Message from the Chairman and Director

Dear Colleagues:

Welcome to our first issue of e-CGIAR News produced exclusively in electronic format. Since we started producing an electronic version of CGIAR News in the html format in April 2003, we have heard back from you that this version is more useful than the printed newsletter. From now on we will only be producing an electronic newsletter and we look forward to your feedback.

We’ve also taken the opportunity to change the content of the newsletter. Each issue will include an up-close-and-personal interview with scientists at CGIAR Centers. In this issue we present the life and work of Dr. Marilyn Warburton, a molecular geneticist based at CIMMYT’s headquarters in El Batan, Mexico. Dr. Warburton was the recipient of the CGIAR’s Promising Young Scientist Award in 2002. Our new format also includes links to existing articles and stories on Center web sites which we hope will minimize duplication of information.

The United Nations has named 2006 the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. This presents a golden opportunity for the CGIAR to position itself and demonstrate how our research makes tangible improvements in the lives of hundreds of millions of people who farm drylands. The Marketing Group is assuming responsibility for this campaign.

We look ahead to several important meetings later this year including the Executive Council meeting on May 17-18 hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Hague, and AGM’06 in December to be held in Washington, D.C. More information on these meetings and others will follow.

The Center stories that follow pay tribute to the Membership while recounting the power of science to bring about positive change. While this newsletter includes references to donors who support specific projects, none of the CGIAR’s achievements would be possible without the core support and commitment of the 64 members and many hundreds of partner organizations who together form the growing CGIAR alliance. We hope you will find this new design interesting and informative and, as always, we welcome your comments at cgiar@cgiar.org.

Sincerely,

Ian Johnson CGIAR Chairman

Francisco Reifschneider CGIAR Director