Annual Meeting 2005
The 41st Annual Meeting of
The Association for International Agriculture 
and Rural Development
June 5-7, 2005

Speakers and Panelists

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Mr. Patrick J. Papania is a Senior Communications Strategist at the Academy for Educational Development (AED) in the Center for Environmental Strategies. He is currently directing a new United States Agency for International Development (USAID) initiative called Agricultural Partnerships for Productivity and Prosperity (AP3). AP3 has evolved from lessons learned in agriculture and natural resource programs worldwide, including seven years of experience with the Communications for Technology Transfer in Agriculture (CTTA) project (1985-1992); twelve years of experience with the GreenCOM project (1993-present); and best practices being promoted by the Neuchatel Group, ICRAF, IFPRI, FAO and World Bank.
AP3's approach to increase the impact of agriculture programs focuses on system-wide collaboration, working across sectors, and involving stakeholders from the beginning to identify and work towards common goals. Mr. Papania has been Chief of Party for USAID social marketing programs dealing with irrigation water-use efficiency in the agriculture sector in Jordan and environmental policy in Egypt. Beginning his professional career in North Africa as a beekeeping extension agent in the mid-eighties, he later became the Delegate to the Middle East and North Africa for a prestigious Spanish foundation tasked with developing international cooperative programs for the Spanish Agency for International Development, the European Union and the Autonomous Governments of Spain. Fluent in Arabic, French, Spanish and English, he has 19 years of experience in program implementation in the Middle East, North Africa, Europe, South America, the Caribbean and Asia. His work has concentrated on NGO institutional development, community mobilization, educational programs, social marketing, micro-enterprise development, conflict resolution and mass media.