“Synergism & Science With A Global Face – Of Rices & Scientists Amidst The Threat Of Climate Change: Where Is Collaboration When You Need It Most!?” Asking For A Friend!

In the face of Climate Change, where are the geniuses today!? The world needs them right now in The Rice World. Alas, whom we have are Reluctant Geniuses in the Philippines: in the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Science & Technology (DoST), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), and University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).

Reluctant Geniuses:
Secretary of Agriculture: PH President Ferdinand “BBM” Marcos Jr.
Secretary of Science Renato Solidum Jr.
Director General of IRRI Jean Balié.
Executive Director of PhilRice John C De Leon.
Chancellor of UPLB Jose V Camacho Jr.

Reluctant geniuses, they have not moved against climate change! The whole world must be mobilized by “Science with a global face” (borrowing from ICRISAT’s slogan when William Dar was Director General).

If those reluctant geniuses opened their minds and swung their arms in cohesion, we can defeat climate change in these islands via Agriculture.

What is needed is Synergy – which is nothing but Teamwork!
(Images: “Synergism” from Dreamstime, dreamstime.com, “Teamwork” from pexels.com)

After American Al Goreand the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) co-won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 for their work on climate change, we should be looking for flashes of genius in the fields of science and rice.

An agriculturist and author, what I have been looking for to blog (and brag) about are eye-opening discoveries by any head that belongs to the PH DA, or DoST, or IRRI, or PhilRice, or UP Los Baños – or all of the above.

Wherever in the world you are, not people-to-people conflicts like the undeclared Ukrainian War, but The #1 Global Public Enemy right now is “Climate Change,” also called “Global Warming.” So, calling all the geniuses to fight this internal/infernal evil!

Well, the geniuses of the DA, DoST, IRRI, PhilRice and UP Los Baños have all been sleeping all these 13 years since Al Gore and the IPCC woke us up with a dire warning: If the world doesn’t change, the climate will change the world direly.

Yet today, we still know next to nothing about how to grow rice without growing climate change and endangering all our lives!

The DA is hardly talking about greenhouse gases (GHGs) generated by chemical agriculture;
The DoST is talking about “Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change [Adaptation] in Health” – but not how to stop climate change;
IRRI is breeding rices that “can withstand climate change” – but not engineering systems and practices that produce zero GHGs;
PhilRice is talking about rices that adapt to drought-prone areas – but not avoiding the generation of GHGs; and
UP Los Baños has its “UPLB Climate Change & Disaster Risk Studies Center” and like everybody else has not studied how to stop the generation of GHGs in the ricefields.

To The Reluctant Geniuses: “People, if we do not stop the GHGs, who will? If not now, when? If not you, who?” Thrice asking for a friend!@517

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