Karachi (HRNW)- Dr Muhammad Ajmal Khan Institute of Sustainable Halophyte Utilization (MAK-ISHU) of the University of Karachi continued its International Conference on “Eco-Smart Agriculture: Harnessing Stress-Resilient Plants for Food Security and Beyond” with a dynamic second day featuring over 15 presentations.
Six international scientists and four online speakers from Australia, Germany, and China shared cutting-edge research on crop resilience, eco-physiological stress responses, and sustainable utilization of mangrove ecosystems. The sessions drew a packed audience of students, faculty, and researchers, underscoring the urgency of innovative solutions for climate-smart agriculture.
Professor Sergey Shabala from the University of Western Australia shared his work on cell-based phenotyping for breeding crops suited to future climates. He showed through research data that conventional crop phenotyping methods which rely on older methodologies are often misleading when translated to agricultural fields, explaining our limited success in developing truly stress-tolerant varieties. Instead, he urged a shift to cell-specific screening to identify more effective breeding targets. Although, some of the current advances in techniques for screening salt tolerant varieties are more expensive than conventional ones, there is a need to convince funding agencies about their importance for ensuring food security for the ever growing population in the near future.
Professor Dr Hans Werner Koyro from the University of Giessen, Germany, presented on primary and secondary biochemical reactions of photosynthesis as non-invasive and efficient indicators of plant stress status. He stressed the need to understand the eco-physiological basis of stress tolerance in halophytes like quinoa to develop resilient crops for the future. Dr Koyro also indicated the need to re-evaluate the existing concepts of stress, and to realize that in most cases “stress resistance” or “avoidance” is the norm rather than “stress tolerance”.
Dr Ahmad Aldrie Amir, a renowned Malaysian mangrove conservationist, discussed the edible and medicinal uses of mangroves in Indonesia, including a systematic review of their blue food potential and health benefits. He advocated sustainable utilization of mangrove resources for economic gains and to fully harness blue carbon ecosystems.
The day closed with a high-level panel discussion featuring foreign and national researchers from various scientific disciplines. They emphasized the need to engage both public and private sectors to support the climate smart innovative solutions to sustain equitable socio-economic in agriculture sector.
They also emphasized the need for protecting and conserving natural habitats, besides cross-disciplinary collaborations to integrate molecular biology tools with classical eco-physiological research and efficient, agro-ecological practices to create indigenous solutions for future challenges.
