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ABOUT THE SRI INTERNATIONAL NETWORK AND RESOURCES CENTER (SRI-RICE)


The SRI International Network and Resources Center (or SRI-Rice) is based at Cornell University under the auspices of the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development (CIIFAD). Established in 2010 with a generous gift from Jim Carrey’s Better U Foundation (BUF), SRI-Rice was created in response to the increasing importance of SRI practices – an environment-friendly, yield-increasing methodology -- around the world. To date, significant productivity improvements have been achieved in over 50 countries. For more information, download our SRI-Rice brochure and 2010-2011 annual report. Read more about our staff at right or click here to contact us or access our social networking sites.

Utilization of SRI concepts and methods and adaptation of SRI practices to local conditions and to new crops and cropping systems are quickly spreading among farmers. This has lead to a gap between farmers' field experiences and know-how, and the knowledge that is collected and generated by interested researchers, extension specialists, program developers, donors, and policy makers. An improved framework is needed for tracking and distilling SRI experiences, bringing together the research and adoption taking place around the world, and synthesizing what is being learned, which will promote collaborative synergies and accelerate learning.

Our mission

To advance and share knowledge about the System of Rice Intensification and its derived practices and principles, and to support networking among interested organizations and individuals around the globe.

Our vision

To improve rice and other agricultural productivity based on environment-friendly practices that help to better withstand changing climate conditions and that lead to improved food security and reduced poverty.

SRI-Rice has three objectives:

Our activities, grouped into three focus areas, mirror these objectives:

Knowledge management and sharing

SRI-Rice collects, organizes, stores and shares knowledge. Knowledge is shared on our website and via personal outreach through presentations, discussions, and teaching.  

On a daily basis, SRI-Rice is collecting knowledge resources of many kinds regarding SRI, related innovations, environmentally-friendly agricultural practices and natural resource management. They are catalogued and stored. Many are directly published on the SRI-Rice website, which is the most up-to-date, comprehensive collection of SRI information available worldwide. It also contributes to and links with others’ stocks of SRI and SRI-related knowledge. This repository of documents and multimedia is easily accessible to readers and provides information on SRI background, technical matters and updates on progress in over 40 countries. We constantly work to improve our website resources and to refine our communication platforms for easy and convenient access.

Beyond e-sharing, we also exchange knowledge through personal outreach: Giving presentations, participating in conferences, discussions, seminars, and meetings, teaching, giving interviews and visiting SRI farmers and SRI field tests. Outreach activities may either be done pro-actively, by taking advantage of opportunities that arise, or in response to requests for assistance from third parties.

Knowledge generation and research

We have a dual role: to advance knowledge through our own analysis, research, and publishing; and to advise and partner with others for research and extension.

At SRI-Rice, we are in a central position to access information about SRI research and extension activities around the world, and thus can contribute to thematic and geographic analysis and synthesis of information and results from a broad range of resources. Where opportunities are given, we participate actively in research. Writing of thematic analysis and synthesis, scientific articles, and technical guidelines are part of our contribution on advancing knowledge on SRI.

We advise researchers and students who wish to carry out research associated with SRI. We visit farmers’ fields and research sites, to support their work, to learn from them, and to provide technical assistance as requested.

Network support and development

An informal international SRI network has been evolving since the SRI methodology started to spread around the world in 2000. Over the past ten years, SRI has been recognized, supported and utilized by a growing number of NGOs, universities, farmer groups, government institutions, research institutions, the private sector, and donor agencies. Various kinds of national SRI networks have sprung up in a number of countries (Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Philippines, Nepal, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam), where members share information and develop strategies for coordinating their SRI efforts. In other countries, collaboration and planning is less formal and relies largely on personal initiatives.

SRI-Rice maintains the largest number of contacts and connections with people working on SRI around the world. We communicate regularly with people from the 40 countries where SRI is practiced and beyond, responding to inquiries and interests. We work to strengthen networks around the world, supporting not only efficient information exchange, but also extension and research activities at both the regional and national levels.

People at SRI-Rice

Erika Styger, Director of Programs Erika Styger › is the Director of Programs for SRI-Rice. She has a PhD in Crop and Soil Sciences from Cornell University and has over 20 years experience in designing, executing and evaluating research and development programs in Africa. She introduced SRI into four regions of Mali, adapting SRI principals to rainfed and lowland rice and wheat.

Lucy Fisher Director of CommunicationsLucy Fisher › is Director of Communications at SRI-Rice. She oversees knowledge management initiatives, including electronic outreach efforts and liaison with national and regional SRI networks around the world. She developed and maintains the SRI website (http://sririce.org) and associated social networking sites.

Norman Uphoff, Senior AdvisorNorman Uphoff › is the Senior Advisor for SRI-Rice. He is carrying on the networking, research and writing that he has been doing on behalf of SRI since 2000, helping to build up the International SRI Network and strengthen the knowledge base for SRI. He is also interested in the extension of SRI concepts to other crops, so as to make reorient farming systems to deal with climate change and the exigencies of 21st century agriculture.

Olivia VentOlivia Vent › consults with SRI-Rice on special projects. She is interested in helping SRI farmers to participate in domestic and international markets.

Carrie YoungCarrie Young, › is a fellow with the Cornell Institute for Public Affairs focusing on international development. She previously was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Mali, a researcher for National Geographic, and the managing editor of South Carolina Wildlife magazine.

Matt KorenMatt Koren, › who graduated from Cornell in 2012, assists in developing the SRI website and social media channels.

Devon JenkinsDevon Jenkins, › a graduate student in International Agriculture and Rural Development, was a Peace Corps agriculture volunteer in Niger before coming to Cornell. During 2012, he began work with Peace Corps Response in Benin as well as representing SRI-Rice in West Africa.

Hannah KoskiHannah Koski , › an M.P.S. student in horticulture at Cornell, works on the SRI Equipment Initiative and the SRI Research Network. She previously volunteered in Haiti and Cameroon and operated her own 110 acre farm in rural Maine.

Devon JenkinsZhoucen Feng, › an undergraduate in agricultural sciences at Cornell, comes from Suzhou, China. She is currently helping to develop and maintain the Chinese database of SRI.

Zhouchen FengEllen Stapleton , › an undergraduate in international relations at Mount Holyoke College, is a summer research assistant at SRI-Rice. She will be studying at the Université de Genève in Switzerland during 2012-2013.

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This website is maintained by the SRI International Network and Resources Center (SRI-Rice) with support from
Jim Carrey's Better U Foundation and the Cornell International Institute for Food, Agriculture and Development
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