profile
Cornelis (Kees) Swaans
Senior Scientist
Cornelis (Kees) Swaans is a Dutch scientist and program leader with over 25 years of experience in Africa and Asia. His career has evolved from addressing technical and social challenges in agriculture, health, and ecosystem-based management to focusing on integrated knowledge management, innovation, and policy engagement for sustainable development. He has held positions as scientist, project coordinator, and program manager in universities, international research…
profile
Anna Belli
Specialist
Anna is an economist with the Climate Action Team in Nairobi, specializing in Climate Security. Her research delves into the intricate interactions between climate change, and socioeconomic dynamics, with a special emphasis on their collective impact on human security. Anna's research expertise spans various areas, including the exploration of gendered dimensions within climate-related security risks, the examination of linkages between climate-induced migration and security, and the…
profile
Sean Fenstemaker
Scientist I, Global Cassava Breeding Lead
I am a Cassava Breeder driven by a mission to advance this crop through genomics. My dedication lies in utilizing genetic tools to unlock cassava's full potential, aiming to contribute significantly to the future of agriculture and global food security.
Crops for nutrition and health
Americas
Africa
Asia
Cassava…
profile
Lulseged Tamene Desta
Directeur, Paysage multifonctionnel
Lulseged Tamene Desta est un écologiste paysagiste avec plus de 15 ans d'expérience dans la dégradation des terres, la priorisation, la restauration des paysages, la gestion durable des terres et de l'eau, l'intensification écologique, et l'évaluation de la performance de la santé des écosystèmes. Il s'intéresse à la compréhension des processus socio-écologiques, aux points de basculement, aux seuils, à l'analyse des compromis et des synergies entre les…
profile
Stephen Angudubo
On-Farm Trial Network Coordinator
Stephen is a seasoned agricultural economist with over nine years of experience in action research, economic analysis of technologies, innovations, management practices, decentralised experimental agriculture, program design, monitoring and evaluation, and gender mainstreaming. He holds a master's degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from Makerere University. Stephen is currently leading the establishment of multi-crop on-farm trial networks under the…
profile
Anne Rietveld
Scientist II
Anne is a rural sociologist with a background in farming systems research with thirteen years of experience in Agricultural Research for Development (AR4D). She loves working at the interface of social and agricultural issues with farmers and other stakeholders, on topics such as sustainable agricultural intensification, inclusive scaling of agricultural innovations, climate smart agriculture and food systems transformation. Gender equality and women's empowerment are key themes in Anne…
profile
Jessica Koge
Senior Program (Research) Associate
Jessica Koge holds a Masters degree in Environmental Studies (Climate Change and Sustainability) and has been providing both research and program (coordination/management and administrative) support to projects implemented across East Africa that aim to contribute to provision of (environmentally and economically) sustainable agri-food system solutions that catalyze transformative changes within the agriculture sector for the last 7 years. Jessica’s areas of…
profile
Ena Derenoncourt
Senior Officer, CGIAR Hub for Sustainable Finance (ImpactSF)
Ena Derenoncourt is a Senior Officer at the CCGIAR Hub for Sustainable Finance (ImpactSF). She has more than 15 years of experience agribusiness in the global south implementing gender-responsive solutions. She focuses on assessing gender and social inclusion impact of agricultural investments and designing gender-responsive technical assistance programs for agricultural SMEs and value chain actors. She leads the ImpactSF pipeline…
profile
Richard Newman
CGIAR Sustainable Finance (ImpactSF) Co-Lead
Richard Newman co-leads the CGIAR Hub for sustainable finance. He has spent 13+ years in the financial industry across corporate finance, financial advisory and direct investment. More recently his area of expertise has been on impact investing and blended finance within food, land and water systems in developing & emerging economies. Richard is registered as a chartered financial analyst (CFA) and as a chartered accountant (CA). He holds an MBA from…
profile
Enoch Kikulwe
Senior Scientist
Dr. Enoch Kikulwe is an agricultural and natural resources economist with more than 13 years of professional experience in economic analysis and evaluation of food system solutions that are at the nexus of agriculture, environment, and nutrition. His current work is focusing on adoption, consumer preferences, and impact assessment of various agricultural innovations and sustainable use of natural resources in smallholder farming systems of East and Southern Africa, including crop…
profile
Catherine Breton
Bioinformatic Data Scientist/Analyst
Catherine Breton focuses on population genomics of natural and cultivated species. She earned her Ph.D. in population genomics and evolution at Université Paul‑Cézanne Marseille in 2006, where her dissertation identified the refugial zone and the double‑domestication zone of the olive tree. After a post‑doctoral fellowship at the University of Georgia (Athens, USA) in 2011 studying the evolution of the parasitic plant Orobanche, she decided to merge…
profile
Juan Manuel Pardo García
Senior Research Associate
Microbiologist, researcher in crop protection with a passion for generating new alternatives for the control of plant diseases in tropical crops. With participation in the creation and execution of initiatives related to emerging diseases and unknown causal agent diseases in Latin America and Southeast Asia. Special Focus on molecular diagnosis of pathogens, integrated disease management, disease phenotyping and monitoring and capacity building of farmers,…
profile
Mastawesha Misganaw Engdaw
Postdoctoral Fellow
Mastawesha Misganaw Engdaw is a Postdoctoral Fellow based in Nairobi, Kenya, working at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT since 2023.
He commenced his career as an academic and research staff member at Jimma University in the Department of Natural Resources Management. Subsequently, from 2018 to 2022, Mastawesha worked as a Scientist in the "Climate Change Uncertainties, Thresholds, and Coping Strategies" project, funded by the Austrian Science Fund…
profile
Paul Günter Schmidt
Researcher / Consultant
A geographer by training, Paul G. Schmidt works at the intersection of climate data, agronomy, and rural development with a strong focus on sustainable food systems and landscape approaches. He combines expertise in innovation studies, ecosystem management, and agricultural value chains to co-create climate adaptation solutions and advance the transformation towards sustainable landscapes.
Paul’s work ranges from in-field practices and household adaptation to farm-…
profile
Carlo Fadda
Director, Agrobiodiversity
Carlo Fadda guides the research area in Biodiversity for Food and Agriculture. He oversees a research area with over 100 people, including consultants, support staff and over 45 scientists. His team focuses on four major research areas: agrobiodiversity in production systems, conservation, characterization, and genomics of bananas, forest genetic diversity, and biodiversity-related policy.
Carlo is also leading the global initiative called Nature Positive Solutions, which…
