Historically, crop improvement has been in equal parts due to improved genetics and improved crop management. As world population continues to increase and incomes rise, the demand for agricultural products will increase. However, many of the great agricultural revolutions of crop management of the past are reaching maturity (e.g., irrigation, use of fertilizer, use of pesticides) and it is expected that little further gains can be achieved. Already, it is estimated that 80% of all fresh water consumption is used in irrigation and 50% of the world’s reactive nitrogen is used in agriculture, so it is doubtful that greater amounts can be applied. Hence, while in the past, crop productivity was due equally to improved genetics and improved crop management, future increases will be due more to improved genetics through plant breeding.

The purpose of the Plant Breeding for Drought Tolerance Symposium is to provide a forum for exchange between plant physiologists, breeders, agronomists and geneticists in order to continue the positive trend towards crop improvement through plant breeding and genetics. We hope also to build collaborations between the public and private sectors, as well as with graduate students in plant breeding, genetics, and physiology programs.

The meeting will consist of stimulating presentations by invited speakers and will feature keynote speaker Dr. John Passioura, from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization Division of Plant Industry in Canberra, Australia. Passioura is currently an Honorary Research Fellow with CSIRO Plant Industry, where he is continuing to work on improving the performance of dryland crops and the soil in which they grow. His research in plant physiology and soil science, particularly in plants' use of water and the interactions between roots and soil, has contributed to the breeding of plants to resist drought.

Other confirmed speakers at the Plant Breeding for Drought Tolerance Symposium include Professor John S. Boyer, E.I. DuPont Professor Emeritus from the University of Delaware. Boyer has spent his career studying water relations in plants and has received numerous awards. He has published close to 150 articles and is a member of National Academy of Sciences. He is also a former president of the American Society of Plant Physiologists and received the ASPP's Shull Award in 1977 for outstanding contributions to the field.

Other confirmed speakers include:

    Tom Juenger of the University of Texas at Austin - Drought Adaptation in Switchgrass

    Amelia Henry, lead of the Drought Physiology Group at the International Rice Research Institute

    Eduardo Blumwald of University of California at Davis

    Sean Cutler of University of California at Riverside

    Jill Deikman of Monsanto

    Lisa Donovan of University of Georgia - discussion leader

    Andy Pereira of University of Arkansas

    Mark Cooper of Pioneer Hi-Bred International     

Registration is $250 for non-students and $150 for students through May 18.

Contact:
Annie Heiliger, Program Assistant
annie.heiliger@colostate.edu

Registration is open online until
June 20