International Symposium on Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf to be held in Dallas, TX, May 18-22, 2003

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The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Inc. and Texas A&M University are hosting theInternational Symposium on Molecular Breeding of Forage and Turf, May 18-22, 2003 inDallas, Texas. This conference will focus exclusively on the theme of cultivar improvement forforage and turf through the application of conventional plant breeding and molecular methods.Forages provide the basis for environmentally sustainable production of animal productsthroughout the world, and turf serves an important environmental and service role in society.The economic impact of forages and turfgrasses is substantial. Cultivar improvement usingconventional selection techniques has barely kept pace with increased production requirements.Molecular technologies offer powerful tools to enhance the process of cultivar improvement,although the development of such technology for forage and turf breeding has been slow relativeto other major crops. Reasons for this slower than desired progress include: the complicatednature of polyploid genetics; the perennial nature of forage and turf crops; and a lack of financialresources to support applied research.This conference will facilitate the assembly of 250-400 participants from academia and industry,representing such diverse professional interests as plant breeding, agronomy, ruminant nutrition,plant genetic resources, intellectual property rights, genomics, transformation, andbioinformatics. The selected speakers are experts in their respective field, and each hascommitted to attend. Thus, this conference will provide an otherwise unavailable opportunity forplant breeders and molecular scientists in the field of forage and turf improvement to cometogether for the purpose of exchanging information and ideas, learning the latest developments,and forming multidisciplinary collaborations. It is anticipated that this conference will facilitatethe advancement of current and future cultivar development in the United States and as well asdeveloping and developed countries.Efforts in conference recruitment will seek to draw critical new thoughts into this field throughthe solicitation of members of historically underrepresented groups, young scientists (includingpost-doctoral fellows), and graduate students. The introduction of new ideas to this discipline isbeneficial and necessary, and the exposure of young scientists to this field will desirablycontribute to cultivar improvement for forage and turf for decades to come.A summary of the conference, including papers from invited speakers and selected oralpresentations, will be compiled in a comprehensive printed proceeding, entitled inMolecularBreeding of Forage and Turf.ln This proceeding will be published by Kluwer AcademicPublishers. This proceeding will be the principal means used to perpetuate the meeting and itsdiscussions.