Two CALS grad students win national travel awards to attend class in the Philippines!

Two CALS graduate students - Amy Daniels and Tim Durham - will travel to the Philippines during Summer 2008 to attend the Rice Shortcourse offered by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). Amy Daniels is a NASA Research Fellow and PhD candidate in Interdisciplinary Ecology, and Tim Durham is a Doctor of Plant Medicine candidate. They will be joined by eight other graduate students from across the United States who received this competitive award for an all expense paid opportunity to study sustainable agriculture in the tropics. There were 35 applicants for the 10 available slots, and CALS is pleased to have had two students selected - most institutions had only one!

Amy had this to say about her award: "I have worked with Latin American rice growers as part of a larger hydro-electric/irrigation development program. Comparing and contrasting this experience with rice cultivation in the Philippines, while learning more about the plant-science dimensions of rice, will enhance my understanding of this critical cereal crop and help define the direction of my post-doctoral research".

The shortcourse is an ideal opportunity for Tim: "Plant medicine is a new field that parallels a DVM or MD degree. Practitioners are charged with reconciling sustainable development with the need for a predictable and affordable food supply. IRRI represents an ideal training ground to glean international perspectives on local rice production from 'farm to fork'".