World Food Prize - Borlaug Dialogue 2024
Seeds of Opportunity: Bridging Generations and Cultivating Diplomacy
Stefan Schmitz at the 2022 World Food Prize Borlaug Dialogue. (Photo: Crop Trust) The 2024 Borlaug Dialogue convenes under the theme "Seeds of Opportunity: Bridging Generations and Cultivating Diplomacy," echoing Dr. Norman Borlaug's enduring vision of breaking barriers and transcending boundaries for global food security.
This thematic framework emphasizes the vital role of integrating past wisdom, current innovations and the pressing needs of tomorrow, by leveraging agricultural technology to address contemporary challenges. It underscores the importance of intergenerational collaboration and diplomatic engagement in achieving sustainable solutions.
By uniting diverse stakeholders — from the heart of farming communities to the heights of corporate boardrooms, from the impassioned voices of youth to the seasoned wisdom of established experts — we strive to nurture fertile ground for innovation, collaboration and opportunity. This effort is especially pivotal for preserving crop diversity and safeguarding other vital resources crucial for securing our global food supply against looming threats.
Through this concerted effort, we endeavor to plant a seed for equitable access to nutritious food for all, embodying Dr. Borlaug's legacy of humanitarianism and scientific determination.
2024 World Food Prize Laureates
Two scientists who were instrumental in creating a back-up vault of the world’s crop seeds to protect global food security have been named the 2024 World Food Prize Laureates.
Dr. Geoffrey Hawtin OBE, Founding Director and Executive Board member at the Global Crop Diversity Trust, and Dr. Cary Fowler, currently the U.S. Special Envoy for Global Food Security, were chosen by the World Food Prize Laureate Selection Committee for their longstanding contribution to seed conservation and crop biodiversity.
The two men played key roles in establishing the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, which today holds 1.25 million seed samples of more than 6,000 plant species in an underground facility in the Arctic Circle. The repository, often referred to as the “Doomsday Vault,” opened in 2008 and stands as the last line of defense against threats to global food security, including pandemics and climate catastrophes.