The Iowa State Lecture Series will host the “2024 Norman Borlaug Lecture: So Our Children Can Eat: Conserving and Protecting Crop Biodiversity” on Monday.
This lecture will honor Geoffrey Hawtin, an agricultural scientist, and Cary Fowler, an agriculturalist and U.S. Special Envoy for Global Food Security, with the 2024 World Food Prize.
Gail Nonnecke, a Morrill Professor for the Horticulture Department, explained the importance of the Norman Borlaug Lecture through an email statement with the Daily.
“The Norman Borlaug Lecture at Iowa State University provides an extraordinary chance for students, faculty, and the community to learn from those who are working to improve the quality, quantity, or availability of food in the world,” Nonnecke stated. “The 2024 lecture features and honors Drs. Geoffrey Hawtin and Cary Fowler, recipients of the 2024 World Food Prize for their work to sustain crop diversity and conserve seeds for our future through a global seed vault in Norway. Laureates, Drs. Hawtin and Fowler are true hunger fighters for the world’s future and it is an amazing chance to hear their perspectives about crop biodiversity and learn from their expertise.”
The event will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Great Hall, located on the second floor of the Memorial Union. The Great Hall has an accessible entrance, with a universal changing table down the hall.
“Every year presented in Iowa, this foremost international honor recognizes — without regard to race, religion, nationality or political beliefs — the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world,” according to the World Food Prize website.
Before the event, there will be a reception and student poster display starting at 3:30 p.m. in the Sun Room/South Ballroom, located on the second floor of the Memorial Union. Undergraduate and graduate students submitted the posters featured at the reception which will address significant world issues.
According to the World Food Prize website, Fowler said, “We’re trying to teach the world how to save itself. We’re really in a race against time. We need to mobilize before it’s too late. We’re going to pay a price if we don’t do the smart thing and help agriculture adapt.”
The lecture will be recorded and made available 24 to 36 hours after the event. To watch the recording, visit the Available Recordings page on the Iowa State Lecture Series website.
For more information about the World Food Prize, visit their website. For more information about the Iowa State Lecture Series, visit their website.
