OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Awardees participate in 5th Global Food Security Conference in Leuven, Belgium

April 15, 2024

From 8-12 April, six of the seven winners of the 2023 OWSD-Elsevier Foundation Award for Early Career Women Scientists gathered in Leuven, Belgium to participate in the 5th Global Food Security Conference: Renuka Attanayake (Sri Lanka); Carla Fabiana Crespo Melgar (Bolivia); Haneen Dwaib (Palestine); Eugenie Kayitesi (Rwanda); Munkhjargal Tserendorj (Mongolia); and Yeyinou Laura Estelle Loko (Benin). The seventh award winner, Gabriela Montenegro-Bethancourt, was unable to attend due to being recently named National Secretary of Science and Technology of Guatemala.

The award winners were all recognized for their research in food security, agricultural productivity and sustainable food production - UN SDG #2, ranging from improved use of indigenous plant-based foods to investigating obesity as a case of disguised hunger, to using beneficial microorganisms and application protocols to boost crop production. 

The conference, which ran from 9-12 April at KU Leuven university, was organized around the theme 'Towards equitable, sustainable and resilient food systems.' The OWSD-Elsevier Foundation awardees were invited to be chairs and co-chairs of several parallel and poster sessions throughout the conference, including on 'Equity and fairness: Regional challenges for fair food systems', co-chaired by Yeyinou Laura Estelle Loko, and 'Future of farming: The future of farms, farmers and farming' co-chaired by Munkhjargal Tserendorj. They received a special recognition during the conference welcome reception, and were presented with their awards during a special ceremony. 

While in Leuven, the awardees also had the opportunity to attend an Elsevier Foundation dinner with members of the conference scientific committee and team, and to get to know one another during a city tour and other networking opportunities.