ERIKA STYGER

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I am a tropical agronomist specializing in smallholder farming systems across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the United States. My 35 years of experience cover agroforestry, agro-biodiversity, regenerative agriculture, ecological approaches to farming and cropping systems, and using farmer-centered approaches in research, development, and scaling. I hold a PhD in Crop and Soil Sciences from Cornell University and an MSc in Agronomy from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ).

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Since 2007, my work has centered on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), its technical implementation and global scaling. I first worked directly with farmers to introduce SRI in Mali, and in 2010 joined Cornell University as Professor of Practice. At Cornell, I served as the inaugural Director of the System of Rice Intensification International Network and Resources Center (SRI-Rice) and later directed the Climate-Resilient Farming Systems Program. Among others, I have collaborated with a network of over 60 countries, provided technical assistance and led trainings in 23 countries, and initiated and advice(d) two regional SRI initiatives in West Africa—SRI-WAAPP and RICOWAS—each involving 13 countries.

In 2026, I founded SRI Rice Solutions LLC to advance the global scaling of SRI. ​​​​​