Ansioluettelo

Current research and responsibilities

Postdoc researcher at the University of Helsinki, Finland, since 01 December 2019. Responsibilities in this position include Task 1. ERANET SusCrop project ‘ProFaba’: phenotyping acidity and aluminium responses of 200 Europe wide faba bean genotypes, and analysing existing data on drought responses of a recombinant inbred line population of faba bean.

Task 2. Assisting the coordination of the ERANET SusCrop project ‘LegumeGap’: managing meetings and communication within the consortium, conducting literature analyses related with management factors of faba bean production in Europe, and conducting the analysis of farmer survey data.

Task 3. Co-coordinator of WP3 InnoFoodAfrica, Horizon 2020 EU funded project: in which I am part of in exploring climate-smart African crops in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa and Uganda. In this project, acidity and Al³⁺-toxicity tolerant faba bean genotypes that I identified during my PhD study, will be tested in Ethiopia under limed and un-limed soil conditions in the farmers field where soil acidity is the major bottleneck for faba bean production.

Task 4. Providing crop production courses for undergraduate and graduate students of Department of Agricultural Sciences.

Ansioluettelo

Previous jobs

First stage researcher (PhD student), Doctoral Program in Sustainable Use of Renewable Natural Resources, University of Helsinki, Finland, 28 May 2014-19 November 2019.

The Robert H Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel, 22 April – 23 May 2018

• I have worked in Professor Menachem Moshelion laboratory for one month on root and shoot phenotyping experiment on the responses of 184 genetically mapped faba bean population of F₇ lines from the cross of ILB938/2 x Mélodie/2 to progressive drought. I have experience in using the web-based soil plant atmosphere continuum (SPAC) data analysis system, which is based on functional physiological plant phenotyping in dynamic environment. 
• Status of the research: data analysis being undertaken. The data will be used in identification of QTLs related with drought tolerance in faba bean and will be combined with the genome sequencing being undertaken parallel by our research team at Helsinki University, Finland.
• This research was funded by a genomics project, 'Papugeno' managed by Prof. Frederick Stoddard.

Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich Plant Phenotyping Center, Germany, 10 January to 31 March 2017

• I have worked in Dr. Kerstin A. Nagel root and shoot high throughput phenotyping facility for nearly 3 months and generated data on drought stress tolerance of faba bean (Vicia faba L.) using automated robotic phenotyping platform. I have an experience in using image based data analysis with Paint-Rhizo and WinRhizo software.
• This research was funded by COST Action FA 1306 and Finnish Cultural Foundation.

University of Helsinki, Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry, May 2014-19 Novemebr 2019

• I have been working in Dr. Frederick L. Stoddard laboratory. At this facility, I have conducted germplasm survey on 30 faba bean accessions on acid-soil and aluminum toxicity tolerance in hydroponic media and verified the findings of the research in pot based media under greenhouse and open-air conditions. Moreover, I have also screened 450 faba bean accessions collected from wet and dry growing regions of the world (chosen from ICARDA) and other relevant centers for drought tolerance. Eight accessions selected out of this screening experiment were subjected to further study in the root and shoot phenotyping facility at Jülich Plant Phenotyping Center, Germany in winter 2017.
• The research results were published in PeerJ and Frontiers in Plant Science.

Bahir Dar and Haramaya Universities teaching and research staff (2002-2014)

Lecturer at Bahir Dar University, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia, September 2007 to December 2014. And lecturer, assistant lecturer and graduate assistant at Haramaya University, College of Agriculture, Ethiopia, 2006 to 2007, and 2002 to 2004.

• During these periods, I have gained experiences in managing research projects, teaching and research.

Koulutustiedot

Bachelor of Science in Agriculture (Plant Sciences), Alemaya University, Dire Dawa, Ethiopia (1999-2002)