IFS eNews No. 17, July 2006
IFS eNews appears quarterly. Ad hoc newsbulletins are also sent out to all IFS eNews subscribers. We hope that it is an effective way to inform you about recent developments. Your comments on the contents of IFS eNews are most welcome to info@ifs.se
Developing Science - Science for Development
In this issue
1. NEWS
1.1 140 Research Grants allocated in June
1.2 New IFS Trustee
1.3 New IFS Affiliated Organisation
1.4 Renewal of Director's mandate
2. CALLS FOR APPLICATIONS
2.1 General call for applications
2.2 Special calls:
* Use of Water as a Scarce Resource in Biological
Production
* Sustainable Sanitation in Developing Countries
* Water Research in OIC Countries
3. MEETINGS AND WORKSHOPS
3.1 IFS Regional Assembly, Córdoba, Argentina, May 2006
3.2 Mycorrhiza Workshop, Córdoba, Argentina, May 2006
4. PUBLICATIONS
4.1 MESIA Report (IFS Impact Studies) No 6, now published
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS
5.1 Symposium on Biotechnology in animal production
February 2007, Burkina Faso
5.2 Obituary: Prof Adolphe Monkiedje, Cameroon
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1. NEWS
1.1 140 Research Grants allocated in June
Over 700 applications for grants were submitted to IFS during the 2nd half of 2005 and just over 170 recommended for funding. IFS was able to fund 140 of these and, unfortunately, about 30 could not be supported due to lack of funding. IFS needs to continuously remind its donor community that there is scope for increased funding in order to provide deserving young scientists with research tools.
The distribution of the new grants by region is as follows:
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 53 | |
| Asia & Pacific | 45 | |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 35 | |
| North Africa & Middle East | 7 |
All IFS grantees and their research project titles can be found on the IFS
web site: here
(Note that the new grantees will not appear on the web until all formalities
such as contract signing, etc, are complete.)
Applications received during the first half of this year now go into the evaluation process which involves several hundred advisers and experts from around the world and culminates in 8 SAC meetings later in the year. All applicants not recommended for funding during the process will receive feedback with comments and suggestions from advisers, making it possible for them to improve their application.
1.2 New IFS Trustee
We are proud to announce the appointment as of 1st January, 2007, of Prof Atta-ur-Rahman of Pakistan to the IFS Board of Trustees. He is currently Federal Minister/Chairman of the Higher Education Commission in Pakistan; President of the Pakistan Academy of Sciences; Director of the International Center of Chemical Sciences (ICCS) at the University of Karachi and Coordinator General of COMSTECH (the Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Conference). He is the former (2002-2004) Federal Minister of Science and Technology of the Government of Pakistan.
Prof ur-Rahman has had an outstanding academic career. He obtained his PhD from Cambridge University in 1968 and has since become internationally renowned in the field of Natural Products Chemistry. He has over 600 publications in leading international journals in several fields of Organic Chemistry. Sixty-six students have completed PhD degrees under his supervision.
Prof Atta-ur-Rahman has also won several national and international prizes. In 1999 he received the prestigious UNESCO Science Prize, being the first scientist from the Islamic World to be so honoured. The Government of Pakistan has conferred on him four civil awards.
As Prof ur-Rahman is a former IFS grantee (he received his 1st grant in 1976), we are particularly pleased to welcome him to the Board of Trustees and look forward to a fruitful collaboration.
Prof ur-Rahman will replace Prof Kauser Malik of Pakistan, whose term of office expires in 2006.
The current composition of the IFS Board of Trustees is:
| Dr Pierre Roger (France) [Chair] (retired) Director of Research Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) France |
|
| Dr Kauser A. Malik (Pakistan) [Vice-Chair] Secretary National Commission on Biotechnology Ministry of Science and Technology Government of Pakistan Pakistan |
|
| Professor Ana María Cetto (Mexico) Deputy Director General Head of Technical Cooperation Department IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Austria |
|
| Professor Sara Feresu (Zimbabwe) Director Institute of Environmental Studies University of Zimbabwe Zimbabwe |
|
| Professor Bo Mattiasson (Sweden) Head Department of Biotechnology Centre of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering Lund University Sweden |
|
| Dr Ernesto Medina Sandino (Nicaragua) Rector Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Nicaragua-UNAN León Nicaragua |
|
Dr Oumar Niangado (Mali) |
|
| Dr Ivan Nielsen (Denmark) Department of Biological Sciences University of Aarhus Denmark |
|
| Dr Jürg Pfister (Switzerland) Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Switzerland |
|
| Datuk Dr Ting-Kueh Soon (Malaysia) President Malaysian Scientific Association Malaysia |
|
| Professor Yola Verhasselt (Belgium) Secrétaire perpétuelle Académie Royale des Sciences d'Outre-mer Belgium |
|
| Ms Wendy White (USA) Director Board on International Scientific Organizations Policy & Global Affairs The National Academies USA |
|
| Dr Michael Ståhl (Sweden) [ex-officio] IFS Director |
1.3 New IFS Affiliated Organisation
CREPA (Centre Régional pour l'Eau Potable et l'Assainissement à
faible coût) has been accepted as an IFS Affiliated Organisation. CREPA
is a network of countries in West Africa focusing on water resources and sustainable
sanitation. We are very happy to further develop our collaboration with this
organisation, since we share a number of objectives relating to science in
Africa.
CREPA'S website (in French): here
1.4 Renewal of Director's mandate
The Board of Trustees has renewed the mandate of the IFS Director, Dr Michael Ståhl, for the period July 2007 - June 2010.
2. CALLS FOR APPLICATIONS
2.1 General call for applications
A new application period is now open and IFS calls for applications for Research Grants from young scientists in developing countries. Details of eligibility criteria, areas of scientific research covered and application forms are available on the IFS website: http://www.ifs.se
Application deadline: December 31, 2006
2.2 Special calls
In collaboration with other Donors or partners, the following special calls are issued for this application period:
- Use of Water as a Scarce Resource in Biological Production
IFS, in collaboration with Sida-NATUR, calls for applications proposing to investigate the use of water as a scarce resource in biological production.
More details
- Sustainable Sanitation in Developing Countries
(individual and team grants)
IFS, in partnership with Sida, calls for research grant applications both from individual researchers and teams, in the area of sustainable sanitation and grey water re-use in developing countries.
More details
- Water Research in OIC Countries
IFS, in partnership with INWRDAM and COMSTECH, calls for research grant applications relating to the strengthening of water resources research in OIC (Organization of Islamic Conference) countries.
More details
3. MEETINGS AND WORKSHOPS
3.1 IFS Regional Assembly in Latin America, May 2006
IFS Regional Assembly for Latin America was held in Cordoba, Argentina, on 15 May, 2006, in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Board of Trustees. The assembled stakeholders endorsed the activities and strategies of IFS in Latin America and the Caribbean over the years to enhance scientific capacity.
Dr Jorge Tezón of CONICET (the National Research Council of Argentina), officially opened the meeting. In his address he highlighted the impact of IFS grants in the Argentine scientific system, emphasising the permanence of former grantees within the system, and indicated that Argentina was ready to collaborate with IFS in the region.
The keynote speech, delivered by IFS Trustee Dr Ana María Cetto, addressed the concept of mainstream science being detached from local priorities and stressed that locally relevant research in Latin America should become part of mainstream science. IFS could contribute by creating critical masses of well qualified scientists in certain thematic areas.
Four Latin American IFS grantees talked about their experience. The presentations highlighted the impact of IFS in each individual case. Dr Monica Moraes from Bolivia finished her talk by showing a book on Bolivian palm trees that resulted from her IFS-based research, and pleading for support to publish and to organise scientific meetings. Dr Zoraida Calle, from Colombia, graphically illustrated the perils of Colombian ecologists working in a country besieged by civil war. She described the catalyst effect her grant has had in her home institution. Dr Edwin Vera Calle, from Ecuador, illustrated how his IFS grant won him respect and recognition among his peers at his institution. Dr Miguel Ramos Leal, Cuba, referred to his research on phytoremediation and provided more examples of IFS impact in science in Latin America.
One of the most interesting initiatives to come from the meeting was a suggestion from CONICET (the National Research Council of Argentina) concerning those countries in Latin America and the Caribbean that are no longer eligible for IFS support due to their strong economic development. These include Argentina, Uruguay and Mexico. The initiative focussed on the idea that these countries might partner with IFS in different ways to strengthen scientific capacity in the less-developed countries in the region.
A special thanks to our local host, organiser and facilitator, Dr Edith Taleisnik. Her preparations and enormous efforts before, during and after the conference were absolutely critical for the successful outcome. Our thanks also to IFS Trustee Dr Ernesto Medina, who chaired the Regional Assembly.
3.2 Mycorrhiza workshop, Cordoba, Argentina, May 2006
IFS organised, with CONICET, a methodological workshop on characterization of arbuscular mycorrhiza. This meeting was held at the Catholic University of Cordoba on 14-17 of May 2006, in the laboratory of Dr Daniel Ducasse. The main goals were to train the participants in the use of different techniques and to encourage collaborative research on mycorrhiza in Latin America. The workshop was both hands-on practical and theoretical. There were 35 participants from 10 Latin American countries.
IFS greatly appreciates the contributions of the resource persons, including Drs Vivienne and Silvio Gianinazi, Dr Diederik van Tuinen, Dr Maria Valdés and Dr Edith Taleisnik who also provided organisational support.
Following this workshop, an electronic forum was created, and today 36 participants are registered and have shared different documents, practical manuals, proceedings and scientific communications.
IFS hopes this initiative, will help develop a collaborative network of young scientists in Latin America and encourage many of them to apply to IFS for support for their research.
4. PUBLICATIONS
4.1 MESIA Report (IFS Impact Studies) No 6, now published
A summary of the first 5 IFS Impact Studies (MESIA Reports) has now been
published. The report will be distributed widely and is also available on
the IFS website: here
The five reports summarised (all available on IFS web) are:
| No 1 | MESIA: Conceptual Framework and Guidelines | |
| No 2 | Questionnaire Survey of African Scientists [available also in French] |
|
| No 3 | IFS Impact in Mexico - 25 years of support to scientists | |
| No 4 | Strengthening Science Capacity in Tanzania - An Impact Analysis of IFS Support |
|
| No 5 | Scientific Research Capacity in Cameroon [available also in French] |
5. ANNOUNCEMENTS
5.1 Symposium on Biotechnology in animal production
Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso
February 5-7, 2007
Call for papers.
Hosted by CIRDES (Centre International de Recherche-Développement sur l'Elevage en Zone Subhumide) in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso, this sub-regional symposium on biotechnology in West Africa will investigate the state-of-the-art and discuss key research issues in biotechnology applications in animal health and production.
Abstracts deadline: December 31, 2006.
They are to be submitted to cirdes.biotech@yahoo.fr
or cirdes@ird.bf
For more information, please write directly to:
Prof Abdoulaye S Gouro, (email: gouro@fasonet.bf)
01 BP 454, Bobo-Dioulasso 01,
Burkina Faso
5.2 Obituary: Prof Adolphe Monkiedje, Cameroon
It is with great regret that IFS announces the passing away of Professor Adolphe Monkiedje, Laboratory of General Biology, Department of Animal Biology and Physiology, University of Yaoundé I, Cameroon.
Professor Monkiedje received his first IFS grant in 1996 and was able to develop a relatively new discipline in Cameroon - eco-toxicology. Since then he received a second grant in 2001 and trained more than a dozen graduate students. In 2002, he was awarded the IFS/Danida Award for research of high quality. Following his participation in an IFS/MISTRA workshop in Morocco in 2002, Prof Monkiedje was instrumental in establishing the International Network for Sustainable Plant Production (INSPP).
Dr Monkiedje's perspective on scientific research in Cameroon is highlighted in the newly published IFS MESIA Report No 6, which summarises the previous 5 reports, including No 5, 'Scientific Research in Cameroon'. Both reports can be read on the IFS web: here.
IFS expresses its sincere condolences to his widow, Marie-Claire and children, and his colleagues.
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