GRANT’S DESI ACHIEVER
“GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE TO SUCCEED”
Dr Christine Noronha, entomologist.
By SHAGORIKA EASWAR
Dr Christine Noronha has been recognized as one of the most influential women in Canadian agriculture.
She works with the agricultural industry in Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, the PEI Potato Board and PEI Horticultural Association. She also gets calls from across the country, from British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan...wherever her expertise as an entomologist is needed.
When she joined Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in 2000, she was the only female research scientist at the organization. Now there are five.
“Things have changed over the years, but it’s a long road,” she says. “When I speak at schools or to a group of young people, I find a lot of women are afraid of insects. But when they see me touching or picking up insects, they come forward.
“When they see other women in certain roles, they see opportunities. They see it is possible.
“I’m a woman, I’m an immigrant, I belong to a minority. Young women coming to Canada don’t know how far they will go in their careers. Just being here opens the doors to possibilities.
“Agriculture was a very male-oriented field – it still is, to a large extent. Now there are more women coming in, but mostly in lab work. But dealing with farmers, out in the field, that’s when you realize you’re a minority. It takes time for people to trust you. A little longer to be accepted as compared to a male counterpart.”
She has an interesting take on influential women in Canadian agriculture as opposed to influential scientists.
“When you are out in the world, you have to be yourself. I can’t act like a man. I am getting ahead as a woman and that forges the way for other women. They know they will be accepted. Some see it differently, but I see it as paving the way for others by being true to myself as both a scientist and as a woman.”
Dr Noronha designed a device to trap and control wireworms, a common potato plant predator that has caused millions of dollars in damages in Prince Edward Island.
The device bears her name: The NELT or Noronha Elaterid Light Trap, now widely used in Canada and there’s interest in Europe and the US.
However, she didn’t want to make it commercially available.
“My goal was for farmers to have it. They can build the device for around $20. It’s a solar powered light that can be stored away after the season – much like a garden light – and reused.”
Dr Noronha was also looking at chemicals that were available. Companies would send her samples to test and her team tested a new active ingredient, Broflanilide, over many years across Canada and for many species. Her research in collaboration with BASF Canada led to the registration of Broflanilide for two new highly-effective wireworm insecticides released in 2021.
“Chemicals are expensive, and when you don’t use them between crops, the insect population builds up,” says Dr Noronha, whose focus is on environmentally sustainable solutions to pest control.
Farmers used to plant potatoes one year, and then other crops for two or three years in an attempt to break the disease cycle. It could be something they ploughed back into the soil, or hay or barley. Dr Noronha’s idea was to grow buckwheat or brown mustard as full field crops. Brown mustard is used in Dijon mustard and buckwheat, which is gluten-free, in specialty flours. If you work mustard into the soil, it acts like a biofumigant and kills disease. Buckwheat works to suppress weeds and worked into the soil as green manure, increases organic content. Both provide environmental and economic benefits.
“Our study was to see if farmers needed to plant other things for two to three years between potato crops or if one year was sufficient. We were able to reduce pests and disease, get higher yields, and plant potatoes with a one-year-gap.
“It takes time for farmers to understand and trust new ideas. And I get that. It’s their livelihood. You are working to help them, not to gain a name in your field. I talked to farmers, provided information at farm visits and presentations. Built relationships.”
The strategy is now a standard for wireworm suppression and there’s interest in Europe where they’re seeing a build-up in wireworms. They are very strict with chemicals and see crop rotation as environmentally sustainable.
“Sometimes we have to use chemicals, but we have to do so judiciously,” says Dr Noronha. “We have to remember that when we put chemicals in the soil, when it rains, they move. These are poisons, they affect everybody.”
“No barrier is insurmountable...Hold on to the belief that you are as good as anybody else.”
Dr Noronha also developed the corn borer crusher, a mechanical device to crush potato stems and the larvae of the European corn borer hiding inside.
Again she chose not to go commercial with her idea.
“I just said, ‘Nope!’ I’m not into marketing, I guess! This device, too, is very simple to build with the blueprintts we provide and the parts are inexpensive.”
The device is now being used for weed control. A fellow scientist worked on it to crush the seeds of weeds and she says it is gratifying to see other applications of her device. Europe, again, is interested as it’s a way to control weeds without herbicides.
Dr Noronha credits her mother for igniting her interest in science and in insects in particular.
“My mom was interested in many different things. She was very knowledgeable. Our house in Pakistan had a courtyard and we slept under the stars on summer nights. She would point out the constellations and when we saw a comet, she would tell us all about it. She showed us insects in our garden.”
The young Christine absorbed it all, and found herself fascinated by butterfly chrysalis and why ants followed one another in a line.
When she declared her intention to study entomology, her father didn’t discourage her from following a path not many girls took. Instead, he encouraged her to find a solution to the mosquito problem and work for the WHO.
“My parents were the instigators of where I am today,” she says with a laugh.
She completed her master’s at the top of her class at Sindh University in Karachi , won a scholarship and came to Canada in 1985 to do her PhD at McGill.
“That changed my life, because I couldn’t have afforded the tuition at a Canadian university.”
It was life-changing in more ways than one.
“You are very protected when you live with your family. You always have someone to talk to. Here, I didn’t know anyone. Calls home were expensive. You had to book a three-minute call. I’d talk fast, but invariably, be cut-off mid-sentence. I didn’t know the basics of banking, or grocery shopping.”
She was at an English university, so language was not a problem, but says she found it hard to read people.
“At first, I couldn’t tell if someone was joking or not. It took me a while to learn the body language of people here. I felt very lonely, very vulnerable.
“People would often say things like, ‘You can’t know that!’ and I would wonder what made them think that. I had a university education the same as they did! It used to get me down, but I learnt not to get too upset, I developed a thick skin. Sometimes, I walked away, saying to myself, ‘You’re not worth my time, I will not stay in this situation.’ At other times, I stood up for myself. Sometimes it’s a subtle put-down and we’re raised to be non-confrontational. I’m not big and tall, I speak softly, and it was seen as a weakness, as not being assertive. You are judged by standards people are familiar with here. You just have to hold on to the belief that you are as good as anybody else.
“It’s better now, but it still happens. A lot more than it should. And you have to say this is not correct.
“The experience shaped me, I learnt about myself and I wouldn’t change a thing. Our parents had taught us that there are certain principles you live by, that you don’t compromise on and I found that no barrier is insurmountable.
“Someone said to me, and I repeat this to newcomers, it takes four months to adjust. If you can get past that, you’ll be fine. I found it was true. Soon, I made some very good friends. It can be hard – I’ve known people who have turned around and gone back – but it builds character. How do you want to live your life? It teaches you independence. Too much independence, sometimes!”
Dr Noronha continues to break down barriers for women in science and agriculture. She sees helping others reach their goals as just as great as any honour.
She tells them to believe in themselves and what they can do. To set a goal and work towards it while being open to new ideas. To surround themselves with good people, with supportive friends.
“It’s going to be tough and you have to prioritize.”
She gives her own example.
“I started in Montreal, then spent a few years in Quebec City, worked in Alberta for some years before coming to PEI. Every time I moved, I lost my support network and I had to start anew. But I have always lived by the decisions I made based on one simple factor. I asked myself if I would regret not taking this road, and if the answer was yes, I took it. I wanted to forge my own way, not sit and blame others for missed opportunities.
“You have to get out of your comfort zone to succeed. Challenges help us grow.”
Dr Noronha is the National Focal Point for FAO and has travelled to Rome to attend high-level meetings.
“It’s scary, but you do it and are proud of yourself. ‘Wow, I did it, and now it’s not that scary anymore.’
“And in my heart, I speak to my dad. I tell him that I didn’t go to WHO, but I went to FAO!”
• Grant’s is proud to present this series about people who are making a difference in the community. Represented by PMA Canada (www.pmacanada.com).
