This is the third in a series of articles on ‘Curds and goats, lives and livelihoods—A dozen stories from northern and eastern India’. Continue reading
Author Archives: Susan MacMillan
Serious rain: East Africa’s annual Easter resurrection
Exactly four days following Easter Sunday this year, the ‘long rains’ arrived in Nairobi, watering the earth, flooding the streets, pounding the rooftops. All night that night, and all night the following nights, the kusi monsoon, blowing inland from across the Indian Ocean, has delivered the beating rain. Continue reading
Reverse vaccinology identifies candidates for an improved vaccine against cattle pneumonia in Africa
We used a reverse vaccinology approach to identify 66 Mmm potential vaccine candidates. The selection and grouping of the antigens was based on the presence of specific antibodies in sera from CBPP-positive animals. The antigens were used to immunize male Boran cattle (Bos indicus) followed by a challenge with the Mmm strain Afadé. Continue reading
Colourful convocation: Jimmy Smith addresses graduates of India’s prestigious National Dairy Research Institute
ILRI Director General Jimmy Smith was in Haryana, India, to give the convocation address (aka ‘the commencement speech’ in North America) at NDRI’s 14th graduation ceremony. Smith was also being awarded an honorary degree (honoris causa) for his contributions to livestock research for development. Continue reading
CGIAR Rwanda Climate Services for Agriculture project launches today, #WorldMetDay
A new project is reconstructing Rwanda’s incomplete meteorological data record using cutting-edge climate science and developing climate information products and services based on the expressed needs of the country’s farmers and other end users. The work is carried out by RAB and Meteo Rwanda, in collaboration with CCAFS, IRI at Columbia University, ICRAF and ILRI, with funding from USAID. Continue reading
Livestock can significantly reduce greenhouse gases AND deliver benefits to the poor–Nature Climate Change
Mario Herrero, chief research scientist for Food Systems and the Environment at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), in Australia, and colleagues have published a paper in Nature Climate Change on Greenhouse gas mitigation potentials in the livestock sector. Continue reading
Some of our favourite WILD* women heroes and partners
We’re celebrating some of our favourite women heroes and partners at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in honour of International Women’s Day, 8 Mar 2016 Continue reading
MERS-CoV antibodies found in two people in eastern Kenya
A new study published in the science journal Emerging Infectious Diseases reports that two individuals in Kenya have tested positive for the presence of antibodies to Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus (MERS-CoV). Neither person is ill nor do they recall having any symptoms associated with MERS. There is no evidence of a public health threat and scientists concluded that the infections caused little or no clinical signs of illness. But they plan follow-up studies, as this is the first indication of a MERS-CoV infection that is not connected to primary infections in the Middle East. Continue reading
Livestock and the Sustainable Development Goals
CGIAR livestock scientists are working actively to help the world meet the SDGs. We are intentionally tailoring our livestock-related knowledge products, technologies, institutional arrangements and policy support to provide new options for meeting specific SDGs by addressing developing world livestock problems and opportunities. Continue reading
Persuasion: Towards a calculus of influence in livestock research for development
In November last year (2015), a group of livestock-related communications professionals from non-governmental, regional and international institutions met for 2.5 days in Addis Ababa to begin to think through ‘advocacy-oriented’ kinds of communications to support sustainable livestock development in poor countries worldwide. Continue reading