Rattan Lal
AMES, Iowa — The 2020 World Food Prize laureate, Rattan Lal, is a leading soil scientist. His upcoming lecture at Iowa State University will center on sustainable development goals and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lal will present “Carbon Farming for Food and Climate Security: Producing More From Less” at 6:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 12. This lecture is free and open to the public, who will be able to watch for free at this link (attendees will need to provide their name and email to enter). This will be followed by a live Q&A with Lal.
Lal’s innovative research demonstrated how healthy soils are a crucial component of sustainable agricultural intensification, enabling higher crop yields while requiring less land, agrochemicals, tillage, water and energy.
His work has been pivotal in enhancing the productivity and sustainability of global agricultural systems, resulting in improved crop yields and food security, while also saving hundreds of millions of hectares of natural tropical ecosystems. He is a distinguished university professor of soil science and founding director of the Carbon Management & Sequestration Center at The Ohio State University.
The World Food Prize is referred to as the “Nobel Prize for food and agriculture.” It is the most prominent global award recognizing an individual who has enhanced human development and confronted hunger by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.
The annual Norman Borlaug lecture is named for the Cresco native and agronomist whose discoveries sparked the Green Revolution. Borlaug received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970 for his international work in wheat research and production, which has saved millions of lives. He is the founder of the World Food Prize, which annually recognizes the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.
This lecture is co-sponsored by the Office of the President, World Food Prize Foundation, Nutritional Sciences Council and the Committee on Lectures, which is funded by Student Government.
Find more information about ISU lectures online.