[1][2][3][4][5] He was executive secretary and then first director at the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) in Rome and made major contributions towards conserving the genetic resources of the world's food crops.
[5] Born in Thingwall, Cheshire in 1938, he attended Moseley Hall Grammar School and went up to Selwyn College, Cambridge to study botany, graduating in 1959.
He went on to complete a Ph.D. (1962) at Bangor University supervised by John L. Harper, on "Studies on the biology of weeds with special reference to the genus Chenopodium L.".
for his study "The nitrogen relations and other ecological investigations on wet fertilized meadows" supervised by Heinz Ellenberg.
course in the Conservation and Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources created by Jack Hawkes.
[5] He was Executive Secretary and then first director from 1976 to 1990 at the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources (IBPGR) in Rome.
IBPGR was funded by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) to advance the conservation of plant genetic resources at a time when traditional crop varieties where in danger of being lost.
From 1985 he was Executive Secretary of European Cooperative Programme for Plant Genetic Resources (ECP/GR).
He was an advisor on 'Diversity' (published by Genetic Resources Communications Systems) and was a founder member of the International Centre for Underutilised Crops.
[5][1] He was awarded the Jubilee Medal (1977) from the National Agrarian University, Lima, Peru; a Certificate of Honour for Scientific Excellence from the Royal Government of Thailand (1984) and Certificate of Commendation, Argentina Agricultural Veterinary Academy for services to maize breeding in Latin America (1984).
Base-collections of Crop Genetic Resources: Their Future Importance in a Man-dominated World.
Environment Science and Policy for Sustainable Development 33(6):7-32 doi:10.1080/00139157.1991.9931401 Tropical Forests and Their Crops.
Williams JT, Haq N (2002) International Centre for Underutilized Crops, Southampton