Significant Dates in IRRI History

September

1 September: 1979, the USSR’s All-Union Academy for Agricultural Research in Krasnodar and IRRI sign a memorandum of agreement for scientific and technical cooperation; 1998, Ronald P. Cantrell (photo) arrives as IRRI’s seventh director general.

2 September: 1999, fire breaks out in Chandler Hall, severely damaging the auditorium and temporarily closing the Riceworld Museum.

4 September: 1998, International Rice Research Notes (IRRN) goes online with an electronic version of its issues via the IRRI Web site at www.irri.org/irrn; 2001, the Philippine Department of Science and Technology and the National Academy of Science and Technology award Benito Vergara, former plant physiologist and director for administration of IRRI, the rank and title of national scientist; 2006, the Council of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World names Dr. K.L. Heong (photo) the recipient of the prestigious TWAS Prize in Agricultural Sciences for 2006 in Angra dos Reis, Brazil during the Third World Academy of Science 10th General Conference.

6 September: 1971, A 5-day rice breeding symposium kicks of at IRRI, which is billed as providing the most comprehensive treatment of rice breeding activities in major rice-producing countries of the world. The above photo of the participants shows a group of very distinguished scientists of the time--click on to enlarge for IDs; 2000, the IRRI GIS Web site at the newly expanded IRRI GIS/IP Laboratory of the Social Sciences Division in Umali Hall; 2002, IRRI and PhilRice find that the transgenic rice variety IR72 with the Xa21 gene (TT103) shows good agronomic performance in Muñoz, Philippines.

7 September: 1960, Higamot Hill (at the center of this U.S. Air Force photograph) awaits leveling to make way for construction of the first buildings of IRRI on the campus of University of the Philippines Los Baños; 2001, IRRI signs a new 25-year lease with the University of the Philippines (UP) for the approximately 230 hectares of land housing its headquarters and experimental station in Los Baños; 2007, to celebrate the Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute's (CLRRI) 30th anniversary, six IRRI staff members are awarded medals in recognition of their many contributions to rice research in Vietnam: Grant Singleton, Abdelbagi Ismail, Darshan Brar, Robert Zeigler, Il-rong Choi, and T.P. Tuong.

September 10: 2007, DG Robert Zeigler announces the creation of the IRRI Golden Jubilee Committee to prepare for the activities that will take place during IRRI's 50th anniversary in 2010.

13 September: 1995, more than 600 farmers attend the first Farmers’ Day, which is held at IRRI as part of the Institute’s 35th Anniversary celebration.

14 September: 1995, the K.J. Lampe Laboratory (housing the transgenic greenhouse) is dedicated to IRRI's 5th Director General, K.J. Lampe (1988-95).

16 September: 2002, the 1st International Rice Congress (IRC) begins in Beijing, attracting more than 1,000 delegates from 20 countries.

19 September: 2000, Bienvenido O. Juliano (photo), chemist and former head of IRRI's Cereal Chemistry Department, is named a Philippine National Scientist by President Joseph Estrada.

20 September: 1963, the International Bibliography of Rice Research is first published; 1990, during IRRI’s 30th anniversary celebration, founding DG Robert Chandler recognizes 21 pioneer staff members currently serving the Institute at the time (photo); 2007, as a part of the IRRI Board of Trustees meeting in Laos, Chair Keijiro Otsuka (left in photo) and Director General Robert S. Zeigler (center) visit Lao Prime Minister Bouasone Bouphavanh at his office in Vientiane.

21 September: 2000, R.K. Singh, IRRI's representative and liaison scientist in India, receives the Millennium Award for the promotion of the Hindi language; 2006, H.M. "Hank" Beachell (photo with Norman Borlaug), IRRI rice breeding pioneer and 1996 World Food Prize Laureate, celebrates his 100th birthday at home in Texas.

22 September: 1994, IRRI Riceworld, a visitor and learning center located in Chandler Hall, opens its doors.

23 September: 1974, the IRRI phytotron, a gift of the Government of Australia, is dedicated (photo).

26 September: 2006, the Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, H.E. Peter Beckingham, visits IRRI to get a first-hand overview of the Institute’s research activities.

27 September: 1959, Robert F. Chandler, Jr. (photo) arrives as IRRI’s first director general; 1976, the largest addition to IRRI’s research and training operation, the Laboratory and Training Conference Center, and the D.L. Umali Laboratory (housing entomology, plant pathology, and computer services) are dedicated.

28 September: 2006, powerful and rain-laden Typhoon Milenyo (international name: Xangsane) makes a direct hit on IRRI with the eye passing over in the late morning. While this storm did not pack the winds of Super Typhoon Rosing on 3 November 1995 (which many use as a benchmark of recent times), it carried much more rainfall, which made it particularly destructive.

29 September: 2002, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and IRRI co-sponsor an Asia and the Near East Agriculture and Food Security Workshop in Manila; 2005, IRRI presents two important proposals during the 5th ASEAN Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry Plus Three (AMAF Plus Three) Meeting in Tagaytay City, which is an historic event in that it was the first time ever that IRRI participates in an ASEAN meeting.