COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT GRANT 211(D) TO UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII ON TROPICAL SOILS

A REVIEW TEAM MADE A COMPREHNSV ON-SITE EVALTN, JAN. 8-10,1975, INCLDG DISCUSSION OF PRESELECTED ISSUES & WRITTEN REPLIES. THE TEAM JUDGED UH THE BEST OF ALL INSTITUTNS WITH SIMILAR GRANTS. UH HAS CARRIED OUT EVERY STIPULATED COMMITMENT & HAS ACCOMPLISHED THE MAJOR STATED PURPOSE: TO PROVIDE LDCS WITH INFO GAINED FROM UH"S PRIOR COMPETENCE IN TROPICAL CLIMATE, SOILS & CROPS & PROBLEMS OF SMALL FARMERS. DISAPPOINTING PROGRESS WAS MADE IN SOIL BIOLOGY,DUE TO PREVIOUS INSTNL LACK OF INTEREST,ONLY RECENTLY OVERCOME BY REALIZATN OF THE IMPORTANCE OF SYMBIOTIC NITROGEN FIXATION. AMONG NOTABLE ACCOMPLSHMTS WERE DEVEL OF AN EFFECTIVE MEANS TO ANALYZE & OVERCOME PHOSPHORUS FIXATION IN SOILS, & DEVELPMT OF THE PH-DEPENDENT CHARGE THEORY FOR TROPICAL SOILS. PRELIMNRY WORK UNDER THE GRANT HAS LED TO A MAJOR RESRCH PROJECT ON TRANSFER OF AGRO-TECHNOLOGY BY A WORLD-WIDE SOILS TAXONOMY SYSTEM. STRENGTHS OF THE UH PROGRAM ARE SOIL MINERALOGY,WATER RETENTION,SOIL FERTILITY,& EXTRAPOLATN OF RESRCH RESULTS (COMPARING SOILS FROM PUERTO RICO,LATIN AMERICA & THE PACIFIC ISLANDS). PROBLEMS NOTED IN THE PROGRAM INCLUDED LIMITATION OF STAFF RSORCS,INADEQUATE INTERDEPTL COOPERATION,INADEQUATE REPORTG & SHORTFALLS IN IDENTFCTN OF RELEVANT RESRCH,& TRANSFER OF TECHNOLOGY TO LDCS. EVALUATORS RECMND 2 YEAR EXTNSM & REVISION OF THE PRESENT GRANT,WITH EMPHASIS SHIFTED FRM INSTNL COMPETENCE TO UTILIZATIIN,FOCUSED ON SOLVING PROBLEMS OF SMALL FARMERS. CONCERN WITH SOIL BIOLOGY SHOULD EMPHASIZE NITROGEN FIXATION & BUILDING OR STRENGTHENING INSTNL CAPABILITY ALONG LINES OF INCRSD FOOF PRODUCTN. GREATER EMPHASIS IS RECMNDED ON TRANSFER OF KNOWLEDGE. IMPROVEMENT IN GRANT MNGMT SHOULD FEATURE CLOSER CONTROL OF FUNDS, INCRSD INTERDEPTL PARTICIPATION IN POLICY DECISIONS, ATTENTION TO RELEVANCE OF RESEARCH FINDINGS, & BETTER REPORTING OF ACTIVITIES.