ICARDA; International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas
Miguel Sanchez-Garcia has extensive experience in agricultural research, currently serving as Lead Breeder for the Global Barley Breeding Program at ICARDA since March 2013, and previously held the position of Associate Scientist specializing in winter and facultative wheat breeding. Prior experience includes a role as a Post-doc Researcher in the Biodiversity and Integrated Gene Management (BIGM) program, focusing on spring wheat breeding, and as Research Staff/PhD Student at IRTA, where experiments and laboratory protocols were managed. Additional experience includes a visiting researcher position at CSIRO, where PCR-based DNA marker characterizations were performed, and a training period at SERIDA involving diverse research tasks. Educational qualifications include a PhD in Agronomy and Crop Science and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education from Universitat de Lleida, along with a Bachelor's degree in Biology from Universidad de Oviedo.
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ICARDA; International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas
Getting agricultural research innovations into use in the dry areas is critically important, especially since these regions cover 40 per cent of the earth’s surface and are home to 2.5 billion people – a significant percentage of the world’s population. This is the core work of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Area (ICARDA), which works with partners worldwide, developing innovations to improve food security and the livelihoods of the rural poor. ICARDA’s work targets non-tropical dry areas in developing countries, and also produces international public goods with potential for global application. Research covers crops (wheat, barley, faba bean, lentil, chickpea and forage legumes), the management of natural resources (water, land, biodiversity), small ruminant production (sheep and goats), farming systems (intensification, diversification, integration between farming system components), and socio-economics and policy research – on how policies can be more relevant to the situation of low income countries. The estimated benefits of ICARDA’s crop improvement research and production of new varieties over the past 3 decades has been estimated at US$850 million per year. Over 900 improved varieties of wheat, developed from ICARDA material, have been released for cultivation worldwide. The new varieties offer higher yields; better tolerance to drought, heat, cold and salinity; and improved resistance to diseases, weeds and insect pests. Watch our short video - ‘ICARDA - What We Do’