Have a browse and please share your comments here and/or on our Facebook page.

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Equality for Quality

Curt Rice is a professor in the Department of Languages & Linguistics at the University of Tromsø in Norway and also the university's vice president for research and development. Under Rice's direction, Tromsø put in place a new initiative—the Promotion Project—to promote more women to the position of full professor. These efforts were rewarded by the Norwegian government with the national Gender Equality Prize for 2011, which consisted of 2 million kroner (about $338,500). After hearing about the Promotion Project on Rice’s blog and in a webinar, ScienceCareers asked Rice what prompted the university to try and redress the gender imbalance at the full-professor level, how successful they've been so far, and how young scientists elsewhere can benefit from the lessons learned.

Developing Leaders for Change: African Women Scientists

Improving Africa’s food security requires mobilizing leaders from every discipline, including top women agricultural researchers.

Dr. Susan Ikerra, the Executive Director of the Tanzania Fertilizer Regulatory Authority, is a great example. A recognized fertilizer expert in her country and across East Africa, Susan is looking at innovative ways to increase the use of appropriate fertilizers, helping smallholder farmers to improve their yields. Recently, she proudly participated in the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF), which gathered more than 600 international leaders focused on food security. Dr. Susan Ikerra is a rare breed of leader in African agricultural research circles—she’s a woman.

Experts meet in Nairobi to shape new nutrition program for Africa

The Australian International Food Security Centre (AIFSC), a new Australian government initiative announced in late 2011, and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), hosted a 1.5-day workshop in Nairobi in mid-September, 2012, at which time they announced a program to help deliver improved nutrition to sub-Saharan Africa. The AIFSC aims to help bridge the gaps between agricultural innovations and development in an effort to speed the adoption of those innovations to improve food and nutritional security among poor people.

Gates Foundation Agricultural Development and Nutrition Programs Reviewed

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s agricultural development and nutrition programs were recently looked at in an effort to develop a position paper that describes why and how the Foundation’s agriculture and nutrition strategies intersect, highlighting ways that the programs can work together in the future to make complementary investments in order to improve the lives and health of families in developing countries.

Here are a few basic insights from the work of the Foundation’s partners:

Putting Sweet Potatoes on the Map in Malawi

Advanced science training equips Dr. Felistus Chipungu, and other AWARD Fellows, to further their research

Sweet potatoes are traditional cuisine in the southern United States where I grew up. Baked, roasted, fried, or mashed, this succulent staple is often served daily, not just at Thanksgiving. And for dessert? Grandma’s sweet-potato pie, of course.

As a child, I knew orange-fleshed sweet potatoes tasted good, but I didn’t know they were so good for me. I learned about the root’s rich nutritional value years later from my colleagues—CGIAR scientists breeding orange-fleshed sweet potatoes high in Vitamin A to help improve the nutrition of children in Africa and Latin America.