The late Dr. Norman Borlaug with farmers in the Yaqui Valley near Ciudad Obregón, Mexico, where he worked to introduce modern agricultural technologies since 1945. (Borlaug 100)

Sculptor Benjamin Victor with the statue of Dr. Norman Borlaug that will be unveiled at the Capitol Tuesday morning.

The unveiling of the statue of Norman Borlaug, the Iowa-born scientist who developed the wheat that led to the Green Revolution, will be the highlight of National Agriculture Day on Tuesday.

Related events for the week begin today, however, with a lecture at the U.S. Botanical Garden by Benjamin Victor, the sculptor of the statute, and an evening reception at the National Press Club.

Borlaug won the Nobel Peace Prize, and the state of Iowa has chosen to make a statue of him one of the two it is allotted in the Capitol’s Statuary Hall. The unveiling will take place Tuesday at 11 a.m. In addition to congressional leaders, the speakers will include Iowa Republican Gov. Terry Brandstad and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, a former Democratic governor of the state.

On Tuesday the Agriculture Department will host a special half-day symposium highlighting the future of agriculture and food security, featuring both CEOs and students who are following Borlaug’s legacy by being involved in research.

Agriculture Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden will deliver remarks at the symposium, which will honor the 100th anniversary of Borlaug’s birth and begin at 2:30 p.m. in the USDA’s Jefferson Auditorium.

“By improving efficiency and allowing farmers to produce more food using fewer land and water resources, Dr. Borlaug helped to fundamentally transform American agriculture, and further agriculture innovation around the world,” USDA said in a news advisory.

“He is one of only three Americans to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, the Congressional Gold Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He is also the only American to hold those honors and also the National Medal of Science.”

The schedule includes the following events:

• The U.S. Botanic Garden near the Capitol will hold a special talk by Benjamin Victor, sculptor of the Borlaug statue, today at noon, following up with a lecture on “The Life and Times of Norman Borlaug” Tuesday at noon.The garden also will open a special wheat exhibit will run for several months.
• The Borlaug Summit on Wheat for Food Security will take place at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center at Borlaug’s original research institution in in Ciudad Obregón, Mexico, today through Friday. These events will be streamed live online. See link below
• In Des Moines, the World Food Prize Foundation that Borlaug founded will host a full day of special events Tuesday at its Hall of Laureates, including a live webcast of the ceremony, meal packaging, cultural dances, artist talks, and access to the educational exhibits and Howard G. Buffett’s international photography exhibit on hunger.
• The Iowa State Historical Museum will also have a live webcast and will host a special agricultural artwork exhibit and an exhibit of antique tractors.

Webcasts

• ▪ All week — Borlaug Summit on Wheat for Food Security
• ▪ Tuesday 11 a.m. — Borlaug statue ceremony webcast

Links

▪ National Agriculture Day ▪ Borlaug 100 ▪ State of Iowa Dr. Norman Borlaug Statue ▪ U.S. Botanic Garden ▪ World Food Prize