The New Partnership for Africas Development and Michigan State University will use a five-year $10.4 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to connect African biosafety regulators with advances in technology an initiative aimed at reducing poverty through improved agricultural practices.

James Pritchett, director of the African Studies Center at Michigan State University, believes the center can play a prominent role in helping the world solve its problems.

International Studies and Programs and the Michigan State University Alumni Association have opened the call for entries to Global Focus, an annual international photo competition. Submissions are due Oct. 1.

Specialty coffee buyers, a better quality product and an increase in prices paid to growers are the keys to building a strong coffee sector in Burundi, according to Michigan State University faculty and staff who are helping the once war-torn country develop its market.

In an effort to boost educational programs in sustainable agriculture and protection of national resources, Michigan State University's Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies and the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources will host a special lecture with EARTH University President Jos Zaglul on Aug. 10.

This year, International Studies and Programs (ISP) hosted a model United Nations session for participants in the Michigan State University Alumni Associations (MSUAA) 2009 Grandparents University.

Gender Politics in Post-Communist Eurasia, a new book published by MSU Press, provides a sweeping perspective on and incisive analyses of womens status in the two decades since the fall of the Soviet system.

After conducting an international search, on May 29 Michigan State Universitys International Studies and Programs announced the appointment of Brett Berquist to the position of executive director of the Office of Study Abroad.

On May 19, the former president of the MSU Alumni Club of Indonesia, Setyanto P. Santosa, visited campus and attended a meeting with the Indonesian Students Association. He was in the United States for a professional conference in Washington DC.

The Japan Center for Michigan Universities (http://www.isp.msu.edu/JCMU/) will mark its 20-year anniversary May 18 with a three-day anniversary celebration at the JCMU campus in Japan.

For more than 50 years, Michigan State University has been a national academic leader in all things Africa. Whether its been fighting diseases such as malaria, helping to develop more disease-resistant crops, or training Africas future physicians, farmers or leaders, MSU has been there.

You inherit a lot from your parents. Being Spartan Green can also be passed down generation to generation. With a steady increase in international students over the past years, international students are also passing down the MSU Legacy.

Robert Blake,Ph.D., a noted expert on livestock production and sustainable food systems in developing countries, has joined Michigan State University as director of the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies.

EAST LANSING, Mich. The industry of trade may help Michigans battered economy, according to Michigan State Universitys Canadian Studies Center and the Canadian Consul General Office in Detroit. Video News Release to be distributed:Wednesday, April 22;1530 to 1545 ET Horizons 2 (located at 74 Degrees West) Transponder 7K, Slot D Downlink Frequency: 11973.5 Horizontal Digital Parameters: FEC: Symbol Rate: 3.9787 Compression: 4:2:0

Following the Summit of the Americas, where Heads of State and Government, including President Barack Obama, will discuss greater security in the Americas, Ambassador Alexandre Addor-Neto, Secretary for Multidimensional Security at the Organization of American States, is set to speak on the same topic at MSU. The Ambassadors presentation will begin at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, April 22 on the third floor of the International Center.