Bioversity International announces its call for applications for the Vavilov-Frankel Fellowships. Two Fellowships, for up to US$ 20,000 each, will be available for 2013 to carry out research from 3 to 12 months on a wide range of themes related to the conservation and use of plant genetic resources in developing countries.
One of the themes is “Policy research in support of implementation of the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture“. The International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture entered into force in 2004. Parties to the Treaty are committed to creating a common pool of genetic resources to support agricultural research, plant breeding and training. Countries need to implement combinations of polices, laws and administrative guidelines to become fully active participants in the common pool. The effective implementation of the Treaty at the national level requires a comprehensive collection and assessment of baseline information about plant genetic resources conservation and use in each country and protracted engagement with a wide range of stakeholders. National policy makers can use those inputs to identify options for implementing the Treaty, including for example how community-based plant genetic resource management initiatives can be involved more directly in the implementation of the Treaty. Such work may be addressed by studies that 1) improve understanding of the role that such initiatives play in the conservation and provision of germplasm of all kinds or 2) improve understanding of how community gene/seed banks initiatives may complement national and international gene-banks.
Other themes focus on :
- Use of agrobiodiversity as an instrument for climate change adaptation
- Research to enhance the conservation of genetic resources of a tree species important to the livelihoods of the rural poor
- Sustainable diets for improved nutrition and health
- Gene discovery in crop wild relatives
- Facilitating better use of genebank materials
- Researching neglected and underutilized species for food and nutrition security
- Applying economics to agrobiodiversity conservation, sustainable use and policy analysis
- Management of Musa diseases through a better understanding of specific host-pathogen interactions and co-evolution.
Applications may be submitted in English, French or Spanish by 11 November 2012.
Download the Call, Application Form and Guidelines
Genetic Resources Policy 