$$News and Reports$$

Dec. 01, 2018

Researchers from BGU's Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research (BIDR) headed at the second Brazil-Israel Water, Agriculture Research and Development conference in Fortaleza, Brazil on November 19-23.

Professors Shimon Rachmilevitch, Dina Zilberg  and Dr. Gilboa Arya of the French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of DrylandsProf. Jack Gilron, of The Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research (ZIWR) and Prof. Jeffrey Gordon of the Alexandre Yersin Department of Solar Energy & Environmental Physics (YDSEEP) represented the University at the week-long seminar that was aimed at creating a new platform of scientific cooperation and networking between the two countries. 

“Brazil and Israel have a lot in common Southern Israel, and northeastern Brazil shares many similarities in its environmental conditions: arid and semi-arid climates, and drylands. So there is tremendous potential for scientific, agricultural and industrial collaboration in order to find sustainable solutions for Desert and drylands areas," said Dr. Isabel Portugal, a graduate of the BIDR and the co-founder of Negevnetwork a platform to improve the current network and connectivity between the academic bodies in southern Israel, and specifically in the Negev.

The program will provide opportunities for policy makers, industry managers and scientists to consider theoretical and practical issues associated with living sustainably in drylands, and will also focus on promoting student exchanges, academic and academic-industrial collaboration between Brazil and Israel on the fields of water technology, agricultural challenges and solutions, and sustainability in the drylands.

​ 


Isabel Portugal.jpg
 

Above: BGU alumna Isabel Portugal addresses 2nd BIWARD Conference,
in the presence of Israeli Ambassador to Brazil Yossi Shelly.