Second Announcement 

TWELFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DEVELOPMENT OF DRYLANDS 

“Sustainable Development of Drylands in the Post 2015 World” 

Organised by 

THE INTERNATIONAL DRYLAND DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION (IDDC) 

Hosted by 

Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt 

Co-sponsored by   

ALARI (Ain Shams University, Egypt), ALRC (Japan), ICARDA, CAREERI (CAS, China), ARC (Egypt), CIHEAM, JICA (JAPAN), JIRCAS (Japan), DRC (Egypt), DRI (USA) and UNU 

Supported by 

IFAD, FAO, COMSTECH, ECOSF and IDRC (Canada) 

21-24 August 2016 

Alexandria, Egypt 

TWELFTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON DEVELOPMENT OF DRYLANDS 

“Sustainable Development of Drylands in the Post 2015 World” 

The Twelfth International Conference on Dryland Development, with the theme “Sustainable Development of Drylands in the Post 2015 World”, will be organized by the International Dryland Development Commission (IDDC) and hosted by Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt, August 21-24, 2016. It is being co-sponsored by the the Arid Land Agricultural Graduate Studies & Research Institute (ALARI), Egypt, Arid Land Research Centre (ALRC), Japan, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Centre International de Hautes Etudes Agronomiques Méditerranéennes (CIHEAM), Cold and Arid Regions Environmental and Engineering Research Institute of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAREERI), China, the Agricultural Research Center (ARC), Egypt, JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency), JIRCAS (Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Research), Desert Research Center (DRC), Egypt, Desert Research Institute (DRI), USA,  and the United Nations University (UNU). The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Commission on Science & Technology (COMSTEC), ECO Science Foundation (ECOSF), and other international and national organizations are supporting the Conference.  

Topics of Interest

The Post-2015 Development Agenda is emphasizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for sustainably enhancing food security, increasing productivity of smallholder farmers, reducing poverty and hunger, and tackling the problems associated with increasing water scarcity, biodiversity loss and  desertification. Achieving the SDGs is seriously challenged by unabated global climate change but the challenge is particularly serious in the dry areas. Dry areas of the world have highly fragile ecosystem, which is particularly threatened by climate changes. These areas are however home to a very large population afflicted by poverty and malnutrition. The people there eke their living by exploiting the natural resources of land, water and biodiversity, further triggering the problem of desertification and other environmental losses. The strategy for achieving global SDGs will therefore have to focus on the dry areas in particular. The Conference will provide an opportunity to exchange research results and experiences among colleagues from around the world and to promote international cooperation in developing strategies to meet the challenge of sustainable development of the drylands. Emphasis will be specially laid on sustainable increases in agriculture production of small-scale farmers through science based judicious management of natural resources, protection of ecosystems and biodiversity, checking deforestation, improving soil quality and preventing erosion, and combating desertification. Subjects to be addressed include the following: 

      1. Application of new technologies for the improvement of stress (drought, heat, cold and salinity) resistance of crops for dry areas.

      2. Sustainable management of scarce water resources.

      3.Agronomic and crop improvement interventions for sustainably enhancing agricultural productivity of small-holder farmers in dry areas.

      4.Soil health and land use constraints for agricultural productivity in dry areas and their management.

      5.Soil erosion and desertification processes and control.

      6.Biodiversity conservation, and prevention of deforestation.

      7.Sustainable management of productivity of rangeland and livestock in dry areas.

      8.Arid lands communities, their indigenous knowledge and heritage, and socio-economic studies. Poverty alleviation, creation of job opportunities and minimizing outmigration.

      9.Renewable energy resources (wind, solar, biogas) for sustainable arid land community settlement.

The Conference will include a series of plenary presentations by eminent speakers, panel discussion, and some selected thematic voluntary oral and poster presentations in concurrent sessions. There will also be two special sessions being organized with collaborating scientific organizations as given below: 

      1.“Restoration of Degraded Dry Ecosystems: beyond conventional approaches” – co-organized with the International Platform for Drylands Research and Education (IPDRE), Tottori University, Japan & ICARDA. 

      2."Paddy Cultivation in Dry Regions - Implication and Future Direction" – co-organized with Japanese Society of Irrigation, Drainage and Rural Engineering (JSIDRE) and International Society of Paddy and Water Engineering (PAWESS). 

Papers

Papers are invited covering scientific and developmental aspects within the framework of the topics suggested above. They should build on existing knowledge and have projections for future direction. They could be presented orally or as a poster as decided by the International Scientific Committee. 

Persons planning to present paper at the Conference should submit a one page, singlespaced abstract of 200-300 words by 15 February 2016. Completed manuscript must be submitted by 31 July 2016. Papers must be formatted as per the attached guidelines. The Conference language will be English. The Proceedings containing the papers presented at the Conference will be published by IDDC. One copy of the proceedings volume would be provided to registered participants.   

Registration

The registration fee is US$ 500 (US$ 350 for students) for those registering by 30 June 2016. Fee for registration later than this date is US$ 600 (US$ 450 for students). The registration fee covers local transportation in Alexandria between the place of residence and the Conference hall, workshop material, coffee/tea/snacks during the forenoon and afternoon breaks, and lunch for 4 days (21-24 August) and a dinner reception. It also covers the cost of proceedings to be supplied later. 

Conference Deadlines

Arrival of abstracts                                                                      7^th April 2016 

Authors notified of acceptance of oral presentation of papers               20^th  April 2016 

Early registration deadline                                                                  10^th July 2016 

Completed manuscripts to arrive the organizers                                        7^th August 2016 

Persons interested in attending the Conference should complete the attached form and return it to the address indicated. This will ensure that additional information and registration material is timely provided to the prospective participants, and will assist in planning. 

International Scientific Committee

Chair:    Prof. Dr. Adel El-Beltagy, Chair of IDDC, Chair of the Executive Board, Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Professor, the Arid Land Agricultural Graduate Studies & Research Institute (ALARI).  

Members:    

Dr. Zafar Adeel, Director, United Nations University - Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), Hamilton, Canada  

Prof. Dr. Ayman Abou-Hadid, Professor, Arid Lands Institute, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. 

Dr. Mahmoud Solh, Director General, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Aleppo, Syria  

Prof. Dr. Wang Tao, President, Lanzhou Branch of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou, China  

Prof. Dr. Atsushi Tsunekawa, Director, ALRC, Tottori University, Tottori,  Japan 

Prof. Dr. Tsugihiro Watanabe, Professor Regional Planning, Graduate School of Global Environmental Studies,  Kyoto University, Kyoto , Japan 

Dr. Stephen G. Wells, President, Desert Research Institute (DRI), Nevada, USA 

Prof. Dr. Mohan Saxena, Executive Secretary, IDDC, India 

Please check out the attachment for more details.