CATIE hosted USDA official at its campus

• The visit of Jim Suits, USDA project management officer, was developed for the purpose of cooperation between the two organizations.

August 12, 2022. On August 10 and 11, CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) welcomed Jim Suits, Project Management Officer of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), to its campus in Turrialba, Costa Rica. He was welcomed by Muhammad Ibrahim, Director General of the Center.

During his visit, Suits toured the International Cocoa Collection located at CATIE, where he learned about the different varieties of cocoa preserved in this collection, their flavor and quality, the process of grafting cocoa clones, as well as the transfer of knowledge carried out by the team of researchers of genetic improvement of cocoa, CATIE, to cocoa-growing families.

He also visited the institution's livestock farm and dairy. There, Cristóbal Villanueva, a researcher at CATIE's Livestock and Environmental Management Unit, showed him the good livestock practices implemented in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, waste management, and livestock health and feeding to improve milk production and quality. He also explained the work being done at the industrial level and how, through training, they are seeking to involve more producers in sustainable livestock farming.

Subsequently, Suits visited the International Coffee Collection, learning about the different varieties of coffee that it houses, the development of F1 hybrids and their high tolerance to diseases such as rust and CBB, the management of shade in coffee plantations and the high value that the coffee collection has, being the second most important in the Americas and the fourth in the world.

Por último, el equipo de la Unidad de Acción Climática del CATIE le presentó los grandes temas en los que trabaja (adaptación al cambio climático, mitigación al cambio climático y sinergias entre adaptación y mitigación al cambio climático) y sus principales aportes. En temas de adaptación se mostraron ejemplos de los trabajos realizados en la modelación de impactos del cambio climático sobre servicios ecosistémicos (agua, biodiversidad) En el componente de mitigación se expusieron resultados de investigaciones en deforestación y degradación, así como estudios de caso en Carbono Azul. Por su parte, del componente de sinergias entre adaptación y mitigación se mostraron ejemplos de estudios de implementación de medidas de Soluciones Basadas en la Naturaleza y restauración de bosques, a través de plataformas de gobernanza.

“On behalf of myself and USDA, thank you again for enabling my visit to CATIE. It is always beneficial to learn of the goings-on of capable institutions around the world. It was most informative to better understand the breadth of programming at CATIE: A mighty institution, with more than meets the outside eye.” Suits mentioned.

The sheer volume of genetic accessions for key crops (cacao, coffee, cucurbits, grains, etc.); the highly detailed ecosystem modeling in critical regions of mesoamerica; the demonstration of improved low-emission cattle production; the wherewithal for awarding respected postgraduate credentials to key policymakers in the region. It may not get attention, but it's absolutely critical work.