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20 Knowledge Initiative has three main features: agricultural biotechnology, access to biological resources, and intellectual property rights, ‘three areas of crucial interest to the US because though technologically rich it does not have the genetic resources, which is essential for biotechnology products.’ He says that because ‘Wal-Mart, Archer Daniels and Monsanto, three of the world’s biggest multinationals are on the Initiative Board; the three are out ‘to gain access to and retain ownership of the vast bio-resources of the developing countries,’ implying that instead of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), it would be Intellectual Property Wrongs. Once a capitalist, always a capitalist? Like some people I know, even if he doesn’t acknowledge it, AKA is afraid of new knowledge. In the first place, he is wrong about the main features of the Knowledge Initiative. In the second place, the Initiative does not prevent Indian nationals from working for their own IPRs. In fact, The Knowledge Initiative may in fact trigger them into action. In other words, Indians could learn much from Yankees about education, be much more knowledgeable in food processing, branch out to biofuels, be very skilled in biotechnology, be highly productive in water management. There are some Indian nationals who object to the Knowledge Initiative because it allows the US multinationals to work on the living natural resources of their country. That’s not news. How different are they from those who rejected the man from Nazareth, called Jesus, who brought new knowledge to the world? I thought the Indians were more intelligent than that. It is not knowledge (or in another form, technology) that is the problem – it is how you put it to use, or how you don’t. Indian MS Swaminathan approves, he who was once Director General of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), one of Time’s ‘20 most influential Asians of the 20th century,’ Father of India’s Green Revolution (irri.org). In an interview with Shobha Warrier (in.rediff.com), he says: ‘Let knowledge come from everywhere.’ Let knowledge come from anywhere. The Knowledge Initiative has four focus areas (dare.gov.in): (1) Education, Learning Resources, Curriculum Development and Training, (2) Food Processing, Use of Byproducts and Biofuels, (3) Biotechnology, and (4) Water Management. Why would India be interested in the knowledge that the Yankees have in those areas? ‘They have all the Nobel Prize winners there,’ Swaminathan said. ‘They have invested a lot of money in developing ideas, and they have human resources.’ We do not have to reinvent the wheel. In other words, Indians could learn much from Yankees about education, be much more knowledgeable in food processing, branch out to biofuels, be very skilled in biotechnology, be highly productive in water management. We Filipinos could too, if only the Government of the Philippines through the University of the Philippines Los Baños got into an agreement like the US-India Knowledge Initiative. The Knowledge Initiative
21 Would not the Knowledge Initiative result in a second Green Revolution that would fail the Indian farmers and spoil the soil again? Swaminathan said: ‘I coined the term Evergreen Revolution, which means improvement of productivity without associated ecological or environmental harm.’ Swaminathan is Indian Adviser to the Initiative, so he has his job cut out for him. The Knowledge Initiative would increase the yields of crops and not decrease the fertility of the soil and not increase water pollution from farm chemicals. That’s for the Knowledge Initiative to say and for you to find out. I learned and got interested in the Knowledge Initiative when I was trying to research biotechnology – a subject I wanted to appreciate but couldn’t as long as I didn’t understand it – and I saw ‘Making biotechnology work for the poor,’ the welcome address of William Dar, Director General of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), at the ‘International Workshop on Application of Genomics to Chickpea, Pigeonpea and Peanut Improvement’ 2006 March 6-9 at ICRISAT headquarters, Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, India (2007, Nurturing Life In The Drylands Of Hope, ICRISAT, pages 29-32). Dar said, ‘Dr Mangala Rai had intimated earlier that ICRISAT will be brought into the Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture between India and the USA, which I welcome very much.’ What good would that do? Dar said: I am sure that the new Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture that will link universities, technical institutions and businesses in the USA and India to support joint agricultural research and education projects will ultimately benefit the poor in developing countries. We stand ready to be a strategic partner in this initiative. Put that way, for whatever it’s worth, I myself would like a similar US-Philippine Knowledge Initiative only because my alma mater UP Los Baños is a giant sleeping, our technical institutions could be better, our local businesses couldn’t be bothered about going after new products and enjoying IPRs themselves, and education in my beloved country used to be a sure winner but now is a sore loser. The Knowledge Initiative focuses on education, food processing, biotechnology, water management. Education in the Philippines leaves much to be desired because Filipino educators from top to bottom have learned much about vigilance but not much about relevance. Food processing in the Philippines is at the teething stage and The Knowledge Initiative
Page 2 and 3: Citation: Hilario FA. 2007. Team IC
Page 5 and 6: Contents Preface Author’s Forewor
Page 7 and 8: Preface T eam ICRISAT is publishing
Page 9: Author’s Foreword Los Baños, Lag
Page 12 and 13: 2 You will understand that I’ve h
Page 14 and 15: 4 There are 3 kinds of written info
Page 16 and 17: 6 prong arrangement, Prong 1 launch
Page 18 and 19: 8 Studying in the University of the
Page 20 and 21: 10 If I have one, sweet sorghum is
Page 22 and 23: 12 We face a true planetary emergen
Page 24 and 25: 14 Charles Clover (telegraph.co.uk)
Page 26 and 27: 16 they did not devise a Senate inq
Page 28 and 29: 18 1,000 films a year. With India o
Page 32 and 33: 22 needs more milk from a mother. B
Page 34 and 35: 24 Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), whi
Page 36 and 37: 26 Provide a global framework to su
Page 38 and 39: 28 Fire And Ice Robert Frost Some s
Page 40 and 41: 30 From the scientific (chemistry)
Page 42 and 43: 32 Great! The only problem with Bro
Page 44 and 45: 34 To compare further, from AERC In
Page 46 and 47: 36 In the Philippines, intrigued an
Page 48 and 49: 38 7. LEARNING FROM MICROSOFT R4D.
Page 50 and 51: 40 (a) long-range effects of crop c
Page 52 and 53: 42 A few days ago, the Department o
Page 54 and 55: 44 The business approach is to take
Page 56 and 57: 46 of purpose’ (heartquotes.net).
Page 58 and 59: 48 10. BEING A DIFFERENT KIND OF CV
Page 60 and 61: 50 had a project funded by the Ford
Page 62 and 63: 52 State University for his intense
Page 64 and 65: 54 2004: ICRISAT’s Turnaround: St
Page 66 and 67: 56 (2) It multiplies the farmers. H
Page 68 and 69: 58 12. THE TELUGU PARADIGM. UNDERST
Page 70 and 71: 60 Dr BR Ambedkar Open University E
Page 72 and 73: 62 13. THE TURNING POINT. KNOW THAT
Page 74 and 75: 64 The Adarsha project taught the v
Page 76 and 77: 66 Now, I’m asking you to transla
Page 78 and 79: 68 The area under irrigation is ver
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70 Translating: African governments
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72 15. THE ACADEME AS ANTI-POOR. UN
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74 Poor communication services? Doe
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76 His maternal uncle helped him th
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78 16. AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH: WILLI
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80 Our responsibility to our childr
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82 A global crop - Sweet sorghum us
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84 citizen entrepreneur who brings
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86 17. ‘SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
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88 Region 05: DD highest, the rest
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90 18. BIOPOWER TO THE PEOPLE! THE
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92 I have just been inspired to wri
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94 19. THE CHILDREN OF MAIDANEK. OR
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96 The old world is dying, and we a
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98 Still, I’m not comfortable wit
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100 So, what’s that to UP Los Ba
Page 112 and 113:
102 If billions of us Primates will
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104 Not only blogging, I take to wr
Page 116 and 117:
106 That’s a $5 million decrease
Page 118 and 119:
108 from poor to rich soils, advanc
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110 read and put them down in your
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112 (6) Primate, come declare your
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114 22. WHAT’S IN A NAME? IGNRM.
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116 IGNRM … is a powerful integra
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118 Juliet is asking Romeo to chang
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120 The language is technical Engli
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122 because what I don’t know, I
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124 able to sell to yourself, that
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126 He now has his dream digital ca
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