Dr. Habib delved on the range of activities organized at his
department, stating that PTPPS concentrates of production systems and
processing, particularly in agricultural and plantation forestry. “We
cover almost all tropical area production systems,” he added.
Welcoming him to AIT, Prof. Joydeep Dutta, Vice President for Academic
Affairs, delved on the long association of CIRAD and AIT. Prof. Dutta
suggested that the Agri Business Management (ABM) field of study at AIT
could be of interest to CIRAD, particularly since France is a leader in
agricultural production and process technology.
Dr.Weerakorn Ongsakul, Dean, School of Environment, Resources and
Development (SERD) stated that Urban Environmental Management (UEM),
Regional and Rural Development Planning (RRDP), Gender and Development
Studies (GDS), and Natural Resources Management (NRM) fields of study
could be potential areas of partnership.
The CIRAD delegation included Dr. Marcel de Raïssac, Deputy Director
for Research and Strategy; Dr. Jean-Charles Maillard, Regional Director
for Continental South East Asia; and Dr. Antoine Laconte, CIRAD
Representation in Thailand. They were accompanied by Ms. Cécile Faraud,
Regional Cooperation Officer for South East Asia, Embassy of France in
Thailand. Later the delegation visited AIT’s School of Environment,
Resources and Development (SERD) and the Center for Excellence in
Nanotechnology.
Dr. Lionel Dabbaide, seconded faculty from CIRAD to AIT’s Aquaculture
and Aquatic Resources Management (AARM) field of study; Dr. Pritam
Krishna Shrestha, Head, External Relations and Communications Office
(ERCO); and Ms. Tiamkare Thitithamtada, Program Officer, ERCO also
attended the meeting.
