About CORIGAP
Objectives
Generate evidence of increased farmer profitability through integrated and adaptive research on crop and natural resource management
Optimize integrated, environmentally sustainable rice production systems
Reduce rice yield gaps in lowland rice cropping systems by combining outputs from (1) and (2)
Involve the formal development of Learning Alliances (LA)
Goals
Phase 1
The first phase (2012-2016) aimed to sustainably increase rice yields in three major granaries by conducting the following activities:
Assess needs and constraints among farmers and other stakeholders along the value chain and develop schemes to monitor and evaluate improved rice systems of the IRRC technologies.
Develop a computational framework for ex-ante assessment of integrated, high-yielding, and profitable rice production systems with minimum environmental footprint.
Use adaptive research in farmers’ fields to develop an iterative process among farmers, extension agents, and relevant rice value-chain partners for testing new cropping systems and technologies.
Develop novel mechanisms for outreach and scaling out, including farmer participatory videos, business model development, and strengthened market integration of farmers.
Build the capacity of partners in national agricultural research and extension systems and other stakeholders in the use of the developed tools and methodologies, and in improved crop management technologies.
Phase 2
During Phase II (2017-2020), the project achieved substantial progress through science-based quantitative tools and participatory methods that:
Generated evidence of increased profitability for smallholder farmers through an integrated and adaptive research approach to crop and natural resource management;
Optimized integrated sustainable rice production systems and developed market-based incentive mechanisms for sustainable rice value chains;
Reduced rice yield gaps in lowland rice cropping systems by combining outputs from (1) and (2); and
Involved the formal development of Learning Alliances (LA)
Phase 3
The expected outcomes of CORIGAP Phase III (2021-2022) are as follows:
Documenting, publishing, and disseminating the outcomes and lessons learned from the previous project phases and influencing policy
Designing pathways for the agroecological transition towards sustainable food systems
Developing and disseminating knowledge products that are needed by project partners for further scaling the project outputs and by other development partners, policymakers, and donors for using the learnings in other projects and regions.
RESEARCH TOPICS
Environmental/Ecological footprint indicators
Case Study: On-farm assessment of different rice crop management practices in the Mekong Delta (MKD), Vietnam, using sustainability performance indicators
As part of an adaptive research platform, we conducted a household survey of GAP (VietGAP and GlobalGAP), Small Farmer, Large Field (SFLF), and conventional (CNV) farmers in Can Tho province in the Mekong Delta and established replicated production-scale field trials of One Must Do, Five Reductions (1M5R) integrated technology package, with an emphasis on further reducing seed and pesticide inputs by applying limits on their use. We assessed the sustainability performance of 1M5R and the three different management approaches for rice production (i.e. GAP, SFLF, and CNV) over two rice cropping seasons using eight farm-level Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) performance indicators.
More resources on this topic
Ecologically-based pest management
A review: Integrated pest management: good intentions, hard realities
In this review, IRRI scientist Rica Joy Flor, co-examined how integrated pest management (IPM) has developed over time and assessed whether this concept remains suited to present-day challenges. The authors believe that despite many good intentions, hard realities need to be faced. They identified the following major weaknesses:
a multitude of IPM definitions that generate unnecessary confusion;
inconsistencies between IPM concepts, practice, and policies; and
insufficient engagement of farmers in IPM technology development and frequent lack of basic understanding of its underlying ecological concepts.
Rice yield gaps
Case study: Sustainable rice production in the Mekong River Delta: Factors influencing farmers’ adoption of the integrated technology package “One Must Do, Five Reductions” (1M5R)
The study aimed to investigate the factors affecting the adoption of sustainable rice farming practices combined in the national program “One Must Do, Five Reductions” (1M5R). Furthermore, a special focus was placed on identifying adoption constraints. Adoption was investigated by means of a survey questionnaire with 465 farmers in An Giang and Can Tho Province. Overall, results show that almost all farmers followed the requirements of pesticide reduction, post-harvest loss reduction, and the use of certified seeds. However, farmers had problems reducing their fertilizer use, water use, and seed rate.
Postharvest loss reduction
Case study: Assessment of post‐harvest losses and carbon footprint in intensive lowland rice production in Myanmar
This paper examines how a move from traditional post-harvest operations of smallholder rice farms in the Ayeyarwady Delta, Myanmar, to improved post-harvest operations affected income, energy efficiency, and greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE). Harvest and post-harvest losses were investigated in a field experiment with 5 replications per scenario. A comparative analysis of energy efficiency and cost-benefits was conducted for different practices of rice production from cultivation to milling.
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Learning Alliance
Case study: Adaptive Research with and without a Learning Alliance in Myanmar: Differences in learning process and agenda for participatory research
The main challenge for researchers and project staff when implementing inclusive approaches in agricultural innovation is how learning and technology adaptation interact and how to reach jointly set targets. We provide a comparative analysis of the learning process induced by adaptive research (AR) in one case and a combined AR with Learning Alliance (LA) approach in another. The AR approach bridged farmers and researchers, but its implementation where researchers controlled experimentation, was not optimally conducive to experiential and discovery learning. The combined AR and LA approach expanded the number of stakeholders with whom farmers interact.
CORIGAP-supported Graduate Research
CORIGAP developed a Postgraduate Innovation Platform to support the science-based evidences that will strengthen the proof of concept on exciting research topics. Get to know more about these new breed of rice scientists and read their thesis outputs.
Introducing CORIGAP's successful scholars
Get to know some of our brilliant scholars through the years
Helena Wehmeyer
Helena is a Ph.D. Geography student from the University of Basel, Switzerland. Her research focuses on the impact analysis of CORIGAP regarding the environmental and social footprint of rice farmers in Myanmar and Vietnam.
She was under the supervision of Dr. Rita Schneider-Sliwa (University of Basel) and Melanie Connor (IRRI).
Helena is a PhD Geography student from the University of Basel, Switzerland. Her research focuses on the impact analysis of CORIGAP regarding the environmental and social footprint of rice farmers in Myanmar and Vietnam. For the analysis, she is looking at the farmers' socioeconomic structure to connect the dots between the reduction of yield gaps and geographic, economic, as well as demographic factors. The objective is to examine if socioeconomic structure matters to a successful adoption of best management practices and sustainable farming methods. These shall eventually increase yields and hence reduce yield gaps.
She was under the supervision of Dr. Rita Schneider-Sliwa (University of Basel) and Melanie Connor (IRRI).
Some of Helena's research publications:
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Nishanka Jayasiri
Nishanka took her Ph.D. research at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. She is under the supervision of Prof. (Ms.) N.D.K. Dayawansa from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, Dr. Sudhir Yadav of IRRI, and Prof. Karin Ingold, University of Bern, Switzerland.
Nishanka took her Ph.D. research at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. Her research topic is entitled "Assessing environmental sustainability in rice-based agro-food system in the Deduru Oya river basin of Sri Lanka." She is under the supervision of Prof. (Ms.) N.D.K. Dayawansa from the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, Dr. Sudhir Yadav of IRRI, and Prof. Karin Ingold, University of Bern, Switzerland.
Some of Nishanka's research publications:
Visit the CORIGAP Digital Library for more.
Molly Schuman-Goodier
Molly was a Ph.D. candidate at Northern Arizona University (NAU) in Flagstaff, USA when she conducted research in the Philippines supported by CORIGAP, as well as an NAU/NSF Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) fellowship, and an NAU/NSF GK-12 Teaching fellowship.
Grant Singleton, IRRI's Principal Scientist and CORIGAP project leader served as one of her research supervisors.
Molly was a PhD candidate at Northern Arizona University (NAU) in Flagstaff, USA who conducted research in the Philippines supported by CORIGAP, as well as an NAU/NSF Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) fellowship, and a NAU/NSF GK-12 Teaching fellowship.
Molly's research topic was about investigating the effects of endocrine disrupting pesticides used in rice agriculture on amphibians. Over 127 different pesticides have been identified as endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs), which interfere with vertebrate endocrine pathways to disrupt fundamental developmental and reproductive processes. Her research results helped provide information on sustainable rice agricultural practices, and address concerns linking pesticide use to biodiversity declines and human health.
Some of Molly's research publications:
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Sarathchandra Siriwardana
Sarath was a Ph.D. student at the University of Peradeniya focusing on crop protection. Sarath was under the supervision of Dr. K.S. Hermachandra (University of Peradeniya), Dr. L. Nugaliyadda (University of Ruhuna), Dr. Nyo Me Htwe (Department of Agriculture, Myanmar), and Dr. Grant Singleton (IRRI).
Sarath was a Ph.D. student at the University of Peradeniya focusing on crop protection. His research was on the development of a management system for rice field rats in Sri Lanka based on their diversity, ecology, reproductive behavior, and societal impact. Rat problems, direct crop damage, and leptospirosis disease are significant issues in Sri Lankan rice farming communities that continue to spread each year. He also currently serves as the assistant director of agricultural research at the Rice Research and Development Institute, Batalagoda, Sri Lanka. Sarath was under the supervision of Dr. K.S. Hermachandra (University of Peradeniya), Dr. L. Nugaliyadda (University of Ruhuna), Dr. Nyo Me Htwe (Department of Agriculture, Myanmar), and Dr. Grant Singleton (IRRI).
Some of Sarath's research publications:
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Zar Zar Soe
Zar was an MS Agronomy student from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. She was under the supervision of Dr. Virender Kumar.
Zar was an MS Agronomy student from the University of the Philippines Los Baños. The focus of her research was on weed science in rice. She was under the supervision of Dr. Virender Kumar. In 2010, she received her bachelor’s degree in agricultural science from Yezin Agricultural University, Myanmar. Her undergraduate research was on Yield and Yield Components of Rice (Oryza sativa L.) as influenced by different times of Urea Application.
Some of Zar's research publications:
Response options to rodent outbreaks following extreme weather events: cyclone Nargis, a case study
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Ma. Renee P. Lorica
Renee earned her Ph.D. in Agriculture, Health, and Environment at the University of Greenwich, United Kingdom. She was supported by the Lee Foundation Rice Scholarship and CORIGAP. She was supervised by Grant Singleton (IRRI / NRI, U Greenwich) and Steven Belmain (NRI, U Greenwich). Alex Stuart (IRRI) also guided her research.
For Renee's dissertation, she investigated the effect of the water-saving technology Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) on the population dynamics, habitat use, and levels of damage inflicted by rodent pests on lowland irrigated rice. Findings indicate that AWD had no effect on breeding, trappability, movement, and propensity to inflict damage by rats. Renee's research provided evidence that farmers have no cause to reject AWD based on concerns that it will exacerbate crop losses by rodents. Rodent pest management based on the particular species and site (ecologically-based rodent management or EBRM) can address losses caused by this pest.
Some of Rene's research publications:
Optimizing the capture of neophobic rice field rats in lowland Asian rice ecosystems
Rodent management and cereal production in Asia: balancing food security and conservation
Visit the CORIGAP Digital Library for more.