The M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF) is a non-profit

Non-profit organization

Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...

 NGO

Non-governmental organization

A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...

 trust

Trust law

In common law legal systems, a trust is a relationship whereby property is held by one party for the benefit of another...

 based in Chennai

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. It develops and promotes strategies for economic growth that directly target increased employment of poor women in rural areas. Their methods maximize the use of science and technology for equitable and sustainable social development and environmental stability. The MSSRF logo signifies continuity and change, invoking the DNA model of open-ended, many-sided, and continuous evolution.

History

MSSRF was founded in 1988 by Dr. M. S. Swaminathan

M. S. Swaminathan

Maankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan is an Indian agriculture scientist in Kuttanad, kerala. He was the second of four sons of a doctor.He is known as the "Father of the Green Revolution in India", for his leadership and success in introducing and further developing high-yielding varieties of wheat in...

, who is chairman of the foundation. In 1970, C.V. Raman, the Nobel Prize–winning physicist, urged Swaminathan to start an autonomous research center to realize his goals of sustainable development

Sustainable development

Sustainable development is a pattern of resource use, that aims to meet human needs while preserving the environment so that these needs can be met not only in the present, but also for generations to come...

, which he now terms the "Evergreen Revolution". In 1988, after receiving the World Food Prize

World Food Prize

The World Food Prize is an international award recognizing the achievements of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity or availability of food in the world.-The Prize:...

, Swaminathan used the US$200,000 prize to start the MSSRF. Swaminathan also currently holds the UNESCO

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

 Chair in Ecotechnology

Ecotechnology

Ecotechnology is an applied science that seeks to fulfill human needs while causing minimal ecological disrupution, by harnessing and subtly manipulating natural forces to leverage their beneficial effects...

 and is chairman of the National Commission on Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Security of India.

Programs

MSSRF operates in five major program areas — Coastal Systems Research

Research

Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...

, Biodiversity

Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the degree of variation of life forms within a given ecosystem, biome, or an entire planet. Biodiversity is a measure of the health of ecosystems. Biodiversity is in part a function of climate. In terrestrial habitats, tropical regions are typically rich whereas polar regions...

 and Biotechnology

Biotechnology

Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...

, Ecotechnology

Ecotechnology

Ecotechnology is an applied science that seeks to fulfill human needs while causing minimal ecological disrupution, by harnessing and subtly manipulating natural forces to leverage their beneficial effects...

 and Food security

Food security

Food security refers to the availability of food and one's access to it. A household is considered food-secure when its occupants do not live in hunger or fear of starvation. According to the World Resources Institute, global per capita food production has been increasing substantially for the past...

, Gender and development, and Informatics

Informatics (academic field)

Informatics is the science of information, the practice of information processing, and the engineering of information systems. Informatics studies the structure, algorithms, behavior, and interactions of natural and artificial systems that store, process, access and communicate information...

.

External links

• Prof MS Swaminathan's Inspiring Talk on Biotechnology and Food Security at BITS Pilani Rajasthan
• Green Revolution Champion Prof MS Swaminathan at BITS Pilani
• Proud to be an Indian Prof MS Swaminathan lectures at BITS Pilani ...
• Prof M S Swaminathan Talk on Biotechnology and Food Security at BITS Pilani Rajasthan
• Evergreen Prof MS Swaminathan lectures at BITS Pilani Rajasthan
• Evergreen Prof MS Swaminathan speech at BITS Pilani Rajasthan
• BITS Pilani Rajasthan Prof V Lakshminarayanan Memorial Lecture 2007 – Curtain Raiser
• Prof V Lakshminarayanan Memorial Lecture 2007 at BITS Pilani Rajasthan – Curtain Raiser
• Curtain Raiser: Prof V Lakshminarayanan Memorial Lecture 2007 at BITS Pilani Rajasthan