Applied Research and Method Development

Coordinated Research Projects

The Insect Pest Control Subprogramme of the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture cooperates in applied research and method development and adaptation with more than 150 institutions in Member States through Coordinated Research Projects (CRPs) and other scientific collaborations. Each project focuses on specific topics to find solutions to problems and technical gaps relevant to the application and integration of nuclear and related techniques in Member States for the control of major insect pests of crops, and of veterinary and human importance.

By bringing together research institutes from both developing and developed Member States in focused CRPs, we coordinate research networks to facilitate applied research, and to foster the exchange of scientific and technical information among researchers. Every CRP has a jointly developed research work plan, which is managed and coordinated by the Insect Pest Control Subprogramme and the participating institutes. These projects commonly last for five to six years, during which normally four Research Coordination Meetings are held to evaluate the progress made in solving the specific problems and to coordinate future research.

The results are freely available for immediate application to Member States and the international scientific community through dissemination in relevant international journals, and IAEA and FAO technical publications. The knowledge gained through CRPs and other scientific collaborations is used to address the technical gaps in order to enhance the implementation of area-wide integrated pest management (AW-IPM) in operational Field Projects.

Information on the IAEA Coordinated Research Programme and how to apply to research contracts and research agreements can be found at http://www-crp.iaea.org/.

Information of current and previous CRPs can be found here.

Entomology Laboratory

The Insect Pest Control Subprogramme carries out R and D activities at the Entomology Laboratory located at the FAO/IAEA Agriculture and Biotechnology Laboratory in Seibersdorf, 40 km southeast of Vienna. The Laboratory specializes in applied research, and method development and adaptation, as needed by operational Field Projects applying the SIT in Member States. This complements CRPs and addresses gaps in relation to mass rearing, sterilization, quality control, behaviour and genetic of major insect pests of agriculture, veterinary and human importance, such as fruit flies, moths, tsetse flies and mosquitoes.

The Laboratory also provides training and services including the supply of biological materials, provision of guidance on the development and use of equipment and expert support for Coordinated Research Projects and Field Projects. In addition, the Entomology Laboratory is a reference centre for insect strains and mutants.