Name Elisabetta Tagliati Age 39 Place of birth Rome, Italy Languages Italian, English, French

Job title
Agricultural Officer

“I work with FAO’s Plant Protection Service. I am a plant pathologist and now I am working in chemicals management.

Pesticides can be extremely dangerous if not properly handled. That’s why I’m committed to my work. I want to help make sure human health and the environment aren’t harmed by these hazardous chemicals.

In the past, I worked for FAO’s Integrated Pest Management Programme. The IPM Programme helps countries and their farmers to rely less and less on chemicals input. It helps them develop their ability to manage their fields with their own resources.

One of the ways the Programme introduces and tests IPM techniques is by working with farmers to establish Farmer Field Schools. I remember an exercise villagers carried out in a Farmer Field School in Bangladesh. They filled a pesticide sprayer with coloured water representing pesticide. After the farmer had finished spraying in the field, we could all see that he had become covered with the coloured spray. Then we followed him for a little while. We saw how the spray got on his food when he ate, how it got on his family when he hugged and kissed them. Pesticides get everywhere.

We have to do something to protect the people who are working with pesticides, especially the families in developing countries who often don’t have the information they need to use them correctly.

FAO’s work in the field is important, but also I’ve become convinced that FAO’s role in negotiating and implementing international agreements on pesticide use and management is even more important. Policy assistance is the key to achieving sustainable development.

That’s why I’m happy to be working with the Secretariat to the Rotterdam Convention. Countries that have signed the Rotterdam Convention have agreed that they share a responsibility to keep each other informed about the import and export of certain hazardous chemicals. They also share information about pesticides and other hazardous chemicals whose use they have banned or severely restricted.

Making international agreements work, means that you have to deal with people from all over the world. You have to be a team player and be very flexible. Everyone has their own way of doing things and you learn to respect that. It’s extremely rewarding.”