MEDIA ADVISORY Monday, March 30, 2009
Biologists Consider Sustainable Agriculture and Global Food Supply American Institute of Biological Sciences to Meet in Arlington, VA, on May 18-19, 2009 WASHINGTON, DC - The American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS) will host its 62nd Annual Meeting on 18-19 May 2009 at The Westin Gateway, Arlington, Virginia. The theme of the 2009 meeting is "Sustainable Agriculture: Greening the Global Food Supply." The National Council for Science and the Environment are cosponsors. The meeting features keynote addresses by internationally recognized researchers. Organized breakout sessions allow speakers, invited panelists, and meeting attendees to discuss the far-reaching implications of sustainable and green agricultural practices on food supply and security, biodiversity, and public health, among other issues. NCSE is organizing and chairing session: The ABCs of agriculture, biodiversity and climate change. A reception and lecture will be held in the evening of 18 May at the National Academy of Sciences' Keck Center. The evening will include an after-hours tour of the Koshland Science Museum. "The production of food, fiber, and fuel is essentially applied biology, and, as global populations continue to grow and interact, ensuring a safe and sustainable food supply for the 21st century is going to require the collective effort and expertise of biologists from a wide range of disciplines," said program chair and AIBS President Dr. May Berenbaum of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "Particularly in a time of economic crisis, it is essential to recognize that agriculture is a linchpin of economic growth and stability for all nations of the world; applying sound science to guide the production of a safe and stable food supply is key to global peace and prosperity." Keynote, Plenary, and Special presentations will include: - Bruce Alberts, Science editor-in-chief: Why Redefining Science Education is the Key to Enhancing the Public Understanding of Science - Louise Jackson, University of California, Davis: Biodiversity-friendly Agriculture: Why Scale Matters - Fred Gould, North Carolina State University: From Transgenic Crops to Transgenic Pests: How Can Ag-Biotech Be Green? - Robert Tauxe, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Food-borne diseases - Hans R. Herren, Millennium Institute: Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security: The Wake-up Call for Change - Scott M. Swinton, Michigan State University: Agriculture and Ecosystem Services - Taylor Ricketts, World Wildlife Fund: Agriculture and Conservation - May Berenbaum, University of Illinois: Sustainable Agriculture: Greening the Global Food Supply Special discussion sessions will include: - Sustainable agriculture and the media - Science and technology of biofuels - Agriculture, biodiversity, and climate change - NAS report on agriculture and undergraduate science education - The Year of Science 2009 - Agriculture and ecosystem services The meeting includes a contributed poster session; an evening lecture at the National Academy of Sciences; a special tour of the Koshland Science Museum; educational workshops on biofuels, media outreach, and professional science masters programs; and the presentation of the 2009 AIBS Awards. Accredited members of the press are invited to attend all events at no charge. Contact Robert Gropp at [email protected] or 202.628.1500 x 250. The meeting program and links to speaker websites are available at: www.aibs.org/annual-meeting/annual_meeting_2009.html SUPPORT OUR WORK- [https://secure.groundspring.org/dn/index.php?aid=16467] Donate Now. Learn more about NCSE- [http://www.ncseonline.org/] www.ncseonline.org The National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE) is a non-profit organization working to improve the scientific basis for environmental decisionmaking. NCSE is supported by nearly 500 academic, scientific, environmental, government and business organizations.
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