The 10th in our monthly Millets Webinar Series is coming up this Wednesday, 18 Oct. at 5 pm EDT! It has as its theme, "More than small change: Millets in community and economic development," and will feature presentations by two experts, followed by Q&A: * Dr. Amrita Hazra, Assoc. prof. of chemistry and biology at Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune, India. She was a co-founder of the UC-Berkeley based Millet Project, a ground-breaking initiative to promote millets with local producers and processors in northern California. Amrita will present on "Millets: A small grain to confront big challenges." * Nate Blum, CEO of Sorghum United and former director of the Nebraska Grain Sorghum Board, has worked with communities of growers and researchers in several contexts. He has also launched a comic book series promoting sorghum called "Sorgho Squad." Nate will present on the role of sorghum and millets in reshaping global food & agriculture paradigms. Most of the focus in discussing millets is naturally on their performance in fields, their qualities as nutritious foods (and drinks), and how we get them from harvest to table. In this edition of the Millets Webinars, we shift the focus to some socio-economic dimensions. What does promotion (or preservation) of millets as crops and food bring to community and livelihood? This is another vast topic, but we think you'll find these two perspectives enlightening and thought-provoking. (Special thanks to Claire Smith of Teffola for having suggested this topic earlier this year.) If you are not already registered for the Millets Webinar Series, you may sign up here: https://umsystem.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJctduutrTgoGNLZnrkxtUw614DEjAT3Sg... For past editions of our Millets Webinar, please see: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLy7IvZCKUBap-6AaoCjPSFTMMq772t_Yb The Millets Webinar Series is being organized during the International Year of Millets (2023) by the North American Millets Alliance (NAMA) and the Food Engineering and Sustainable Technologies (FEAST) Lab at the University of Missouri, with additional support from the Center for Regenerative Agriculture, also at the University of Missouri. Don Osborn, PhD (East Lansing, MI, US) North American Millets Alliance