Supporting the improvement of agricultural quality, Udayana University organizes an international conference on Asian PGPR

• By Admin
• Kamis, 2 September 2021

The agricultural revolution left various things that had a negative impact on the environment. In agriculture development, the search for the latest breakthroughs in agriculture is expected to produce environmentally friendly agricultural mechanisms. The 'organic' aspect is one of the strong characters that indicates environment-friendly agriculture. Exploration of the use of microbes was then developed to improve the quality of agricultural products while maintaining sustainable environmental health. One breakthrough that has high spotlight is PGPR.

 

PGPR (Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria) are bacteria that live around the root system of plants and form a symbiosis between plants and bacteria. The use of PGPR in the development of agricultural systems is becoming more and more popular, so a research association has been formed to study PGPR. In Asia, this association known as Asian PGPR Society. The widespread impact of PGPR in agriculture causes the need to exchange information regarding research and its application in the field.

 

The PGPR international conference has been held for a long time with the title of the Asian PGPR International Conference. There are at least 6 international conferences that have been organized by the PGPR Society with collaboration with various partners. The seventh international conference, as well as being the first online conference (e-conference) of the PGPR Society, has been held in collaboration with Udayana University. The Biology Study Program, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Udayana University, was the executor of the conference which involved more than 200 researchers from 15 countries.

 

This international conference lasted for two days, on Saturday and Sunday (August 28 and 29, 2021). The event started with a report from the chairman of the committee, Dr. Ni Luh Suriani, then continued with remarks from the founder and chairman of Asian PGPR Society, Prof. M.S. Reddy. The opening of this event was carried out by the rector of Udayana University, Prof. Dr. Ir. I Nyoman Gde Antara, M.Eng. Right after the event opened, the Governor of Bali, I Wayan Koster, gave a speech and a presentation on policies in Bali based on the vision of Nangun Sad Kerthi Loka Bali. The Philippine Minister of Agriculture, William D. Dar, also gave a speech and presentation at this event.

 

The main event at this conference takes place through a parallel system that utilizes 6 virtual rooms for each topic. A total of 34 lead speakers are also evenly distributed in the 6 virtual rooms. This parallel system lasted for two days. On the second day, the closing is done after the parallel session ends.

 

The closing of the event was filled with concluding remarks by the president of the Asian PGPR Society Chapter Indonesia, Dr. Sarjia Antonius, who represents the Asian PGPR Society. From Udayana University, concluding remarks were delivered by the Dean of Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Ni Luh Watiniasih, Ph.D. The international conference that went smoothly has provided a lot of information on research and implementation of PGPR in the Asian region to improve agricultural commodities.