By Creselda T. Yunsal
As Lao Tzu put it and I quote “Good walking leaves no track”. It is on this same basic principle that the 2011 Norman Bourlag Awardee for Excellence in Crop Nutrition and AFC’s long time confidante in technology development in the person of Dr. Roland Buresh is living for. Having received degrees on Ph. D. in Marine Science in 1978 at Louisiana State University, M.Sc. Soil Science in 1975 from North Dakota State University, and B. A. Natural Science in 1973 from St. John’s University in the US, earned him prestigious positions in International Research Institutions. At present, he is a Senior and Principal Scientist at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in Los Banos, Laguna, Philippines. He was Senior Soil Scientist (1992-1996) and Principal Soil Scientist (1996-2000) at the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF), in Nairobi, Kenya. Prior to that, he was also Soil Scientist at the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) where he managed IFDC-IRRI collaborative project in the Philippines from 1984 to 1991.
A member of the American Society of Agronomy, Soil Science Society of America and International Union of Soil Sciences, Dr. Buresh received various honors and awards namely: Fellow, American Society of Agronomy (2000), Fellow, Soil Science Society of America (2001), Achievement Award, Philippine Society of Soil Science and Technology (2006), Award for Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Vietnam (2006), International Soil Science Award (2007), CGIAR Science Award for Outstanding Scientific Article (2009), Honorary Fellow, Crop Science Society of the Philippines (CSSP) (2010), Team Award, CSSP Achievement in Technology Development (2010), Medal for Science and Technology Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Vietnam (2010) and Certificate for Dedication and Commitment, Ministry of Agriculture, Indonesia (2011).
As mentioned by International Fertilizer Industry Association (IFA), “Dr. Buresh is a well-recognized scientist with very strong records in nutrient management in Asia and Africa. In particular, he has been very successful in developing and promoting site-specific nutrient management for rice. Tools developed under his leadership, such as the Nutrient Manager and its adaptation to web and mobile platforms, are definitively key advances to improve adoption of best management practices by Asian growers. It is only through efforts such as the ones of Dr. Buresh that we will be able to improve fertilization practices by small-scale farmers in order to simultaneously improve profitability of farming, increase the agricultural output to meet the requirements of the fast growing world population, and to reduce as much as possible our footprint in the environment.”
