This share comes from an excellent new blog I found via twitter last night. Well worth a hop over there to read much more from VAVIBLOG. But here's a taste...

Nikolai Vavilov

Russia’s promises to the world, Part 1

by JEREMY on APRIL 5, 2011 · 0 COMMENTS

The Director of the Vavilov Institute, Nikolay Dzyubenko, reminded participants at last week’sberry meeting that the Russian Federation had made firm commitments to share its genetic resources with the world. He mentioned two recent statements by political leaders, and thanks to the good offices of Sergey Alexanian, Vice Director for International Relations at the Vavilov Institute, we can share them here.

Speaking at the World Summit on Food Security at FAO headquarters in Rome in November 2009, the Minister of Agriculture Yelena Skrynnik said: “Russia supports the collective efforts of the world community in their struggle against hunger, and … As an explicit contribution to the solution of this task, Russia is ready to commence the procedure of incorporating the renowned unique global plant genetic resources collection of the Vavilov Institute into the system of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.”

Not too sure how that’s going.

Photo Copyright FAO.

Ive written about Vavilov before ... these notes are from Wiki:

Nikolai Vavilov
Nikolai Vavilov
Born	November 25 [O.S. November 13]1887 Moscow, Russian Empire
Died	January 26, 1943 (age 55) Saratov, RSFSR, Soviet Union
Nationality	Russian
Fields	Botany Genetics

Nikolai Ivanovich Vavilov (Russian: Никола́й Ива́нович Вави́лов) (November 25 [O.S. November 13] 1887 – January 26, 1943) was a prominent Russian and Soviet botanist and geneticist best known for having identified the centres of origin of cultivated plants. He devoted his life to the study and improvement ofwheat, corn, and other cereal crops that sustain the global population.

Known for

Centres of origin