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Innovation Lab For Small Scale Irrigation

Innovation Lab For Small Scale Irrigation

Innovation Lab For Small Scale Irrigation

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March 6-10, 2023
Hosted by Prairie View A&M University
Supported by the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small Scale Irrigation


With support from the Feed the Future initiative and Innovation Lab for Small Scale Irrigation and hosted by Prairie View A & M, this conference focused on the significant issues in the sustainable management of water and natural resources for food security amid climate change toward improving livelihoods in developing areas and countries. Participants from Historically Black Land Grant Universities learned about recent research in international agricultural development, presented their research related to climate change and agriculture, and networked with research and industry leaders on career pathways. Conference themes included (1) Climate change impacts on agricultural production, (2) Change in agricultural practices and its effects, (3) Water and nutrition linkages, and (4) Water-energy-food nexus challenges and opportunities.

View Full proceedings including student abstracts

Opening Session

Moderator: Ali Fares

  • Welcome from PVAMU
  • Mike Michener, USAID, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Resilience and Food Security
  • Dr. James Palmer, PVAMU Provost and Senior Vice President
  • Dr. Henry Fadamiro, TAMU Associate Vice President for Research
  • Dr. Gerard D’Souza, Dean & Land Director of Land-Grant Programs, CAHS
  • Dr. Elsa Murano, Norman Borlaug Institute of International Agriculture and Development
  • Dr. Nicole Lefore, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small Scale Irrigation

Opening Keynotes

Moderator: Dr. Gerard D’Souza, Dean and Director of Land-Grant Programs, College of Agriculture and Human Sciences, PVAMU

  • Dr. Skyller Walkes, Associate Dean, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Antibias, Columbia Climate School, Columbia University
  • Dr. Rabi Mohtar, TEES Research Professor, Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Texas A&M University
    Food-Energy-Water Nexus
  • Dr. Timothy Green, USDA Agricultural Research Service
    Hydrology of environmental & agricultural systems across scales
  • Dr. Steven Evett, USDA Agricultural Research Service
    Addressing climate change through modeling & analytical tools

International development: Partnerships, priorities, and opportunities

  • Moderator: Dr. Nicole Lefore, Texas A & M University
    Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Small Scale Irrigation
  • Keynote: Victoria Parker and Dr. Levon Esters, Purdue University  
    Increasing collaboration between Feed the Future Innovation Labs and Minority Serving Institutions: Results of 2020 Study

Priorities and opportunities in international agricultural and climate research: Panel Discussion

  • Dr. Melkamu Derseh, International Livestock Research Institute
    Livestock production and resilience in African smallholder systems
  • Dr. Ephraim Nkonya, USDA Economic Research Service
    Water, Climate, & Food Security Research in Africa & US Career path and opportunities in Agriculture
  • ­Dr. Seifu Tilahun, Bahir Dar University & International Water Management Institute
    Priorities and opportunities in international agricultural and climate research
  • Clinton White, Counselor, USAID
    Remarks for participants

Career and Internship Opportunities

  • Emmitt Higgins, Central State University
    Video: Study and Research Abroad – Central State and Bahamas Agriculture and Marine Science Institute
  • Dr. Harriet Paul, Florida A&M University
    TRELLIS Fund Fellowship Program
  • Roger Mireles, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service
    USDA Foreign Agricultural Service: Linking U.S. Agriculture to the World
  • Anoop Mohan, Bayer
    Bayer Sciences and Career Opportunities
  • Angela Cardenas and Daniel Baily, USAID
    Internship and career opportunities at USAID
  • Video: USAID Celebrates its HBCU Alumni
VIDEO: Conference Highlights

List of Student Presentations

Theme 1: Climate change impacts on agricultural production

Moderator: Laura Carson, Emmitt Higgins

Presenters:

  • Gabriel Ahoma
    Impacts of elevated levels of CO2 and water stress on the physiological growth of young woody plants
  • Cynthia C. Ogbu
    Implication of climatic variations on Sugar Cane Production and Distribution in Louisiana
  • Kyla S. Bryant
    Climate Change Impacts on Agriculture in the Midwest
  • Recheal Naa Dedei Armah
    Assessing Climate Change and Agriculture Impacts on California’s Water Supply
  • Lucinda A. Kangwana
    Impact of climate change and precipitation patterns on crop production in Southeast USA
  • Peter Owolabi
    The Impacts of Climate Change on Low-income Communities in the U.S.: A Literature Review
  • Charles Smith
    Investigation of coastal forest and riparian buffer decline along the Chesapeake Bay using dendrochronological analysis of Pinus taeda
  • Erasmus Aduteye
    Assessing Farmers Perception of Climate Change and the Potential for Adaptation in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia Peninsula
  • Ruben Doria-Garcia
    Use of National Water Model Forecast Product to Enhance Agricultural Land Management within the Middle Alabama Basin
  • Gebrekidan Worku Tefera
    Changes in hydrological extremes under future climate change scenarios in the Bosque watershed, North-Central Texas
  • Anoop Valiya Veettil
    An Assessment of Texas Future Water Scarcity Under a Changing Climate
  • Binita Thapa
    Sweet Corn Responses to Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices
  • Gamal El Afandi
    Impacts of Climate Change on Corn and Soybean Evapotranspiration in Selected Counties, Alabama
Theme 2: Change in agricultural practices and its effects

Moderator: Anoop Valiya Veettil, Atikur Rahman

Presenters:

  • Bhawana Ghimire
    UV-C LED irradiation for controlling plant-damaging oomycetes in water as a sustainable substitute for traditional chemical methods
  • Madhav Parajuli
    Effect of plant defense elicitor in preventing ambrosia beetle attacks in flowering dogwoods exposed to simulated flood stress condition
  • Charles Carpenter III
    Long-term effects of cover crops, tillage, and ecological succession on soil health parameters
  • Nigus Demelash Melaku
    Soil Moisture Dynamics in the Selected Climate-Smart Agriculture Practices in Sweet Corn Fields
  • Taylor M. Walters
    Evaluating under-utilized crops with global potential for enhancing food security
  • Reggie O. Jackson
    Increasing Applications of Fertilizer Effect on Water Quality Within and Below the Root Zone
  • Rhyan Knight
    Soil Health: Evaluation of Soil Respiration and Select Soil Properties Under Different Tillage Practices on the Eastern Shore of Maryland
  • Dev Gurung
    Differences in Dynamic Soil Health Properties Among Agricultural Management Systems on the Eastern Shore of Maryland
  • Alhadi Ahmed
    Evaluation of Soybean Cultivars for their Resistance to Insect Pests in the Delmarva Peninsula
  • Armania Smith
    Acetic Acid is effective as a growth control agent against Amaranthus palmeri among developing soybean crop
  • Alexis Brown
    Plant Nutrient Uptake In Response to Selected Climate Smart Agricultural Practices
  • Atikur Rahman
    Climate Smart Practices and Fate of Soil Carbon Under A Sweet Corn Cropping System
  • Mohammad Nazari-Sharabian
    Use of System Dynamics Approach to Discern the Lingering Role of Sediment Pond on Surface Mining Water Quality
Theme 3: Water and nutrition linkages

Moderator: Dinesh Ghimire, Atikur Rahman

Presenters:

  • Shelby Devereaux
    Evaluating the Inhibition of Lippia dulcis on Pancreatic Lipase and α-amylase enzymes
  • Robert Earl Lewis III
    Effects of Industrial Hemp Wax Coating On Postharvest Quality Of Tomatoes
  • Rahman
    Protective action of garlic powder against developmental toxicity caused by golden yellow dye
  • Tasbida
    Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Activity of Cucurbitaceae Plant Leaves: A Comparative Study
  • Airin
    Observation of antimicrobial susceptibility testing against sweetpotato leaf extracts (Ipomoea batata L.), and a few other leafy vegetables extracts through disc diffusion method
  • M.H.A. Jahurul
    Effects of cooking methods on the bioactive compounds and physiological functions of sweet potato leaves (Ipomoea batatas L Lam)
  • Annette Kenney
    Precipitation and Temperature Influence Survival and Transfer of Escherichia coli to Fresh Produce in Manure-Amended Certified Organic Soils in Maryland
Theme 4: Water-energy-food nexus challenges and opportunities

Moderator: Anoop Valiya Veettil, Emmitt Higgins

Presenters:

  • Angel Randall
    A Case Study of Machine Learning Aided Computational Fluid Dynamics Applications on Offshore Wind Turbines
  • Gladstone Ukoima
    Pre-treatment of Produced Water by Photocatalysis of TiO2-rGO-CdS
  • De Zarae Guthrie
    Effect of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles on Mustard Plants
  • Ayanna N. Williams
    Use of Microalgae in the Diets of Poultry
  • Ehiguese Obiomon
    SMAP Soil Moisture Product Validation Using In-Situ West Texas Mesonet (WTM) Data
  • LaShunda A. Hodges
    Impact of Viticulture Production Upon USDA-MRLA 131A Southern Mississippi River Alluvial Soil
  • Jesuraj Pandya
    Use of modern Agricultural Automation and Smart Farming
  • Joshua Y Asiamah
    Genome Wide Association Studies to Dissect Root Architectural Traits in Soybean
  • Kusum R. Tamang
    Evaluation of Water Use Efficiency, Yield Component and Seed Compositional Traits of Grain Hemp Varieties towards Developing Crop Improvement Strategies


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