Learning Curve

So why this week of meetings?  Because there are so many moving parts to this program and these moving parts are spread across the world. Sometimes email and Skype calls do not have the same effect as putting people in the same room to present, discuss and have side conversations over coffee breaks and meals.

One corner of the resort

The first half of the week our program team presented information and received input/feedback from our partner research centers. Topics included current research portfolio, how to grow our research themes, how to monitor and evaluated progress, reporting requirements etc.  The second half of the week was a smaller group of researchers discussing a topic that has been new to me: aflatoxins.  Two days of discussing research gaps on how to prevent and treat crops contaminated with this fungus that is prolific in all sorts of crops: maize, peanuts, cassava, a whole bunch of grains, chilies, and spices.  It can get into the milk of animals who have consumed contaminated feed.  Besides causing liver disease and even death when consumed in high concentrations, a chief interest in developing countries is whether it causes stunting in children.  One way contamination is prevented - at least in the US for now - is by biocontrol where a competing but safe variety of the fungus is put on fields so that it out numbers and drives down the bad variety.  And the topic goes on and on and on.  Two days worth in this case.

Thus ended this week of non-stop information inputs.  Not all went in unfortunately and hopefully that portion that did, sticks.  On another note, I never did see the hippos come out of the water, but I'll end with this view of the path down to the lake.