CATIE and Penn State University identify new areas of mutual collaboration in research and education

• Collaboration will enable the exchange of experiences for the benefit of students, faculty, and future high-value research

The CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) and academic staff from the College of Agricultural Sciences at Pennsylvania State University in the United States, known as Penn State University, have agreed upon new opportunities in research and education.

The meeting took place virtually on March 15th, with the participation of the Director General, Luis Pocasangre, the Dean of the Graduate School, Mariela Leandro, as well as leaders from research units at CATIE. Together with scientists from Penn State, they explored potential areas of collaboration and established concrete agreements for the future.

Highlighted during the meeting was cooperation in research proposals in phytopathology, with a specific focus on biological control, epidemiology, and integrated pest management in key crops such as cocoa, banana, and coffee.

Additionally, the perspective of educational exchanges for both students and professors was addressed, with in-person visits scheduled for June and April 9th, when distinguished Professor Tomás A. Carlo Joglar is expected to arrive..

Academic extension also held a prominent place on the agenda, with consideration given to possible training sessions to strengthen ties between both institutions and promote best practices in agriculture.

Among other topics, common areas of interest identified included climate change, agroforestry, organic nutrition, and the use of microorganisms in agriculture—areas representing significant challenges and opportunities for collaborative research.

Several concrete agreements were reached during the meeting, including the revision and improvement of the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between CATIE and Penn State University.

Additionally, it was agreed to create and maintain a repository of profiles of researchers interested in this synergy, as well as to identify technologies and methodologies available at Penn State University that could benefit CATIE's graduate students.

CATIE's Director General, Luis Pocasangre, expressed his enthusiasm for rekindling collaboration with Penn State for the exchange of experiences benefiting students, teachers, and future high-value research.

The collaboration between the two institutions dates back a long time, primarily due to research conducted in cocoa genetics. CATIE has contributed the use of resources from its International Cocoa Collection and its Genetic Improvement Program, while Penn State has provided technical and technological support from the Guiltinan-Maximova Laboratory.

Mariela Leandro, Dean of the Graduate School, will serve as the focal point for these agreements.

“"Formally renewing collaboration with PSU is very exciting for me because, thanks to the good relationship between both institutions, I was able to complete the academic portion of my doctorate at such a prestigious institution. Therefore, with this initiative, I had the pleasure of reconnecting with many of the professors and officials whom I had the pleasure of knowing," expressed Leandro. 

From CATIE

• Dr. Luis Pocasangre, Director General
• Dra. Mariela Leandro, Dean
• Dra. Laura Benegas, Director of Research
• Dr. Pablo Imbach, Head of Climate Change Unit
• Dr. Rolando Cerda, Head of Agroforestry Unit
• Dr. Elías de Melo, Coffee Unit
• Dr. Reinhold Muschler, Head of Food Security Unit

From Penn State University

• Dr. Francesco Di Gioia – Plant Science
• Dr. Mark Guiltinan – Plant Science
• Dr. Siela Maximova – Plant Science
• Dr. Seogchan Kang – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. Dan Ciolkosz – Agricultural and Biological Engineering
• Dr. Sara Hermann – Entomology
• Dr. Cristina Rosa – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. John Pecchia – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. Suzanne Fleishman – Plant Science
• Dr. Veronica Roman-Reyna – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Ram Neupane, Ph.D. candidate – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. Beth Gugino – Office of Research and Graduate Education, College of Agricultural Sciences
• Dr. Melanie Miller Foster – Ag Sciences Global, College of Agricultural Sciences
• Dr. Yinong Yang – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. María del Mar Jiménez Gasco – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology
• Dr. Daniel Foster – Agricultural Economics, Sociology, and Education
• Dr. Paul Esker – Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology