Agronomy Associate Professor at University of Zimbabwe and Assistant Professor at Michigan State University

Regis Chikowo is an agronomist with BSc and MPhil Soil Science degrees from University of Zimbabwe and PhD Agroecology and Farming Systems from Wageningen University. Regis is Agronomy Associate Professor at University of Zimbabwe and Assistant Professor at Michigan State University.  His interests are in the development of agro-ecology technologies for positive outcomes on smallholder farms in Africa. Life in tropical African soils is being squeezed as degradation depletes soil organic matter. Life restoration has to start with approaches that trap carbon on both cropped lands and the natural environment. Now is the time to act to halt vast farmlands from elapsing into states where application of inorganic fertilizers will become futile as SOC contents drop to below thresholds for any response to nutrient additions. Over the past 8 years, he has coordinated an ambitious USAID funded Africa RISING project (Research in Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation) in Malawi. He supervises graduate students to collect appropriate data that informs best bet approaches to keeping soils healthy, and thus handsome returns to fertilizer application.