The Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP), Italy, in collaboration with the AGRHYMET Regional Center, Niger, is organizing a "Workshop on Climate Applications for Food Security" to be held from September 28 to October 2, 2015 in Niamey, Niger.
 
          Sahel countries are highly vulnerable to climate change and strongly dependent on rainfed agriculture and livestock. This area of the world is subject to strong rainfall variability, desertification and recurrent droughts; consequently, achieving food security is an ongoing challenge. 
 
         This interdisciplinary workshop aims to bring together international researchers and Permanent Interstates Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) member states national services staff working in the area of climate modelling, crop modelling, and related fields.  Focus will be on state-of-the-art techniques for using climate information for impact studies in crop modelling and will cover the following topics:
 
         -    Introduction to dynamical seasonal prediction systems 
         -    Climate data sources and the IRI data library 
         -    Crop modelling background and principles 
         -    Laboratory sessions with SARRAH and LEAP crop models  
 
                               The one-week programme will feature lectures in the mornings and laboratory classes in the afternoons.   All lectures and training sessions will be held in the English language and proficiency in English is a requirement for selection.  Applicants are encouraged to submit an abstract for a poster session to be held during the activity and demonstrate a research interest in the topic of crop and climate modelling in the Sahel.  Limited funds are available to support the attendance of junior scientists from the continent of Africa.  There is no registration fee for the workshop.