The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is holding a hearing today aimed at asking what the U.S. can do to address the current global food crisis. A bill co-sponsored by Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (PA) and Senator Richard Lugar (IN) has been introduced to Congress to improve US and global efforts to increase crop yields, create rural economic opportunities, broaden trade relations, and improve scientific cooperation.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Senator John Kerry (MA) stressed the impact of soaring food costs during a beleaguered economy, climate change, and the off-course progress of the UN Millennium Development Goals on food security during his opening statement. His full remarks can be found within the body of the Boston Globe article linked above.
The Committee will hear from two panels of experts. The first includes Catherine Bertini, former Executive Director of the World Food Program; Reverend David Beckmann, President of Bread for the World; and Dr. Robert Paarlberg, professor at Wellesley College and a world-renowned expert on agriculture, particularly in Africa.
Town Hall panelist Bettina Luescher is the chief spokesperson for the World Food Program in North America, and will be talking about the organization’s role in the global food crisis. Her bio can be found here.
The second panel consists of scientists including, Dr. Edwin C. Price, Associate Vice Chancellor and Director of the Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture and Dr. Gebisa Ejeta, a professor of International Agriculture at Purdue University who recently assisted the Rockefeller and Gates Foundations with the launch of their new joint initiative, the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa.
Posted by Sara Chupein
