The local farmers possess an immense knowledge of their environment. An effort was made to carryout a research on the conservation and testing of nitrogen effect over the location specific indigenous paddy varieties in purposively selected tribals

Original Source

The neglected and underutilized crops chosen for this study included finger millet (Eleusine coracana), Italian or foxtail millet (Setaria italica) and little millet (Panicum sumatrense). Two locations where these crops have been traditionally under cultivation and intrinsically linked with food security, livelihood and cultural identity of local tribal communities, were chosen as target sites.

Over the years many Big Ideas have been imposed on Africa from outside. The latest is that the region should sell or lease millions of hectares of land to foreign investors, who will bring resources and up-to-date technology. None of the blueprints has worked, and African farmers have become increasingly impoverished.

Original Source

The Eastern Himalayan region has been proposed as another National Agricultural Biodiversity Heritage Site, based on six indices. The region is the richest in species diversity among the northeastern states of India. It is the center of diversity for several widely distributed plant taxa and a crucible for speciation encompassing several primitive familities.

The Jeypore tract of Orissa, India is famous for the genetic diversity of Asian cultivated rice and has been considered the center of origin of aus ecotype. The landraces or traditional varieties growing here are thought to harbor dominant genes for biotic and abiotic stresses, aroma and palatability and hold promise for their utilization in future plant breeding and biotechnology programs.

The bicentenary of Charles Darwin's life and work reminds us that the great biodiversity on Earth underlies natural selection, selective breeding, and the biotechnologies required to provide humanity with food, fiber, fodder, and fuels.

Based on six indices, the warm subhumid to cool-humid Western Himalayan Region, consisting of the Kashmir valley, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, could be designated as an Agricultural Biodiversity Heritage Site. This region is rich in agro-biodiversity, with a large number of species being cultivated.

In periurban Hyderabad, India, leafy vegetables are increasingly grown along the Musi River and sold in urban markets. This agricultural biodiversity can significantly help urban and periurban farmers become more resilient to the impacts of such changes.

Awudu Ngutte works as a project co-ordinator for INAPA, a small organisation based in Buea, Cameroon. He has been receiving LEISA Magazine since 2004, sharing it with his colleagues and other organisations. He was particularly interested in issue 23.2,