Director-General, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF)

Dr. Sanchez’s professional career has been dedicated to improving the management of tropical soils through integrated natural resource management approaches to achieve food security and reduce rural poverty while protecting and enhancing the environment. He just concluded ten years of service as Director-General of ICRAF, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya. Last August, Dr. Sanchez was anointed a Luo Elder with the name of Odera Kang’o by the Luo community of Western Kenya, in recognition for his assistance in eliminating hunger from many villages in the region. His presentation will focus on the crucial role of improving soil fertility in increasing the ability of small farmers to move to sustainable mixed crop-livestock-tree farming, which, he believes, can open avenues leading out of the cycle of hunger and crushing poverty. In January 2002, Dr. Sanchez will join the Center for Sustainable Resource Development at the University of California, Berkeley.