The ninth annual Tech Museum Awards, which celebrate social entrepreneurs and innovation, were held on November 19 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center.  Fifteen "Tech Laureates" were selected from the fields of environment, equality, economic development, health, and education; five won cash prizes of $50,000.

Congratulations to mPedigree, entrant in USAID's Development 2.0 Challenge, and 2009 Tech Laureate, as announced by the Tech Awards today! Tech Awards reports that this year's 15 laureates were selected from among 650 nominations representing 66 countries.

Next Billion:  "Water touches everything. This was reflected in the diverse backgrounds and interests of the panelists at the Saturday morning session about "innovative solutions to water and sanitation challenge".  Hailing from different corners of the water problem, panelists included

The March 2008 issue of IFPRI Forum features an interview with R. K. Pachauri, chairman of the IPCC, which won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize along with Al Gore, on what climate change will mean for poor and rural people and what the next steps should be.

Global climate change poses particular risks to poor farmers in developing countries, but there are steps that farmers, policymakers, and researchers can take to minimize losses and adapt to climate change.