Breakthrough Dialogues

Nassib Mugwanya is an outreach officer at the Uganda Biosciences Information Center, which means he brings agricultural research to farmers on the ground. He stands at the nexus, then, of the many clashing ideals over what the future of food should look like: traditional agroecology? Modern innovations? Small, big, local, organic, synthetic, biotechnical? For Nassib, questions as theoretical as these no longer feel relevant; immersing himself in the hardships and livelihoods of those growing food every day has changed the way he considers solutions. When a farmer, struggling with banana bacterial wilt, approaches Nassib for answers, the framing is always quite practical: “What will solve the problem I have?” Today, Nassib describes himself as firmly pro-choice. “I’m a very, very strong advocate for giving farmers the full range of options,” he says. “No one should stand in their way.” For more, read Nassib's piece in the Breakthrough Journal.