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K-State Today

November 5, 2015

International agronomy lecture to discuss global food security outlook Nov. 20

Submitted by Steve Watson

Derek Byerlee

Internationally recognized agricultural economist Derek Byerlee will present "Global Food Security to 2050" for the Dr. Chuck and Sue Rice International Agronomy Lecture at 4 p.m. Nov. 20 in 1018 Throckmorton Hall.

The lecture will focus on the major components of meeting global food demands in 2050, and the critical investments needed to achieve global food security. A reception will be at the  Throckmorton Hall first-floor lobby at 3:30 p.m. prior to the lecture.

Byerlee, originally from a South Australian sheep/wheat farm, has dedicated his career to agriculture in developing countries, as a teacher, researcher, administrator and policy advisor. He joined academia in 1971 at Michigan State University, where he conducted some of the first comprehensive rural household surveys in Africa.

In 1978, he joined the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center where he spent the majority of his career. He joined the World Bank in 1994, as a lead economist, and capped his career in the bank by co-directing preparation of the bank's flagship World Development Report 2008, the first on agriculture since 1982.

He retired from the World Bank in 2011 and has continued working with a number of international organizations with a focus on investment in agribusiness, large-scale farming and intensification and land use. He currently serves as editor-in-chief of the journal Global Food Security, and holds appointments with Stanford University and Georgetown University working on agribusiness, land use and food security. He was elected a fellow of the American Association of Agricultural Economists in 2004.