Edgar J DaSilva - Online Memorial Website

Thank you for sharing this sad news. Indeed, Edgar has been instrumental  for the culture collections in the world and his continuous support and efforts, e.g. especially for the training courses of WFCC and the ICCCs (the International Congresses for Culture Collections), have had a strong influence on the development of culture collections. When I last met him in Tsukuba, 2004, on the occasion of ICCC-10, he seemed to be not too well, but he told me that he intended to prepare a history on the ICCCs - he would have been the best person to do that, with all his inside knowlege!

The collections will keep a warm and heartfelt memory for him.

With my best personal regards

Dagmar

DSMZ-Deutsche Sammlung von Mikro-

organismen und Zellkulturen GmbH

Germany

From – Prof Vladimir Zharov, former Director, Division of Basic Sciences, UNESCO

To the memory of E. DaSilva.

He was a bright and knowledgeable person who for many years worked in the Division of Basic Sciences of UNESCO and then in the Division of Life Sciences that he headed. He made a particularly considerable contribution to the development of the Organization’s programme in applied microbiology and biotechnology. He was a dynamic and competent staff member whose accomplishments in promoting the activity of MIRCEN and the Biotechnology Action Council were remarkable and well recognized in the regions and on the international arena. He will always be remembered by his colleagues and the scientific community for his devotedness to capacity building in the life sciences and biology education in developing countries.

From David Smith – Director, MIRCEN Centre, UK

I first came across Edgar through his contributions to the World Federation for Culture Collections (WFCC) International Conference on Culture Collections (ICCC). He presented a paper at ICCC 2 in Sao Paulo Brazil in July 1973 Culture collections and the developing countries; their role in economic progress and University education and he edited the Proceedings of that meeting.  I started my career at the Commonwealth Mycological Institute, CAB International in the following year and this text was one of the first I was given to begin my education in culture collections.  He continued to be involved in WFCC conferences and edited the Proceedings of the Fourth International Conference on Culture Collections in 1984 in Thailand. I participated in the meeting and it as there that I first really got to know him.  The contact continued through the WFCC but as CABI was a MIRCEN – Microbial Resource Centre (one of 34), under the guidance of Edgar the relationship grew. Edgar was always an inspiration and enthused about the value of microbiological resources. The world-wide network of MIRCENs was synonymous with Edgar, its objectives are to preserve and exploit microbial gene pools, make them accessible to developing countries and to carry out research and development in environmental microbiology and biotechnology. To these ends Edgar supported training courses and activities at CABI and with the WFCC particularly over the 1980’s and 1990’s partially funded by UNESCO. As current President of the WFCC I greatly appreciate his efforts to get the MIRCEN institutions to work together, the very essence of what the WFCC is all about. We owe huge debts to characters such as Edgar who were so dedicated and enthusiastic about their work inspiring others to continue it and take on the challenges to develop further. I shall remember him fondly.

I hope this is useful.

If it is ok with his niece we could take copy of the obituary when complete and publish it in the WFCC Newsletter, it would be appropriate to inform WFCC members.

Kind regards

David

David Smith

President WFCC

Director Biological Resources

CABI Europe - UK

Thank you for your e-mail. This is indeed sad news. Please convey my deepest sympathy to the family members of Edgar Da Silva. Please find the following comments regarding my involvement with Edgar (see below):

" I met Edgar DaSilva in 1994 in South Africa during a Biotechnology Training Course that was sponsored by UNESCO. At that time I worked for the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) in South Africa and I was in charge of a Biotechnology Division of one of the Institutes of the ARC. I can recall that I was impressed by the vision that Edgar had at that time to establish Biotechnology Training hubs in developing countries. In 1995, I received a request from Prof. Indra Vasil, Chairman of the Biotechnology Action Council of UNESCO, to establish a Biotechnology Education and Training Center (BETCEN) for Africa, at the ARC-Roodeplaat  Vegetable and Ornamental Plant Institute in Pretoria. The ARC was very enthusiastic about the concept and the BETCEN was established and operational during late 1995. Edgar DaSilva was the driving force behind the BETCEN concept and the implementation and administration of the 5 BETCENs. The BETCEN concept was very successful in Africa and the impacts were tremendous - over 200 African scientists trained through a mixture of short term training and medium term fellowships during the period 1995 - 2000. I will therefore always remember Edgar DaSilva as a hard, but fair, taskmaster and  a leader with a passion for development and capacity building in the developing world. I have to give all the credit to Edgar for setting me, personally, on the path that I am still on today, i.e. focussed on Development and Capacity Building initiatives in developing countries. Even though I relocated to the United States in 2001 and took up a position at Michigan State University, I am still utilizing the expertise that I gained from my involvement as a BETCEN Director for Africa and the interactions I had with Edgar DaSilva during that time. Except for occasional e-mails, I have not had regular contact with Edgar during the last few years. I was therefore saddened by the news of his passing and I hereby express my deepest sympathy to the remaining family members of Edgar DaSilva. May he rest in peace."

Lucy, Thank you once again for your efforts to support my application for Permanent Residency in the US during 2005. I can safely say that the support letter and confirmation of my involvement in the UNESCO BETCEN initiative, played an important role in the eventual approval of my application during late 2005.

Kind regards

Johan Brink

Dr Johan Brink

Director: Agricultural Biotechnology Support Unit

Institute of International Agriculture

Michigan State University

To the family of Dr Edgar DaSilva:

I was deeply saddened to receive the news of Dr DaSilva’s recent passing - the world is a poorer place.

Although I met Edgar very briefly on just two occasions, I recall vividly his generosity, energy and enthusiasm. His unfailing support and encouragement for the activities of the Hong Kong Microbial Resources Centre (MIRCEN) allowed trainees from many developing countries the opportunity to acquire new knowledge and technical skills which otherwise would have been denied them. It will also remain a source of great personal pride to have been invited by Edgar to be a co-author on one of his many erudite publications.

Please accept my sincere condolences at this difficult time.

John Buswell

Shanghai, November 2007