Enhancing agricultural research with FAO's AGRIS and AGROVOC programs: A conversation with Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT's knowledge management team

In a recent series of conversations with CGIAR Knowledge Management teams, Sara Jani and Valentina De Col from ICARDA interviewed Maria Garuccio, Information Management and Open Science Manager at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT. They discussed CGIAR’s collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on AGRIS and AGROVOC – two key resources in agricultural research. AGRIS is a comprehensive bibliographic database focused on agriculture and nutrition, while AGROVOC is a multilingual thesaurus covering a wide range of agricultural terms.

Benefits of being in AGRIS   

Alliance has shared its knowledge products with AGRIS and plans to do so more. What are the benefits of being in AGRIS for your center?

Maria: For us, AGRIS is more than just a platform—it’s a community of practice. It connects people working within the agricultural domain, fostering collaboration and knowledge-sharing. Being part of AGRIS allows our center to engage with others who share similar goals. The benefits are numerous: access to support, exchanging ideas, opportunities for professional growth through training, and a sense of belonging to an international network. Overall, it is about being part of a global collaboration that enhances our visibility and lets us contribute to shared innovations in agriculture.