LEISA magazine editions about SRI: India and Latin America

From the AgriCultures Network:



LEISA revista de agroecología: El SICA, Un éxito que se expande

This Latin American (Spanish) version of  LEISA, edition 29-1, is devoted to the System of Rice Intensification, called Sistema de Cultivo Intensivo de Arroz (SICA) in Spanish. There are articles from SRI practitioners in Colombia, Peru, Nepal and elsewhere, as well articles of global interest by Willem Stoop, Erika Styger and Jorge Chavez-Tafur.
En esta edición de LEISA 29-1, presentamos experiencias de aplicación del Sistema de Cultivo Intensivo de Arroz (SICA), una tecnología innovadora adoptada con éxito en diferentes países del mundo donde se cultiva este importante cereal.


LEISA India: SRI, A scaling up success

Another version of  the magazine for Low External Input Sustainable Agriculture, LEISA India, is also devoted to SRI (March 2013, volume 15 no.1). Articles cover SRI in India and Nepal as well as articles on extending SRI principles to wheat (SWI) and to sugarcane (SSI). Opinions by leading SRI proponents in India and an interview with Norman Uphoff are also included in this edition.

Farming Matters: SRI - Much more than more rice
The global version of this magazine, Farming Matters, was reviewed during a previous blog post. The March 2013 issue of the magazine (Vol. 29 no. 1) from the AgriCultures Network is entitled "SRI - Much More than More Rice."

Research Articles on SRI in India.... And Elsewhere

SRI-Rice at Cornell University has put together a bibliography of research articles about the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in India. We have collected over 100 articles (nearly all from scientific journals)  from India that were published between 2004 and 2012. The chronological collection can be found on our SRI-rice website at  http://sri.ciifad.cornell.edu/countries/india/research/. Articles from India make up about a third of the 300+ SRI journal articles we have collected from around the world. (Unfortunately, less than 30 of these appear to be freely available to the public through the internet; the rest are locked up in subscription sites -- though happily the abstracts are generally available.  A red dot on a title indicates the free ones so that people won’t be frustrated by trying to open them.)

 In addition to the static chronological list of Indian SRI journal articles, these items are also available in our RefWorks India research database with  searchable metadata (including abstracts). (The RefWorks database site DOES have some non-journal items as well while the chronological list does not).

Worldwide Resources
In addition to the above resources on Indian research, we maintain a chronological  list of SRI research from all countries as well as a searchable global database (with abstracts and other metadata). Both of these are  accessible from the research section of our SRI-Rice website. (Remember to click on the “view button” to access complete metadata and the WorldCat button to find the nearest library that has the resource).

If you know of any articles that we have missed, don't hesitate to send us note at sririceATcornell.edu... or you can add them to the comments box below.....

Recent SRI Press Articles and Blog Posts (May-June 2011)

Laos
• Luang Prabang farmers lead way in rice intensification
  May 24, 2011, Vientiane Times (Laos) [Reposted in Lao Voices] 
• Sayaboury: dry season rice production increased
  May 12, 2011, Lao Voices (Laos) 

Global/Regional
• Jim Carrey Spearheading Pioneering Rice Growing
  June 7, 2011, ContactMusic.com (USA)
• Towards the eradication of global hunger and undernutrition: Enhancing local understanding with the power of world class knowledge
  June 3, 2011, Maxim News Network (United Nations)
• Scientists wrong to criticize alternative rice growing method
  May 27, 2011, Resource (Netherlands)
• Innovation of the Week: Researchers Find Farmers Applying Rice Innovations to Their Wheat Crops
  May 19, 2011, Nourishing the Planet (USA)

Madagascar
• Filière riz: Bientôt la mise à jour de la stratégie nationale
  May 30, 2011, La Gazette (Madagascar)
• Filière riz: Un livret SRI pour les paysans des pays AC
  May 26, 2011, La Gazette (Madagascar)

Malaysia
• Padi SRI Selangor : Menjawab Soalan Mengenai SRI
  May 27, 2011, Weblog Pad Selangor (Malaysia) [see also weekly posts during 2011] 
• SRI tingkat hasil pertani
  May 26, 2011, Sinar (edisi Selangor) (Selangor, Malaysia)

Philippines
• Modern rice farm system pushed
  May 1, 2011. PhilStar.com (Manila, Philippines) [source: The Philippine Star].

India (Andrha Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Jharkhand, Manipur, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Tripura)
• Bumper paddy production in Kokila village
  May 4, 2011, The Assam Tribune (Assam, India) 
• Grant for SRI Promotion
  May 20, 2011, The Hindu (Andhra Pradesh, India) [see related Sify.com article] 
• Scientific push to Nitish’s agro dream - Farmers to yield more with new method of rice cultivation
  May 23, The Telegraph (Bihar, India)
• Awards haul for reel duo
  May 20, 2011, The Telegraph (Jharkhand, India)
• Winning docus adopt rural social causes
  May 20, 2011, Times of India (Jharkhand, India) 
• A rich harvest for Nallur's farmers
  May 3, 2011, Deccan Herald (Karnataka, India)
• SRI method
  May 14, 2011, E-PAO [source: Sangai Express] (Manipur, India)
• Biswanath Sinha nominated to planning commission’s working group
  June 6, 2011, Tripura Today (Tripura, India)
• Plan to bring 80% of kuruvai area under SRI
  June 6, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)
• Plan to bring additional 1,000 hectares under kuruvai
  May 24, 2011, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Paddy and Water Environment Journal Publishes Special Edition on SRI

The journal Paddy and Water Environment has devoted its March 2011 issue (Volume 9, Number 1) to the System of Rice Intensification. For those who are interested in learning more about the science behind SRI as well as how SRI is progressing in various areas of Asia, Africa and Latin America, the March issue of the journal is online through SpringerLink. Included are six articles and nine technical reports from Afghanistan, China, the Gambia, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Mali,  Pakistan, Panama, and Thailand as well as several review articles.

To see journal articles from other sources published during 2011, visit the journal articles page on our SRI-Rice website.

New SRI Items for January 2011

Afghanistan
Ali Mohammad Ramzi's excellent  seasonal report for 2010  for Aga Khan Foundation's Participatory Management of Irrigation Systems Project (PMISP) reviews progress in introducing SRI methods in northeastern Afghanistan.

Pakistan
Asif Sharif has recently uploaded a short video on YouTube called FarmAll Organic Rice Production using SRI Technology.  It details FarmAll's experiences in mechanizing the System of Rice Intensification in Pakistan. FarmAll Technology developed a system to produce organic rice using 70% less inputs including water while increasing yield from 40 to 400% (depending upon which reference is used for comparison).

 Timor Leste
Martin, Noltz,  Stefan Schwarze and Matin Qaim have recently published an article in the Pacific News (35:4-9) entitled  Knowledge-Based Agricultural Innovations in Asia: The System of Rice Intensification(SRI) in Timor Leste.

Indonesia
 The January edition of Time Out Jakarta, a magaine in Indonesia, includes an article about Emily Sutanto, an organic SRI exporter (see Inside Indo's organic rice.)

Malaysia 
A new Malay language SRI blog is now recording the efforts of several SRI projects in Malaysia: See Weblog Padi Selangor.
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Articles from the from the Indian Press (January)

• Dalit MLA is Bihar CM's 'rice' choice
  Jan. 31, 2011, India Today (Bihar, India)
• ‘Rajarajan 1000' well suited for late samba crops
  Jan. 20, 2011, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India) [SRI is called 'Rajarajaran 1000' in Tamil Nadu]
• WB-funded irrigation project emphasises on effective use of water for farming
  Jan. 13, 2011, The Times of India (Tamil Nadu, India)
• Rs. 1,731.53 crore PLC planned for Thanjavur
  Jan. 5, 2011, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

SRI in the News - June 2010

SRI news for June comes from South and Southeast Asia, though it includes a visit by an African delegation from six countries to learn about SRI in India (see fourth article). News items below come from Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam and seven Indian states: Jharkhand, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and, in the northeastern part of the country, Assam, Manipur and Nagaland.

Agriculture Department to introduce bio-fertilizer on large scale - June 29, 2010, E-PAO [source: the Sangai Express] (Manipur, India)

Sensitising farmers to developing techniques, methods under changing climatic conditions
June 29, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Rice project helps farmers boost yields
June 28, 2010, Lao Voices (Laos)

Ceremonial harvesting of Rice cultivated by SRI at Nagaon
June 27, 2010, Assam times (Assam, India)

Kenyan team studies SRI project
June 26, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

A Philanthropy Advisor in Indonesia, Part 4: Rice Innovation in a Small Village
June 24, 2010, Asian Philanthropy Forum (Indonesia)

Plan to adopt SRI method on 36, 800 hectares
June 24, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Orissa sets kharif target at 74.64 lakh tonne
June 23, 2010, Business Standard (Orissa, India)

Nabard aid for paddy
June 22, 2010, The Telegraph (Jharkhand, India)

Training prog on SRI in Tsg
June 22, 2010, Nagaland Post (Nagaland, India)

High risk of viral diseases once again affecting rice crops
June 19, 2010, Viet Nam News (Hanoi, Vietnam)

SRI seed farmers left in the lurch
June 19, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Rice cultivation: Farmers encouraged to use SRI technique
June 18, 2010, Times of India (Uttar Pradesh, India)

Minister urges farmers to utilise technologies extensively
June 10, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

CAU to provide free paddy seedlings
June 5, 2010, E-PAO [source: The Sangai Express] (Manipur, India)

Attapeu: dry season rice plantation practiced on over 1,000 ha
June 2, 2010, Lao voices (Laos)

Recent SRI Videos

A number of very good SRI videos have come out in various languages over the past four months. A few of these are listed below.

INDIA

2010 (March 31). Comparison of Traditional Paddy Cultivation and System of Rice Intensification (SRI). Video by Digital Green and PRADAN on the digitalgreenorg channel, YouTube. 12:07 min. In Mundari (a tribal language spoken by the Munda community in Jharkhand, India) with English subtitles (see also 16:55 min. original 2009 Mundari version without subtitles). This video features testimonials of farmers from the Khunti, Jharkhand, area of India discussing the difference in the paddy production between the traditional method of paddy cultivation and SRI.

2010 (February 19). 2010. Green Leaf Manuring with Glycidia before SRI Paddy Demonstration in Bhanavasi, Karnataka. Video by Digital Green and the Green Foundation on the digitalgreenorg channel, YouTube. 5:18 min.

Prasad, Jitendra Kumar. 2009 (December 4). SRI (Hindi version). Video on bhola1982 channel, YouTube. 2:46 min. Hindi language. This video was made during summer training by Jitendra Kumar, CABM , Pantnagar, India, with the intention that it be customized for local use.

IRAQ

Hameed, Khidir A., Flaih A. Jaber and Yousif Hadi. 2010 (March 22). The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) in Iraq. Video by Al-Mishkab Rice Research Station on the SRI-Cornell channel, YouTube (in three parts). Arabic language.
Part 1: 8:56 min. Part 2 9:44 min. Part 3 2:57 min.
Also available as a single video, SRI in Iraq, uploaded by the Farmer-Centered Research and Development Program at Cornell University. The video is about SRI in the Iraqi context by researchers at the Al-Mishkab Rice Research Station in Najaf, Iraq.

Jaber, Flaih A. and Khidir A. Hameed. 2010. Paddy Mechanization in Iraq. Video on the SRI-Cornell channel, YouTube, from Al-Mishkab Rice Research Station (MRRS), Najaf, Iraq. 3:09 min. English subtitles. The video describes land preparation, seed selection, nursery development and planting with the use of a mechanized transplanter at MRRS in Najaf, Iraq.

SRI LANKA

2009 (Dec. 8). SRI (System of Rice Intensification)- Silent Witness to a Golden Harvest (2). Video produced by Oxfam Australia on 04cs004 channel, YouTube. English subtitles. (Documentary about the SRI in Sri Lanka, the SRI network, and the community partnership program in Sri Lanka through Oxfam Australia)

CAMBODIA
2010 (January 9). SRI Farming in Cambodia. [details of this YouTube version of an earlier video can be found in the previous Jan. 21 blog post]

(A more complete list of videos can be found on our SRI video section at http://ciifad.cornell.edu/sri/manuals#videos. Check our blog in April for new address as the video page will be moving soon!)

New SRI Items from Around the World

India
An excellent new publication by Biksham Gujja and T.M. Thiyagarajan, New Hope for Indian Food Security? The System of Rice Intensification, was recently published by International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) through its Gatekeeper Series.

A new status report on SRI in West Bengal focuses on civil society promotion of SRI in this Indian state as well as the inaugural meeting of a new West Bengal-based learning forum, SRI Benglar.

Cambodia
Earlier this month (Jan, 2010) SRI Farming in Cambodia was uploaded on YouTube by permascience. This 10 minute video (in Khmer language with English subtitles) is a shortened version of the original created by Mind's Eye Productions for CEDAC (The Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture). The full version of the video can be seen in 5 parts on YouTube's HermitCaveFilms channel. More information on SRI in Cambodia can be found on the SRI Cambodia website, the CEDAC website or the Cambodian section of our global SRI website.

Bhutan
In Bhutan, Sangay Dorji, Jr. Extension Agent in Deorali Geog, Dagana, sent in a report on trials set up in 2009 at Balabas (450m above the sea level) near the Dungkhag Administration. SRI plots had substantially higher rates of tillering and yield compared with the random and conventional plots. The highest yield was 10 tons/ha for the 30cmx30cm spacing compared with 3.5 tons/ha for the conventional system.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick Notes SRI's Potential

A December 2 article by World Bank President Robert Zoellick published online in the Hindustan Times makes a very favorable reference to SRI. The article, India could be a new pole of global growth: World Bank president, notes in paragraph 11: “Everyone cites India’s Green Revolution. But I’m even more intrigued by what is known as SRI, or system of rice intensification, and I know this is also an area of interest or PM Manmohan Singh. Using smart water management and planting practices, farmers in Tamil Nadu have increased rice yields between 30 and 80 per cent, reduced water use by 30 per cent, and now require significantly less fertilizer. This emerging technology not only addresses food security but also the water scarcity challenge that climate change is making all the more dangerous. These are all lessons for our world.” (Comments can be posted after the article if you would like to respond.) http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/india/India-could-be-a-new-pole-of-global-growth-WB-President/Article1-482145.aspx

Nemani Chandrasekhar subsequently pointed out in a SRI-India discussion group posting that Zoellick is visiting India from December 2-5, 2009, and during his visit will meet Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and several members of the Union Cabinet. He will also meet the CEOs of leading private sector companies in addition to interacting with farmers and rural communities on water issues. [For information on joining the SRI-India discussion group, see http://groups.google.com/group/sriindia. For information on groups in other countries, see our SRI Groups and Websites page]

The World Bank Institute News also recently covered the SRI toolkit that includes, among other items, videos on SRI.

A new 10 minute video by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University's IAMWARMP project shows some of the progress in Tamil Nadu that is referred to in Zoellick's article. This Tamil language video with English subtitles covers SRI experiences of the Tamil Nadu Irrigated Agriculture Modernisation and Water Bodies Restoration and Management Project in Tamil Nadu India. [See our list of other SRI videos]

There are many resources about SRI in India online. Two excellent sites are the ICRISAT-WWF Project's SRI-India site and the WASSAN SRI site maintained by the Watershed Support Services and Activities Network.