Two members of the new CGIAR Consortium Board, Lynn Haight and Carl Hausmann, visited El Batán during 06-07 May 2010 to meet CIMMYT staff and learn more about the center’s work and culture. Accompanied by CIMMYT Board Chair Julio Berdegué, they toured the facilities and attended general presentations on CIMMYT and on the center’s recently submitted proposals for CG mega programs on maize and wheat. Both said they were happy to visit CIMMYT and impressed with the mega programs.
“Knowing the quality of the personnel on the front line makes me doubly pleased to be a new member of the Board and to be involved in this crucial mission for mankind,” said Hausmann. “I liked the way the (mega) programs were positioned to respond to the global need to raise productivity in a more sustainable way, given the environmental and climate constraints the world faces.”
Haight expressed her enthusiasm for the rigor and passion she encountered, and said that science would be at the center of the new Consortium. “The CG system cannot be fully appreciated without involvement with the scientists and in the centers; and all of us outside the centers should never forget that.”
Formerly, Haight was the Chair of Forester Holdings Europe, an insurance company, and is director/chief operating and finance officer of Foresters US. She also served until recently as Board of Trustees Chair for the World Agroforestry Centre. Hausmann has more than 30 years of experience in the agriculture processing sector, having worked in Africa, South America, Europe, and North America. He is transitioning into a new role as managing director for global government and corporate affairs at Bunge North America. Welcome, Lynn and Carl!
