TCI Blog

The role of agriculture in women’s nutrition: Empirical evidence from India

Posted on August 22, 2018

Much academic and policy interest has been generated in recent years to understand how the agricultural sector can be leveraged to address problems of malnutrition in developing countries. For improving nutrition among women in particular, agriculture─nutrit… Read more

Field notes: Fieldwork during work hours

Posted on August 20, 2018

Levels of food loss are product and value chain specific. An important first step in determining methods and metrics to evaluate food loss of perishables was to identify the product (or products) and map the value chains. The objective of my fieldwork this summer was to… Read more

Transcending indicators: from soil health to human health

Posted on August 10, 2018

They say “we are what we eat” but can it be that we are what the soil is? Soil forms the foundation of the food we eat. It also serves as the main reservoir of the water we drink, making it the sole source of nutrients taken-in by humans. Naturally, one could argue that the f… Read more

Farmers’ decision making and perceived benefits of orange-fleshed sweet potato adoption

Posted on July 23, 2018

“He says orange-fleshed sweet potato has made his family healthier,” my translator, Shaktikar says as I scribble notes in a small notebook. I make sure not to disturb the iPhone pointed towards the farmer we’re interviewing. It is recording every word it can ove… Read more

Congratulations to our graduates!

Posted on June 1, 2018

We are proud to celebrate the individuals graduating from the Tata-Cornell program: Maureen Valentine and Prankur Gupta.Maureen ValentineDr. Maureen Valentine graduated with her Ph.D. in Animal Science from Cornell University’s Department of Animal Science… Read more

A Current Scenario of India’s Fight against Undernourishment

Posted on April 12, 2018

In this interview, SPANDAN speaks with Dr. Soumya Gupta, Research Economist at TCI-TARINA, on the prevailing condition of undernourishment in India. She mentions the factors that are lagging behind for addressing the problem and stresses the need for the coming… Read more

New food for better health: Introducing orange sweet potato to Uttar Pradesh

Posted on April 10, 2018

On a bright, windy morning in the rural district of Maharajganj, Sunita Devi listens for the crackling of cumin seeds in hot mustard oil, then adds a heap of chopped onions and garlic to the pan, smiling as they begin to sizzle and brown. She is trying out a new recipe, using… Read more

Can social marketing be a path towards improved nutrition?

Posted on March 26, 2018

The Tata-Cornell Institute (TCI) has been running an iron flour fortification program in a tribal community in Gujarat. It uses the principles of social marketing to generate awareness about the importance of iron and other micronutrients, and consequentially aim… Read more

The Role of Women in Water Projects in India

Posted on March 8, 2018

Our partner AguaClara Reach is increasing access to safe drinking water on tap through simple, affordable, gravity-powered technologies. The Tata-Cornell Institute supports their expansion into eastern India (and you can too!). Learn more about women’s si… Read more

Nutrition: not just for babies

Posted on March 5, 2018

Melinda Gates wrote in “Impatient Optimists,” the official blog of her and her husband’s foundation, the following: “In global health, we talk a lot about neglected diseases like onchocerciasis and schistosomiasis—serious ailments that most people ha… Read more

The bridge to Pusa: the road from field to lab

Posted on February 21, 2018

Bihar, 2018:The thick fog blanketed the city making it impossible to see any of the buildings down below. I’d been warned of the trouble with fog in the northern part of India but the inability to see anything beyond a few meters ahead of me was not something I was prepare… Read more

Building capacity for project monitoring, evaluation, and learning among a wide range of organizations and stakeholders

Posted on February 20, 2018

TCI’s TARINA Center of Excellence in New Delhi provides capacity building on project monitoring and evaluation (M&E) to senior- and mid-level managers of organizations interested in advancing data-based solutions for development effectiveness. Recentl… Read more

Is my time the same as your time? A note on the concept of time in Indian villages

Posted on February 15, 2018

Many of us conducting research in development economics deal with different types of data sets for our analysis. We generally have two options for empirical research in development economics: either we can use available secondary data sources, or we can go and collec… Read more

Call for Applications: Tata-Cornell Summer Internship

Posted on January 20, 2018

The Tata-Cornell Institute is actively recruiting graduate students for the 2018 Summer Internship Program. This is a 6-8 week professional development and research-oriented opportunity for students interested in issues related to food policy, agriculture… Read more

TARINA 2017 at a Glance

Posted on January 15, 2018

The Tata-Cornell Institute for Agriculture and Nutrition (TCI) releases its Technical Assistance and Research for Indian Nutrition and Agriculture (TARINA) 2017 at a Glance Report, which summarizes ongoing activities and progress achieved across thematic area… Read more

Video Coverage for 2017 Annual Celebration

Posted on December 29, 2017

At the end of each year, the Tata-Cornell Institute holds a special event to publically report on our research findings as well as to share project updates from our field locations in India. We also launch our Annual Report. The event was held on Friday, December 8th,… Read more

2017 Annual Report

Posted on December 8, 2017

We are pleased to release the Tata-Cornell Institute 2017 Annual Report, which highlights each of our distinct research initiatives and summarizes ongoing activities based in India.Information about TCI’s flagship project Technical Assistance and Researc… Read more

You’re invited! Tata-Cornell Annual Celebration on Friday, December 8th

Posted on December 4, 2017

Join us for our year-end celebration as we reflect on the activities and accomplishments of 2017 and launch this year’s annual report. 401 Warren Hall | 3:30-5:00 p.m. | Reception to Follow Special remarks from:Prabhu Pingali, Director of the Tata-Cornell Institu… Read more

TCI-TARINA participates in the International Conference on Rural Management in Bhubaneswar

Posted on November 25, 2017

Improving the quality of life for rural people is key to sustainable development in countries like India, where one-third of the population lives in villages. At the first International Conference on Rural Management (ICRM), professionals gathered to share eviden… Read more

Transitioning Toward Nutrition-Sensitive Food Systems

Posted on November 20, 2017

Food systems are typically defined as comprising all activities that are part of the production, distribution, and consumption of food. This includes (but is not restricted to) processes such as cultivation, harvesting, maintaining livestock, postproduction pr… Read more

Farm to Table Talk Podcast

Posted on November 18, 2017

Farm to Table Talk is a podcast which “explores issues and the growing interest in the story of how and where the food on our tables is produced, processed and marketed.” In this episode, Prabhu Pingali (TCI Director) and Maureen Valentine (Tata-Cornell Schola… Read more

Join us at Chats in the Stacks, featuring our new book

Posted on November 1, 2017

Rapid structural transformation and urbanization are transforming agriculture and food production in rural areas across the world.Join us for a Chats in the Stacks talk by Prabhu Pingali, editor of the new book Agriculture and Rural Development in a Globalizin… Read more

Mary-Catherine French honored for stewardship

Posted on October 31, 2017

Mary-Catherine French, administrative assistant in the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, earned the Core Value Staff Award for Stewardship at the Research, Extension and Staff Award ceremony Oct. 30. She was nominated by her colleagues i… Read more

A new road map for rolling out a Green Revolution 2.0 in Eastern India

Posted on October 15, 2017

In collaboration with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), TCI-TARINA organized a two-day workshop, titled “Green Revolution in Eastern India: Constraints, Opportunities, and the W… Read more

SFurtI 1st anniversary – A positive take on nutrition

Posted on October 7, 2017

The Sustainable Flour Fortification Initiative – branded as “SFurtI”– focuses on providing reasonable and convenient solutions to micronutrient deficiencies for tribal communities of Gujarat. Launched one year ago, SFurtI uses market-based approach… Read more