• Comment: Undisclosed WP:COI. Greenman (talk) 20:49, 5 March 2023 (UTC)

The Natural Resources Institute (NRI) is a United Kingdom international development, research and education organization focusing on food, agriculture, environment, and sustainable livelihoods in low and middle income nations. It was founded in 1893 and its Head Office is at the University of Greenwich Medway Campus, United Kingdom. It is a public institution, and part of the University of Greenwich.

History

NRI is formed from the development and merger of many earlier organisations dating back to 1893 and today contributes to the UK Sustainable Development Goals. The earlier institutes were primarily public sector owned non-profit making organisations. Each was working to promote agriculture in tropical countries, initially as part of the British Empire. After the Balfour Declaration of 1926, the institutes operated as part of the British Commonwealth of Nations (which sought to decolonise the empire by giving each nation equal status). The London Declaration in 1949 further modernised the Commonwealth and hence the mission of NRI's precessors. The preceding institutes (listed below) merged over time to form NRI in 1990.

NRI's precessors

1893 – Imperial Institute, London; now Commonwealth Education Trust

1894 - Scientific and Technical Department, Imperial Institute, London.^[1]

1913 - Imperial Bureau of Entomology, London (1913 to 1930)^[2]

1920 - Anti-Locust Research Centre (ALRC)

1949 - Colonial Products Advisory Bureau (Plant and Animal) of the Colonial Office.

1953 - Colonial Products Laboratory (CPL) – 1953

1957 - Tropical Products Institute (TPI), London formed from CPL and part of the Ministry of Overseas Development.^[3]

1967 – TPI expands by merging with Tropical Stored Products Centre (TSPC), Slough, UK

1970 - Centre for Overseas Pest Research (COPR) formed from ALRC, and located in Bramley, Hampshire, UK

1971 - Land Resources Development Centre (LRDC) formed from Directorate of Colonial Surveys

1983 – Tropical Development and Research Institute (TDRI), London formed from merger of TPI and COPR^[4]

1988 - Overseas Development Natural Resources Institute (ODNRI) formed from merger of TDRI and LRDC and relocation to Chatham, UK^[5]

1990 - Natural Resources Institute (NRI) formed from ODNRI

1996 – NRI ownership transferred from UK Overseas Development Administration (now the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) to University of Greenwich, UK. NRI remains as an Institute within the University of Greenwich.

Mission

NRI undertakes research, teaching, training and consultancy to address interrelated global challenges affecting all people from local farmers and consumers, to the UK food industry, to smallholder communities in low and middle income countries (LMIC or Developing Country). In collaboration with international partners, it seeks to tackle issues including poverty, food and nutrition security, sustainable agriculture, climate change, gender and social equality, responsible production and consumption, sustainable management of natural resources and the environment. NRI’s work addresses the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Resources (human, material and financial)

NRI has a staff of over 100 comprising natural and social scientists, technicians, and specialists in project management, administration, communication, finance, IT and other fields. Its offices are on the University of Greenwich campus at Medway, Kent, UK

Main NRI activities

• NRI Research is focused on low and middle income countries (LMICS or developing country) and emerging economies. Areas of research include agriculture, food and veterinary sciences, aquatic biotechnology and biology, chemical ecology and plant biochemistry, ecosystem services, food systems, pest behaviour, plant health, anthropology and development studies, and development studies.

• Study opportunities involving undergraduate taught and postgraduate programmes, and postgraduate research.

• Consultancy and partnerships providing technical and management expertise.

• Providing scientific and technical information: publishing in journals, books and social media.

Organization

NRI has four departments:

• Agriculture, Health and Environment Department.

• Food and Markets Department.

• Livelihoods and Institutions Department.

• Directorate.

Awards

• Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for Further and Higher Education in 2002, 2007, 2015, and 2019^[6].

• Times Higher Award for International Collaboration in 2014^[7].

• Guardian University Award for Research Impact in 2015^[8].

• Professor John Morton was recognised as contributing to the award of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize to the IPCC ^[9].

Notable people

Boris Uvarov – Entomologist known for work on the biology and ecology of locusts.

Nadia Waloff - Entomologist known for work on the biology of locusts.

Ralph Bagnold - Geologist and Explorer.

Wilfred Thesiger – Explorer, writer and funded by the Anti-Locust Research Centre to map desert areas associated with the outbreak of desert locust swarms ^[10].

Professor John Morton - contributed to the award of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change ^[11].

Professor John Porter – Awarded the ordre du mérite agricole (2006), for contributions to agriculture ^[12].

Controversy

On 28th January 2023, the Mail on Sunday reported that according to the authors of two UN reports (Delia Grace Randolph, from NRI and Colin Butler, from the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health in Canberra, Australia) on the origins of the coronavirus, a laboratory leak was the most likely cause of the spread of the pandemic^[13]. It was reported that the authors of the UN report, accused American and British scientists of helping China deliberately suppress debate on the issue. The report attacked the ‘cover-up’ and called for a ‘reassessment of the likely pathways that caused this pandemic’. . However, the newspaper headline did not reflect the text of the UN report. For example, the authors do not say there was a cover-up, but instead that there was reluctance to consider a lab origin. The report did not say there was a lab leak, but that current evidence cannot rule it out. The main concern what there is insufficient regulation of research, and a need to evaluate safeguards and health and safety.

See also

Related articles • University of Greenwich

References