Milestones

2007

Syngenta Foundation joined the ASPIRE fund to support small and medium enterprise development in Africa. The Foundation also joined the BioCarbonFund.

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2006

World Food Day symposium in Basel. Agriculture's Future: Perspectives on the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment with University of Essex's Jules Pretty, Senior Syngenta Fellow Paul Hendley and the Foundation's Executive Director Andrew Bennett.

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2005

The Foundation held its first workshop with its partners and collaborators from 10 countries.

Martin Taylor succeeded Heinz Imhof as Chairman of the Syngenta Foundation Board.

Foundation launched new partnership, Projeto Elo in Nordeste Brazil, with Projeto Dom Helder Camara (PDHC) to improve rural livelihoods through income-generation programs

Foundation launched support for cereal research, including grants and collaborations with Cornell University’s Institute of Genomic Diversity, ICRISAT, Sheffield University, McKnight Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, Kirk house Trust.

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2004

The Foundation joined Gardens for Life, a school garden program connecting students on three continents. Under direction of UK’s Eden Project.

Scholarship program begun with International Foundation for Science – eight grants to young West African agricultural and social scientists.

Mobile phone pilot program launched in three of Uganda’s rural districts, in partnership with MTN Village Phones, Uganda Microfinance Union and Uganda National Farmers Federation.

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2003

Agreement between Mali and Eritrea on research exchange

Workshops in West Africa – The Sahel: Sustainable Agriculture Lessons and Opportunities; Plant genetic resources and Food Security in West and Central Africa.

view 2003 activities

2002

Syngenta Foundation elected to CGIAR membership

Foundation's Basel Lecture series launched – 26 lectures hosted in the next four years at Foundation's Swiss home. Diverse topics include agricultural innovations, bioethics, public private partnerships, intellectual property, tropical deforestation, access to Plant genetic resources and conservation of biodiversity and water resources.

World Food Day, each October, honored with Foundation-sponsored symposia. Subjects include Food Security and Biodiversity: Sharing the Benefit of Plant genetic resources; The Evolving Role of Public Private Collaboration in Agricultural Research; The Story of Golden Rice; Agriculture’s Future: Perspectives on the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.

2001

Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture registered in October as Swiss Charity, with Heinz Imhof, Chairman of the Board and Klaus Leisinger as Interim Executive Director. Foundation starts with three agricultural field programs in Mali, Eritrea and Kenya, inherited from the Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development.

Foundation continues memberships in Swiss organizations: Swisscontact, Intercooperation, the Swiss Business and Mission Council (Third World Solidarity), Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research, and Center for International Agriculture.