Prof. Tim Reeves honoured with Farrer Medal for distinguished service in agricultural science

August 2, 2019

Congratulations to our board member, Professor Tim Reeves, former Director General of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). Professor Reeves has been honoured with the Farrer Medal for “distinguished service in agricultural science in Australia in the fields of research, education or administration.” The prestigious medal is awarded annually to perpetuate the memory of plant breeder, William James Farrer.

Professor Reeves joins others from the Crawford Fund family who have been similarly honoured including our former CEO, Dr Bob Clements (2004), and our ACT Coordinator, Dr Tony Fischer (2007).

Professor Reeves presented the Farrer Oration at the Australian Grains Industry Conference in Melbourne.

We are pleased to bring you Professor Reeves’ oration, Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture – for Food and Nutritional Security, in which he considers the challenges and opportunities of sustainable intensification as a pathway to continue William Farrer’s ideals of ‘aiming high and making an impact’, and argues that we should further develop and implement improvements to sustainable intensification with urgency.

Professor Reeves has spent over 50 years in agricultural research, development and extension in the pursuit of ‘agricultural sustainability’ in Australia and internationally. In addition to his work with CIMMYT in Mexico, Professor Reeves’ international roles have included Member, United Nations Millennium Project Task Force on Hunger; Member, European Commission Expert Group for Evaluation of H2020 Projects; and Senior Expert with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) working on Save and Grow – sustainable intensification of smallholder agriculture. Read Professor Reeves’ biography on our website.

Additionally, we are excited to announce that Professor Reeves will be delivering the Crawford Fund’s Annual Conference Synthesis on August 13 in Canberra. Registration is closing on 8 August, so get in quick to secure your seat at “Weathering the ‘Perfect Storm’: Addressing the Agriculture, Energy, Water, Climate Change Nexus.”