Cornell University researchers will use genomics to help farmers in Africa, Asia and Latin America, thanks to a $3 million grant.
The money, from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will go toward using genomics to help small farmers in those areas. The researchers will use the plant-breeding method known as genomic selection to boost the rate of variety improvements in maize and wheat by two- to threefold, according to the university.
Mark Sorrells, chairman of Cornell's plant breeding and genetics department, will work with Jean-Luc Jannink, a geneticist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service at the Holly Center on Cornell's campus. The two will partner with the Mexican-based International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center.
Genomic selection enables plant scientists to select for the ability of particular varieties to thrive under stresses faced by smallholder farmers, such as drought and nitrogen-depleted soil, according to the university.
Jannink and Sorrells will use genomic selection to test varieties under development in the improvement center's maize and wheat breeding programs.
The Ithaca College Ad Lab team has advanced to the national championship of the American Advertising Federation's National Student Advertising Competition.
The team is made up of 24 integrated marketing communications majors in the Roy H. Park School of Communications. The team will face off against 18 other regional winners in the finals. The finals will be held this month in San Diego.
As part of the National Student Advertising Competition, a corporate sponsor provided a case study outlining the history of its product and current marketing situation. Student teams developed an integrated communications plan for the client and pitched the proposal to a panel of judges.
This year the team worked with a hypothetical $100 million budget to create a campaign for JCPenny intended to increase shopping frequency and spending by female customers ages 25-34.
Ad Lab is a senior capstone course for students in the Park School taught by Scott Hamula, associate professor and chair of the Department of Strategic Communication.
In regionals, the Ithaca team scored highest for both its plans book and its presentation. Team members will now compete for a national title against the University of Texas, University of Miami, Ohio University and Brigham Young University.
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