Wisdom to reach for my dreams

MANILA, Philippines - I would like to thank the governing board of the University of the Philippines  Los Banõs Alumni Association for choosing me as its 2009 Outstanding Alumnus.

It is with great pride that I accept this outstanding award today. The skills that UPLB has endowed me with, combined with a background from a farming family, has given me a deep interest in agriculture and agricultural science and technology. With it came the potential to improve the conditions of the poor and develop a sensitivity to and compassion for the less fortunate farmers.

To my family, this honor is yours as well. You have consistently persevered with me and helped me reach my dreams, and the success I am enjoying in my work. Without you, these achievements amount to nothing. Once again, thank you.

I am also aware that my education from UPLB has given me the confidence to be at par with my global counterparts. It has given me the strength and determination to face any adversity, no matter how insurmountable these challenges are.

The skills I learned from UPLB came in handy when I was chosen to head a floundering ICRISAT in 2000. With proactive planning and a clear mission and vision, I was able to transform the institute into a high performing global organization. A strong coalition was created guided with the mantra of doing science with a human face.

It has been a long, yet fulfilling journey of change where adaptation, innovation and evolution were the guiding forces. Success came to us because Team ICRISAT believed in the institute’s vision of improving the lives of the poor in the semi-arid tropics of the world, including the Philippines. 

All these years, transformational leadership was and still is the order of the day at ICRISAT. It is the type of leadership where change and innovation are a constant and where everyone in the institute is a partner for growth and excellence.

The complete transformation of the institute is not reflected only on its quality science but also in its institutional health. ICRISAT’s budget tripled during my watch. We were ranked Outstanding by the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research in 2006 and 2007. The institute has been the proud recipient of the most prestigious CGIAR King Baudouin Award five times.

We are in the forefront in generating knowledge and technologies, and are constantly re-inventing ourselves to tackle serious challenges like climate change and desertification that are plaguing agriculture.

I’ll be completing 10 years in ICRISAT soon, with another five-year term, and so I pledge to remain the servant leader of the poor of the semi-arid tropics. As Greek politician Pericles once said, “What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others.”

I would like to make a call for UPLB to revitalize itself and focus its efforts in dealing with the global challenges that our country is facing as well. This is an age of renaissance where UPLB can emerge as a driving force in creating opportunities not only for our scientists and students but more so for our people.

This award I have received is a fitting tribute not to me but to UPLB and its rich tradition of producing professionals with a great vision for the less fortunate. Thank you again for this great honor.

UPLB, you have given the education to me. You have challenged me to reach for the stars. You have given me the wisdom to stand on and reach for my dreams, dreams I could never have reached without you.

Thank you.

(Acceptance speech for the 2009 Outstanding UPLBAA Alumnus Award at the Baker Hall, UPLB, Los Banõs, Laguna.)