Danforth Center partnerships with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to be topic of dialogue at Danforth Center's Conversations Series
Let's talk... about solutions to eradicate global hunger

ST. LOUIS, MO, October 26, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Donald Danforth Plant Science Center will host its quarterly "Conversations" Series sponsored by Boeing on Wednesday, November 16, 2011 from 5:15 - 7:00 p.m. at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, 975 N. Warson Road. The program will feature Dr. Kathy Kahn, Senior Program Officer, Agricultural Development, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Dr. Paul Anderson, Executive Director, Office of International Programs, Danforth Center who will discuss long-term solutions to the staggering rates of hunger and malnutrition globally.

An alumnus of the Danforth Center, Dr. Kahn will highlight the importance of partnerships for international agricultural development to eradicate global hunger. Dr. Anderson will discuss his travels throughout the world to facilitate collaborations with national research institutes and the governments who oversee them and ongoing crop improvements.

To join us for an enlightening discussion, reserve your spot today! Reservations are required but complimentary; seating is limited and priority will be given to Center Friends. To attend, please phone: 314-587-1070 or email: conversations@danforthcenter.org or reserve online.

Since 2005, with the common goals of improving human health and nutrition, the Danforth Center and the Gates Foundation have partnered on two humanitarian efforts to develop and deliver farmer-preferred cassava varieties that are more nutritious and are enhanced to resist serious virus diseases that are greatly reducing crop yield and increasing the threat of famine. These partnerships are designed to improve the health and wellbeing of farmers, their families, and other consumers of cassava living in Sub Saharan Africa.

In addition to funding to support these two research projects, the Gates Foundation has also provided funding to establish the Center's Biosafety Resource Network (BRN). Formed to support Gates Foundation-funded crop improvement projects on essential food security crops like banana, sorghum, rice and cassava, the BRN provides assistance in the areas of biosafety studies, regulatory strategies and product development, positioning the Center as a "go-to" source for addressing biosafety and regulatory affairs.

About the Speakers
Paul Anderson, Ph.D., Executive Director, Office of International Programs, Danforth Center
Dr. Anderson joined the Center in April 2008, bringing with him 25 years of experience in corn, soybean and wheat improvement and plant biotechnology development. Prior to accepting this role, Anderson served as Principal Investigator of a "Grand Challenge" project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop more nutritious sorghum for arid and semi-arid areas of Africa. Anderson previously held positions at Pioneer Hi-Bred International and Pioneer International Operations. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, with BS and Ph.D. degrees in Biochemistry.

Kathy Kahn, Ph.D., Senior Program Officer, Agricultural Development, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Dr. Kahn trained as a plant biologist, and is an alumnus of the Danforth Center, where she was a visiting scientist with the cassava research team from 2003-2004. Dr. Kahn now manages a broad portfolio of research grants relevant to international agricultural development. Prior to joining the Gates Foundation in 2007, she served as an advisor for international agricultural biotechnology issues with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, where she was a Diplomacy Fellow through the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Kahn has a Ph.D. in molecular biology and biochemistry.

Press Release Contact Information:

Melanie Bernds
Donald Danforth Plant Science Ce
PR Manager
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United States 63132
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