Building on-farm resilience through genetic diversity

Maedeh Salimi

Centre for sustainable development (CENESTA)

maede@cenesta.org

Six global problems

Water

Poverty

Hunger and Malnutrition

Climate Change

Biodiversity

Drought

The way in which seed is produced has been the cause and can be the solution to all six issues

A production system that produce healthy food, sustainable ecosystems and livelihood for small scale farmers is achievable through the use of biodiversity

Famers need greater access to genetic material and collaboration with scientists

The Program on participatory plant breeding (PPB) and evolutionary plant breeding (EPB) in Iran is one example of what can be achieved when these challenges are overcome

Trials moved from Research Station to Farmers’ Fields

Decisions shared between breeder and farmers

Single varieties Mixture of several varieties

Mixture of Mega-diversity

Evolutionary Plant Breeding (EPB)

This evolutionary population is a mixture of 1600 barley F2s

Mixture of 15 lines of bread wheat from PVS trials

Evolutionary-Participatory Plant Breeding

PPB program

PPB program

PPB programPPB program

PPB program

Original Population

Dry and hot sites

Salt affected

Organic

Cold Pest and Diseases

Because of natural crosses, the seed which is harvested is never genetically identical to the seed which was sown

……….. therefore, the population evolves becoming progressively adapted to the conditions in which is grown……….. including climate changeswithout knowing now what the climate will be……….. With evolutionary populations we exploits the Fundamental Theorem of Natural Selection to our advantage

In the first year two farmers in two provinces planted population of barley in a small part of the field

After one year farmers decided to plant this population as the main crop

This evolutionary population of barley was cultivated by pastoralists as animal feed under rain-fed and organic conditions in a very dry climate

This particular genotype really stood out as being better adapted to these conditions and can be multiplied separately

An evolutionary population of barley in Garmsar, Iran

An evolutionary population of barley in Kermanshah, Iran

An evolutionary population of bread wheat in Kermanshah, Iran

An evolutionary population of rice in Behshahr, Iran

How we up-scaling the evolutionary population

Farmers & nomads

Ministry of Agriculture

Research statin CENESTAGene bank Other SCOs

Exchange seeds and sharing

knowledge and experiment

Private sector

Farmer’s associations

Farmers have an important role for sharing their evolutionary population with others farmers in local, regional and national level

Evolutionary Plant Breeding

Decreased crop vulnerability by cultivating and generating new diversity

Brings back in farmers’ hands the control of seed and make farmers independence for seed supply

Inexpensive, dynamic way to in situ conservation of plant genetic recourses and for adapting crops to climate changeHelps increasing sustainable production and very resistance to weeds, diseases and pests Can provide the market with more nutritious food and feedEvolutionary populations cannot be patented

Conclusions

A global networking can help

CENESTA could bring Experience in both PPB and EPB which is not common

in many countriesExpertise in working with Nomadic people is probably unique Experience in dealing with public administrators on issues such as seed policy IPR and farmers’ rights

Exchange of experienceUse of expertise not available at CENESTA from other partnersPossibility of working in other countries and crops Exchange of genetic resources available with other partners Access to information and technologies are not available in Iran International recognition

Conclusions

Thank you!