Natural Resources Institute

Visiting Professors

Name Details
Professor Hugo De Groote
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Food Economics
Professor Jerry Cross
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Horticultural Entomology
Professor John Colvin
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
  • Qualifications: BA, MSc, PhD
  • Biography:

    After earning a first degree in zoology at Oxford University, Professor John Colvin pursued his interest in applied entomology by completing an MSc with distinction in pest and disease management at London University, Imperial College at Silwood Park. He then spent three years studying for a PhD on cotton-bollworm, Helicoverpa armigera, moth migration, at the University College of North Wales. In the course of his PhD, John developed an interest in mathematical modelling and computer programming and took part of a degree in these subjects. It was also during this period that John began to work at the Tropical Development and Research Institute, one of the predecessor units of the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) at the University of Greenwich.

    After a short post-doctoral fellowship at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, working on mosquito and tsetse fly behaviour, Professor Colvin joined the Overseas Development Natural Resources Institute, the immediate predecessor of NRI. Since then, he has worked on many different economically important insect pests and plant viruses and has travelled to over 30 countries to carry out research and field work.

    Over the previous 21 years, Professor Colvin has consistently won substantial research projects competitively, bringing together a wide range of scientific experts and managing them effectively in multidisciplinary teams. He is recognised internationally as a leading researcher in a remarkable range of subjects and has authored and co-authored more than 130 scientific publications, book chapters, knowledge-transfer and media articles. His research is frequently novel and he applied recently for a patent, jointly with Susan Seal and David Bailey, on information arising from whitefly transcriptomics research.

    Professor Colvin believes strongly in the need to train and mentor the next generation of scientists and has supervised successfully 15 and 13 MSc and PhD students respectively. He has had a wide range of responsibilities at the NRI. He assists in the management of the Locust & Grasshopper Problem Area, is a member of the NRI Research Committee, head of the Insect and Disease Management Group and is head of the Agricultural Biosecurity Research Group. He has had responsibilities within the university as a member of the Professor and Reader Appointments Committee. In the wider world of academia, he acts as an external PhD examiner for both UK and overseas universities and is asked frequently to review the quality of candidates for the promotion panels of other universities and institutes. He is an active member of International Whitefly Network, participating actively in organising two recent international whitefly meetings in China. Professor Colvin also represents NRI on the National Horticultural Forum R&D providers group and is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society.
  • Selected Publications:
    • Vyskočilová S, Seal S & Colvin J (2019) Relative polyphagy of "Mediterranean" cryptic Bemisia tabaci whitefly species and global-pest status implications. Journal of Pest Science, in press.
    • Fennell J, Veys C, Dingle J, Nwezeobi J, Van Brunschot S, Colvin J & Grieve B. (2018) A method for real-time classification of insect vectors of mosaic and brown streak disease in cassava plants for future implementation within a low-cost, handheld, in-field multispectral imaging sensor. Plant Methods, 14, 82-82.
    • Kalyebi A, Macfadyen S, Parry H, Tay WT, De Barro P & Colvin J (2018) African cassava whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, cassava colonization preferences and control implications. PLoS ONE 13(10): e0204862. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0204862
    • MacFadyen S, Paull C, Boykin LM, De Barro P, Maruthi MN, Otim M, Kalyebi A, Vassão DG, Sseruwagi P, Tay WT, Delatte H, Seguni Z, Colvin J & Omongo CA (2018) Bulletin of Entomological Research, 108, Issue 5, 565-582.
    • Malka O, Feldmesser E, Santos-Garcia D, Sharon E, Krause Sakate R, Delatte H, Van Brunschot S, Patel MV, Mugerwa H, Seal S, Colvin J & Morin S. (2018) Species-complex evolution and host-plant associations in Bemisia tabaci: a plant-defense, detoxification perspective revealed by RNAseq analyses. Molecular Ecology, 27, Issue 21, 4241-4256.
    • Mugerwa H, Seal S, Wang H-L, Patel MV, Kabaalu R, Omongo CA, Alicai T, Tairo F, Ndunguru J,  Sseruwagi P & Colvin J (2018) African ancestry of New World, Bemisia tabaci-whitefly species. (Nature) Scientific Reports, 8, Article number: 2734. 
    • Omongo C, Namuddu A, Okao-Okuja G, Alicai T, Van Brunschot S & Colvin J (2018) Occurrence of Bondar’s Nesting Whitefly, Paraleyrodes bondari (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae) on cassava in Uganda. Revista Brasileira de Entomologia, Volume 62, Issue 4, 257-259.
    • Vyskočilová S, Tay WT, Van Brunschot S, Seal S & Colvin J (2018) An integrative approach to discovering cryptic species within the Bemisia tabaci whitefly species complex. (Nature) Scientific Reports, 8, Article number: 10886.
    • Mollel, H.G., Ndunguru, J., Sseruwagi, P., Alicai, T., Colvin, J., Navas-Castillo, J. & Fiallo-Olive, E. (2017) A novel East African monopartite begomovirus-betasatellite complex that infects Vernonia amygdalina. Arch Virol, 162:1079–1082.
    • Mollel, H.G., Sseruwagi, P., Ndunguru, J., Alicai, T., Colvin, J., Navas-Castillo, J. & Fiallo-Olive, E. (2017) Desmodium mottle virus, the first legumovirus (genus Begomovirus) from East Africa. Arch Virol, 162:1799–1803.
    • Wang, H.L., Xiao, N., Yang, J., Wang, X.W., Colvin, J. & Liu, S.S. (2016).  The complete mitochondrial genome of Bemisia afer (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae).  Mitochondrial DNA, 27, 98-99.
    • Collins, C., Patel, M.V., Colvin, J., Bailey, d. & Seal, S. (2014)  Identification and evaluation of suitable reference genes for gene expression studies in the whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Asia I) by reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR.  J. Insect Science, 14, 1-25.
    • Jing, X, Wong, A.C-N., Chaston, J.M., Colvin, J., McKenzie, C.L. & Douglas, A.E. (2014) The bacterial communities in plant phloem-sap-feeding insects. Special Issue of Molecular Ecology, Nature’s Microbiome, 23,1433–1444. Doi:1111/mec.12637
    • Luan, J-B, Wang, X.-W., Colvin, J. & Liu, S.-S (2014) Plant-mediated whitefly-begomovirus interactions: research progress and future prospects.  Bulletin of Entomological Research. 104, 267-276. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S000748531400011X
    • Colvin, John, Nagaraju, N., Moreno Leguizamon, Carlos, Govindappa, R.M., Manjunatha Reddy, T.B., Padmaja, S.A., Joshi, Neena, Hanson, Peter M., Seal, Susan E. and Muniyappa, V. (2012) Socio-economic and scientific impact created by whitefly-transmitted, plant- virus disease resistant tomato varieties in Southern India. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 11 (2). pp. 337-345. ISSN 2095-3119
    • Chowda-Reddy, R.V., Kirankumar, M., Seal, Susan E., Muniyappa, V., Valand, Girish B., Govindappa, M.R. and Colvin, John (2012) Bemisia tabaci phylogenetic groups in India and the relative transmission efficacy of Tomato leaf curl Bangalore virus by an indigenous and an exotic population. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 11 (2). pp. 235-248. ISSN 2095-3119 (doi:10.1016/S2095-3119(12)60008-2)
    • Liu, S.S., Colvin, J. & De Barro, P. (2011) Species Concepts as Applied to the Whitefly Bemisia tabaci Systematics: How Many Species Are There? Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 11(2): 176-186.
    • Omongo, Christopher A., Kawuki, Robert, Bellotti, Antony C., Alicai, Titus, Baguma, Yona, Maruthi, M.N., Bua, Anton and Colvin, John (2012) African cassava whitefly, Bemisia tabaci, resistance in African and South American cassava genotypes. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 11 (2). pp. 327-336. ISSN 2095-3119 (doi:10.1016/S2095-3119(12)60017-3)
    • Seal, Susan, Patel, Mitulkumar V., Collins, Carl, Colvin, John and Bailey, David (2012) Next generation transcriptome sequencing and quantitative real-time PCR technologies for characterisation of the Bemisia tabaci Asia 1 mtCOI phylogenetic clade. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 11 (2). pp. 281-292. ISSN 2095-3119 (doi:10.1016/S2095-3119(12)60012-4)
    • Springate, Simon and Colvin, John (2012) Pyrethroid insecticide resistance in British populations of the cabbage whitefly, Aleyrodes proletella. Pest Management Science, 68 (2). pp. 260-267. ISSN 1526-498X (Print), 1526-4998 (Online) (doi:10.1002/ps.2255)
  • Research / Scholarly Interests:

    Professor Colvin has spent much of his research career working on insects, plants and viruses. In his early career, he was particularly struck by the ingenuity inherent in the pest management technologies created to address the agricultural problems that arise when human interests conflict with those of insect species and the plant viruses they transmit. Due to the enormity of the human suffering caused by some of these problems, especially in the developing world, he has been particularly interested in agricultural research that generates practical technologies, or knowledge-based solutions, that can be adopted easily by resource-poor farmers.

    Professor Colvin has a wide variety of research interests, but the two most important are the whitefly species complex, Bemisia tabaci, and the main group of plant-viruses that they transmit called begomoviruses. Whitefly are responsible for spreading a larger number of plant-virus pandemics and research is helping find novel methods for controlling then and preventing future pandemics.
  • Awards:
    • Fellow, Royal Entomological Society
    • Member, National Horticultural Forum: R&D providers group
    • Active member of the International Whitefly Studies Network (previously called the European Whitefly Studies Network)
    • Long-term research and development work on whitefly contributed to the University of Greenwich winning The Royal Anniversary Trust awards for the Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education on 25th February 2016. 
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor
Professor Kolawole Adebayo
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
  • Qualifications: Dip. Agric., B.Agric, M. Agric., PhD, FFAMAN
  • Biography:

    Kola Adebayo is currently the Team Leader, International and Rural Development at the Livelihoods Support and Development Centre, Nigeria. He became a Professor at the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, Nigeria in 2013. His collaboration with NRI spans over two and a half decades. He is commonwealth scholar and holds a split-site doctorate of the University of Agriculture Abeokuta and the University of Reading.
  • Selected Publications:
    • Adebayo, K. (2017). Targeting Smallholder Farmers to Adopt Improved Cassava Technologies: Challenges and Opportunities. In: Achieving Sustainable Cultivation of Cassava Volume 1: Cultivation Techniques. Hersey, C. (ed.) 199-213. Philadelphia: Burleigh Dodds Science Publishing
    • Adebayo, K. (2016). Writing Grant Winning Proposals. In: Fundamentals of Research Methods: Economic, Environmental and Social Issues. P. A. Okuneye (ed.) 209-219. Abeokuta: Livelihoods Support and Development Centre
    • Abdulsalam-Saghir, P., Sanni, L., Siwoku, B., Adebayo, K., Martin, A.M. and Westby, A. (2016) Cassava: Adding Value for Africa - Strategic market initiatives that support wealth creation for women along the cassava value chains in Southwest, Nigeria. Journal of Agricultural Science and Environment, 12, 70-82
    • Adebayo, K. Babu, S., Sanusi, R. and Sofola, M (2015). Private sector participation in agricultural extension for cocoa farming in Nigeria: the case of Multi-Trex Integrated Foods. Knowledge Driven Development. Babu, S. C. and Zhou, Y. (eds.). Published by Elsevier.
    • Adebayo, K. (2015) Communication in Agriculture and Development. Abeokuta: Livelihoods Support and Development Centre
    • Abatan, O., Oni, A. O., Adebayo, K., Iposu, S., Sowande, O. S. and Onwuka, C. F. I. (2014). Effect of supplementing cassava peels with cassava leaves and cowpea haulms on performance, intake, digestibility and nitrogen utilization of West African Dwarf goats. Tropical Animal Health and Production. Vol. 46, No. 7.
    • Fuller-Wimbush, D. and Adebayo, K. (2014). Lessons of endogenous leadership in Nigeria: innovating to reduce waste and raise incomes in the cassava processing and goat keeping systems. Development in Practice. Vol. 24, Nos. 5&6 pp. 693-698
    • Anaglo, J. N., Westby A., Morton J. F., Atengdem P.B., Adebayo, K. and Boateng, B. D. (2013). The Influence of Livelihood Features on Adoption of the Instant Fufu Technology. Nigerian Journal of Farm Management formerly FAMAN Journal. 14(1): 10-16.
    • Osuntade O.B., Adebayo K., Iposu S.O. and Banmeke T.O.A. (2012). Lessons from the Management of Microcredit for Supporting Cassava Technology Adoption in Ogun State. Nigerian Journal of Farm Management. 13(2): 51-57.
    • Adebayo, K. Lamboll, R. I. and Westby A. (2009): Contextualizing Environmental, Social and Behavioral Issues in the Cassava Post-Harvest System in Africa. In:  Anthropologist Today: Trends and Scope of Human Ecology. B. Veena and Charles, S. (eds.) 137-146. India: Published by Kamla-Raj Enterprises
  • Research / Scholarly Interests:

    His research and development work delves into the uptake and dissemination of agricultural innovations in smallholder farming systems; management and sustainable funding of agricultural development as well as rural livelihoods and management of the environment. He has successfully participated in several international and multi-disciplinary development initiatives. These include: Assessment of formal and informal education in the University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, funded by the FAO in 1995-1996; Trade liberalization and sustainable environment in the export crop sector in Nigeria funded by UNEP in 1999-2001; Commercialization of traditional foods and sustainable rural livelihoods, funded by UK’s DFID (now FCDO) 1999-2002; Development of the small and medium scale enterprise sector producing cassava based products to meet emerging urban demand in West Africa, funded by the European Union (2003-2006) and; Rural-urban migration, poverty and sustainable environment funded by CICRED, French Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2003-2005; Dynamics of the technology adoption process in rural-based cassava processing systems in southwest Nigeria funded by International Foundation for Science (IFS), Sweden in 2004-2006; Potential adoption and profitability of the cassava peeler in the cassava processing systems of southwest Nigeria funded by the International Foundation for Science (IFS), Sweden (2008-2011); Adding Value to Waste in the Cassava Processing-Goat Keeping Systems in Nigeria for The World Bank (2009-2011) and Cassava: Adding Value for Africa (C:AVA) on secondment to the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich, Chatham, Kent, United Kingdom fund by the Bill and Melinda Gate Foundation (2008-2013); Increasing Performance of the Cassava Industry in West and Central Africa (IPCI), funded by (International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) (2015-2017).

    He is the Project Director, Cassava: Adding Value for Africa II funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (2014-2019). He is the Editor, Journal of Sustainable Development and the Editor-in-Chief, Nigerian Journal of Rural Sociology. His field and project management experience includes: Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, and United Kingdom.
  • Awards:
    • World Bank Development Marketplace 2008 Winner - 2009
    • Federal University of Agriculture – Research Productivity Award - 2014
    • Times Higher Education Award for International Collaboration won as part of team from the University of Greenwich - 2014
    • Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Further and Higher Education for cassava development work in Africa as part of team from the University of Greenwich – 2015/16
    • Rockefeller Foundation Challenge Award for work on extending shelf life of fresh cassava roots - 2017
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor at NRI
Professor Lateef Sanni
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
  • Qualifications: BSc, MSc, PhD, FNIFST, MIPAN, MISTRC, MIUFoST, MWAAFoST
  • Biography:

    Lateef Oladimeji SANNI graduated from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Nigeria with Second Class Upper Division in the Department of Food Science and Technology in 1990. He obtained Master and PhD Degrees in the Department of Food Technology, University of Ibadan in 1993 and 1999. He joined FUNAAB in 1993 as Assistant Lecturer, became Professor of Food Science and Technology in 2008, presented his inaugural lecture in 2015 and became Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development) in 2017. He won the 2008 Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) Award Regional Technology Development in Sub Saharan Africa (http://www.cgiar.org/newsroom/scientific.html). He has over 27 years' experience in research, consultancy and collaborations as a postharvest expert on tropical root crops mostly implemented by the International Institute of Tropical Root Crop and Natural Resources Institute, UK. He is a project leader to multi-million dollar EU/Gates Foundation sponsored projects since 2008 till date. He served as resource person for World Bank upscaling of flash drying experience in West Africa. He was the Principal Investigator, Food Developers Initiative and Food Science and Nutrition Network sponsored by Association of African Universities. He is the Vice Chair Steering Committee of the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development, and former National President, Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology. He has mentored over 20 junior academics across three continents. He has trained well over 100 BSc, 30 MSc and 18 PhD graduates with well over 100 scientific publications in National and International Journals, Proceedings, reports, reviews, and books. He was a former Editorial Member, International Journal of Food Science and Technology and reviewer to many journals at National and international levels. He is the Chairman, Governing Council of Oyo State College of Agriculture and Technology, Igboora, Oyo State, Nigeria, Immediate Past President, International Society for Tropical Root Crops (African Branch) and President, International Society for Tropical Root Crops.
  • Selected Publications:
    • Owo, H.O., Adebowale, A.A., Sobukola, O.P., Obadina, O.A., Kajihausa, O.E., Adegunwa, M.O., Sanni, L.O. & Tomlins, K. (2017). Adsorption isotherms and thermodynamics properties of water yam flour. Quality Assurance and Safety of Crops & Foods, 9(2); 221-227.
    • Adebowale, A.A., Kareem, S.T., Sobukola, O.P., Adebisi, M.A. Obadina, A.O., Kajihausa, O.E., Adegunwa, M.O., Sanni, L.O. & Keith, T. (2017). Mineral and antinutrient content of high quality cassava-tigernut composite flour extruded snack. Journal of Food Processing and Preservation, 49 (5): 1-9
    • Coker, O.J., Sobukola, O.P., Sanni, L.O., Bakare, H.A., Kajihausa, O.E., Adebowale, A.A. & Keith T. (2017). Quality attributes of cassava-fish crackers enriched with different flours: An optimization study by a simplex centroid mixture design. Journal of Food Process Engineering, 41(5): 1-11.
    • Kuye, A., D. B. Ayo, L. O. Sanni, A. O. Raji, E. I. Kwaya,O. O. Otuu, W.B. Asiru, B. Alenkhe, I. B. Abdulkareem, B. Bamkefa, G. Tarawali, A. G.O. Dixon, R.U.Okechukwu (2017). Design and fabrication of a flash dryer for the production of high quality cassava flour. Agricultural Mechanization in Asia, Africa, and Latin America, 48 (3): 63-70
    • Oyedeji, A. B., Sobukola , O. P., Henshaw, .F. O., Adegunwa M. O., Sanni, L.O., Tomlins K. I. (2016). Kinetics of mass transfer during deep fat frying of yellow fleshed cassava root slices. Heat and Mass Transfer, 52(5):1061-1070
    • Sanni, L. O. (2015). Drying for Wealth, Food Security and Nation Building. 49th Inaugural Lecture. Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. 124pp. http://unaab.edu.ng/attachments/professor_sanni_inaugural.pdf
    • Sekinat T. Kareem, Abdul-Rasaq A. Adebowale, Olajide P. Sobukola, Moruf A. Adebisi, Olusegun A. Obadina, Olatundun E. Kajihausa, Mojisola O. Adegunwa, Lateef O. Sanni
& Tomlins Keith (2015). Some Quality Attributes of High Quality Cassava-Tigernut Composite Flour and Its Extruded Snacks, Journal of Culinary Science & Technology, 13:3, 242-262, DOI: 10.1080/15428052.2015.1015667
    • Awoyale, W., Sanni, L. O., Shittu, T. A., Adegunwa, M. A. (2015). Effect of varieties on the functional and pasting properties of biofortified cassava root starches. Food Measure (2015) 9:225–232.
    • Buliyaminu Adegbemiro Alimi, Taofik Akinyemi Shittu & Lateef Oladimeji Sanni (2014) Effect of Hydrocolloids and Egg Content on Sensory Quality of Coated Fried Yam Chips, Journal of Culinary Science & Technology, 12:2, 168-180.
    • Adebowale A.A. and Lateef O. Sanni (2013). Effects of solid content and temperature on viscosity of tapioca meal. Journal of Food Science and Technology, 50(3):573–578.
    • Kareem, S.T. Adebowale, A.A., Sobukola, O.P, Adebisi, M.A., Obadina, O.A., Kajihausa, O.E, Adegunwa, M.O., Sanni, L.O.  and Keith, T (2014). Some Quality Attributes Of High Quality Cassava - Tigernut Composite Flour and Its Extruded Snacks. Journal of Culinary Science and Technology, 13: 79-93.

    For others: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/L_Sanni/research
  • Research / Scholarly Interests:

    The field of his research is Food Science and Technology with a focus on the development of appropriate processing (mostly fermentation, drying, extrusion etc), storage and quality regimes for the upgrading of traditional local foods. I also have interest in product development, rheological modeling, drying kinetics, quality assessment, optimization, packaging, and storage stability of RTB foods.
  • Awards:
    • President, International Society for tropical Root Crops (www.istrc.org). 24 October 2018.
    • Chairman, Governing Board of Oyo State College of Agriculture and Technology, Igboora. 9 January 2018.
    • President’s Distinguished Alumnus Award for Outstanding Achievements FUNAAB Alumni Association, Abeokuta, Nigeria. 13 January 2018.    
    • Award of Excellence by Policy Community Relations Committee (PCRC) Obantoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria, 2 Dec 2017.
    • Vice President (Anglophone), West African Association of Food Science and Technology. 23 October 2016 to date
    • Vice Chairman, Steering Committee Member, African Women in Agricultural Research and Development. October 2016 to date
    • President, International Society of Root Crops – African Branch (ISTRC-AB). http://istrc-ab.org/?page_id=24. 4 Oct 2013 – 23 Oct 2018
    • Member, Scientific and Technical Committee of the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF/WECARD) (http://www.coraf.org). 15 January 2013 -2016.
    • National President, Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (www.nifst.org). October 2012 –October 2014.
    • Outstanding International Ambassador Award, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. 1 January 2012                           
    • Consultant, Cassava Value Chain Development under the Agricultural Transformation Implementation Council of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Abuja, Nigeria, November 2011-2012     
    • Research Productivity Award (Senior Academic Category), University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. 1 January 2011                           
    • Most Enterprising Governing Council Award received during the 31st Annual Conference/AGM of NIFST, PortHarcourt. October 2010.
    • National President, UNAAB Alumni Association. January 2010 to January 2016
    • Honorary Fellow of the Federal Institute of Industrial Research Oshodi (FIIRO) by the Academic Staff Union of Research Institutions, Lagos, Nigeria. 10 December 2009.
    • CGIAR Award Regional Technology Development in Sub Saharan Africa, http://www.cgiar.org/newsroom/scientific.html). 2 Dec 2008.
    • Fellow, Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology (NIFST). 16 October 2008.
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Food Science and Technology
Professor Nick Birch
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
  • Qualifications: BSc (Hons), PhD
  • Biography:

    I joined SCRI (now the James Hutton Institute; JHI) in 1985 from the Chemical Ecology group of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, London.

    I previously studied Applied Biology at Cardiff University before completing a PhD at the University of Southampton on host plant resistance to aphids in wild Vicia species related to the faba bean, supervised by Prof. Steve Wratten and Prof. Frank Bisby.

    My research at JHI has evolved from studying the chemical ecology of plant-insect interactions and breeding for pest resistance in brassicas and soft fruit crops to wider interests in Integrated Pest Management (IPM). This includes the use of biopesticides and biocontrol agents and the environmental risk assessment of GM crops with pest resistance traits. More recently I joined the JHI Agroecology Group led by Dr Graham Begg, working on aspects of agroecology that span scales from field to farm and landscape. This involves working with modellers to optimise the use of IPM at farm to regional scales, linked to strategies to reduce pesticide inputs and benefit pollinators (IPPM).

    I have strong links with multi-disciplinary collaborators in the UK and Europe via several EU projects including PURE and ENDURE. I also represent Scottish interests on the UK Pesticide Forum (HSE), helping to develop the UK’s National Action Plan for the sustainable use of pesticides and IPM uptake by farmers.

    My interests in GM crops have focussed on the environmental risk assessment of pest-resistant crops and their compatibility with current or future IPM strategies, aiming to reduce pesticide use and promote biodiversity in different agroecosystems.

    Nick is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Entomology and a Fellow of the Linnaean Society. He is an Honorary Professor at the Universities of Greenwich and Idaho.
  • Selected Publications:
  • Research / Scholarly Interests:

    Overall my approach is to work in multi-disciplinary teams (entomologists, ecologists, phytochemists, modellers) to understand agroecosystems and use this information in the development of sustainable agricultural systems for different cropping systems. I have continued my interests in chemical ecology and insect behaviour, with applied focus on developing IPM tools and strategies, mainly for soft fruit and vegetable crops. This has included the use of pest-resistant crops (conventionally bred and GM), design of novel pest monitoring traps using biomimicry of host plant visual and olfactory cues, use of biocontrol agents to suppress aphid pests of raspberry and environmental risk assessment of pest-resistant GM crops (as a member of the EFSA GMO Panel). More recently I have started working more closely with agroecologists and spatial modellers to develop IPM and pollinator strategies at farm and catchment scales (developing future ‘area-wide IPPM’ systems). This work links to JHI’s broader focus on developing systems for sustainable agriculture (RESAS and EU funded research) and he works closely with industry (biocontrol and biopesticide companies) and with farmers.
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Integrated Pest Management
Professor Paa Nii Johnson
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Food Technology
Professor Paolo Sarfatti
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
  • Biography:

    Paolo Sarfatti obtained the Laurea in Agricultural Sciences (equivalent to the title of MSc) from the University of Florence, Italy in 1982. He obtained the title of Dottore Agronomo (Chartered Agronomist) in 1983. In 2010, he participated in the International Programme on Development Evaluation (IPDET) in Ottawa.

    Paolo was Research Fellow at the Department of Agronomy of the University of Florence, Italy, 1982-1984. He was then appointed as an Agricultural Officer at the Istituto Agronomico per l’Oltremare of Florence (IAO), Italy, 1985-2000 before becoming Technical Director (2001-2006). From 200-2008 he was Policy Officer at the DG Development of the European Commission Unit B2 ‘Policies for Sustainable Management of Natural Resources’ in Brussels before returning to IAO as Technical Director (2008-2013). He was Managing Director of Agrinatura EEIG, Paris, in 2010-2014.

    At present (from 2014) Paolo is Team Leader of the EC Integrated Support Services on “Food Security, Nutrition and Sustainable Agriculture”, Landell Mills Ltd, UK. He is Project Director of the Landell Mills led Consortium for the EC Framework Contract “Sustainable management of natural resources and Resilience”.
  • Selected Publications:
    • Sarfatti P., Ongaro L., 1986 - “The Continental Oases of southern Tunisia and the Agrometeorological Network of the Nefzaoua Project” in Proceedings of the ICRAF/WMO/UNEP Workshop on the application of Meteorology to Agroforestry Systems Planning and Management, Nairobi 9-13 February
    • Di Gregorio A., Ongaro L., Sarfatti P., 1989 - “Land cover monitoring using remote sensing data (SW Bhutan 1977-1988)”. 'Global natural resources monitoring and assessments', IUFRO/FAO, 24- 30 September 1989, Venice.
    • Delli G., Martucci A., Sarfatti P., 1995 - “Land suitability evaluation for winter wheat in Tiaret region (Algeria). Proceedings of the ISSS International Symposium, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 6-10 February 1995, Paris
    • Calzolari C., Ongaro L., Magazzini P. - Sarfatti P., 1995 “Use of Landsat TM and DEM data in producing reconnaissance scale soil maps”. Proceedings of the ISSS International Symposium, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, 6-10 February 1995, Paris, 325-340
    • IAO-ITGC, 1995 “Rapport sur les ressources naturelles et evaluation des terres (volumes 1,2,3 et 4 avec cartes)”. Projet de recherche appliquee: blé dur et lentille dans la region de Tiaret (Algerie). IAO, Florence 1995.
    • Colombo R., Sarfatti P., 1995 - “Remotely sensed data for hydrological analysis of two sub-catchments of the Mareb river (Eritrea)”. Workshop "Remote Sensing and Water Resources Management". Montpellier, 29 November -1 December 1995.
    • Campolmi G., Nibbi P., Ongaro L., Sarfatti P., 1996 - “Land evaluation and farming systems analysis: an application in North-Western Algeria”. 14th International Symposium on Sustainable Farming Systems - Colombo 11th-16th November 1996
    • Sarfatti P., Delli G., Ongaro L., Mollicone D., 1998 - Using Landsat TM data for Poplar Cultivated Areas estimation in Konia eregli Region (Anatolia-Turkey). EARSeL Symposium, Enschede (NL) 11-14 May 1998
    • Chiari T., Bazzani F., Delli G., Sarfatti P., Cadi A., Bellah F., 1999 - “Statistical and GIS tools for Durum Wheat variety evaluation in Algeria". World Seed Conference, 6-8 Septembre 1999, Cambridge, UK
    • Cadi A., Chiari T., Bazzani F., Delli G., Bellah F., Sarfatti P., 1999 - "Utilisation du SIG pour l’amélioration et le renforcement du système national d’adaptation variétale du blé dur en Algérie". Séminaire international sur les Systèmes d’Information Géographique et de Télédétection ‘ALSIG. 99’, 15-18 Novembre 1999, Algier.
    • Sarfatti P. 2001 - Rapport sur le Plan National de Developpement Agricole (PNDA) en Algerie. IAO Report. Florence, 2001.
    • Delli G., Sarfatti P., Bazzani F., Cadi A., 2002 - “Application of GIS for agro-climatological characterisation of northern Algeria to define durum wheat production areas”. Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development –Vol. 96 N° 3/4.
    • Delli G., Sarfatti P., Cadi A., 2002 - Classification of historical series of NDVI: an application for northern Algeria”. Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development –Vol. 96 N° 3/4.
    • Jansen L., Mahamadou H., Sarfatti P., 2003 - “Land cover change analyses using LCCS”. Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development –Vol. 97 N° 1/2.
    • Gaouna B. O., Stroppiana D., Ungaro F., Sarfatti P., 2004 - “Crop yeld reduction estimation using the FAO-CROPWAT model: a case study in Southern Chad”. Journal of Agriculture and Environment for International Development - Vol. 97 N° 3/4.
    • Di Gregorio A., Sarfatti P., Laurin G.V., 2005 – “The Global Land Cover Network: Innovation and Experiences in Land Cover Mapping for ARD and Land Use Planning”. International Conference on Agricultural Research for Development: European Responses to Changing Global Needs. 27-29 April 2005. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, Switzerland
    • Landmann T., Breda F., Di Gregorio A., Latham J., Sarfatti P., Delli G., 2005 – “Looking towards a new land cover dynamics data set: the Medium Resolution Data-base for Africa (MEDA)”. AfricaGIS conference, 31 October – 4 November 2005, Pretoria, South Africa
    • Avitabile V., Drigo R., Di Gregorio A., Sarfatti P., 2005 – “Use of Land Cover data for woody biomas stock estimation in Eastern and Central Africa”. AfricaGIS conference, 31 October – 4 November 2005, Pretoria, South Africa
  • Research / Scholarly Interests:

    He has 35 years of experience on international cooperation for agricultural development, mostly in Africa. In the first period of his career his main field of research and action was Sustainable management of natural resources for agriculture and rural development in developing countries. In more recent years he has concentrated his interest on how to improve, through international cooperation, coherence and effectiveness of agricultural and rural transformation policies and programmes in developing countries. In this context, he has a long experience of working with the EU and in collaboration with specialised international organisations such as FAO and IFAD.
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Sustainable Agriculture and International Development
Professor Rick J Hodges Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor of Grain Postharvest Management
Professor Songbi Chen
  • NRI Department: Livelihoods and Institutions Department
Phone: +44 (0)1634 88 3199
Visiting Professor

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