IRRI Launches Fund-Raising Campaign for Rice Research

A US$300 million fund-raising campaign has been launched in the United States to help Asian rice farmers grow more rice to feed a growing population. Organized by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to mark its 50^th anniversary, the campaign supports "new breakthroughs in rice research and their delivery to rice farmers, educational and training scholarships, the building of world-class scientific facilities, and the protection of thousands of unique rice varieties."

"What we need now is to revitalize investments in rice research, especially with the looming threat of climate change," said IRRI Director General Dr. Robert Zeigler.

IRRI is partnering with the San Francisco-based Give2Asia, which will accept tax-deductible gifts from U.S.-based donors in support of the campaign, which will run to 2012. For more details, contact Duncan Macintosh, Development Director, IRRI at d.macintosh@cgiar.org or Birger Stamperdahl, Director of Marketing, Give2Asia, at bstamperdahl@give2asia.org