Ruben G. Echeverría is Director General of CIAT (Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical) with headquarters in Colombia. He holds a BSc degree from the University of Uruguay with a MSc and PhD in Agriculture and Applied Economics from the University of Minnesota, USA. From the late 1970s to early 1980s, Ruben worked for the Uruguayan Land Reform Institute, heading its extension service. Afterwards, in connection with his PhD thesis, he conducted research in Mexico and Guatemala for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in Mexico.