Daria Odermatt and Helena Ström receive SFIAR Award 2024
Daria Odermatt and Helena Ström are the winners of this year's Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) award. Both Odermatt's and Ström's research offers promising pathways to healthier plants and increased yields for smallholder farmers in Africa.
To increase yields, smallholders need healthier plants. One way to reach this goal is to improve soil fertility management. Another one is to protect plants against damage from pests. Both winners of this year’s SFIAR Awards are making important contributions to achieving these two goals.
Daria Odermatt at University of Zurich has investigated the effects of the leguminous intercrop Desmodium on the fall armyworm, a major pest devastating maize crops in Africa. She wanted to know whether Desmodium intercrops release potentially bioactive volatiles and if these can explain a repellent effect in oviposition and flight behavior of the Fall Armyworm.
In her dissertation at ETH Zurich, Helena Ström explored agronomic and sociological approaches to improving soil fertility in yam cropping systems in Côte d'Ivoire. She studied different aspects of soil fertility management: 1) biochar as a soil amendment with the potential to improve crop productivity and soil properties; 2) farmers’ perceptions about soils and soil fertility management; and 3) the use of a serious game as a tool to disseminate knowledge.
Further information
The Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) offers an annual award for graduates and scientists of a Swiss institution who work in agricultural research for development. Details about the winning projects are provided on the external page SFIAR homepage.