Dr Nasrin Akter Ivy: Cultivator of hopes in agriculture

In the early mist of dawn in Gazipur, Dr. Nasrin Akter Ivy is already at work, her boots caked with soil, her hands stained with the promise of a new seed. For her, agriculture is not simply a domain of crops and yields—it is an act of nurturing hope into reality. Born in Chandina and educated through some of Bangladesh's premier agricultural institutions, she has become one of the cornerstones of crop genetics and plant breeding whose innovations touch the daily lives of ordinary people.
 
Working as a Professor and Director of IQAC at the Gazipur Agricultural University, she is determined to conduct research that tackles the food crisis threatening to undermine humanity.
 
One of her signature achievements is in aromatic rice. With her colleagues, she helped develop BU Aromatic Hybrid Dhan‑1,BU Dhan-2, GAU Dhan-3. Hybrid Dhan-1 is the country's first hybrid aromatic rice variety that is not only fragrant in the grain but also enriched with zinc and iron. These micronutrients matter: iron, especially, combats a wide prevalence of anemia among women; zinc plays a role in childhood growth, immune system health.
 
This aromatic hybrid is more than just a laboratory success; it has features that matter to farmers: it can be grown in both the Aman and Boro seasons, it yields well, resists lodging (bending over under its own weight), and it maintains aroma and grain quality. All of this means farmers could choose varieties that bring better nutrition – for consumers – without sacrificing yield or profitability.
 
But aromatic rice is only one axis of her work. Equally striking has been her development of gynodioecious papaya varieties (e.g., BU Papaya‑1, BU Papaya‑2, etc.). Papaya plants typically are male, female, or hermaphrodite. Managing the sex of plants in commercial orchards can be tricky. What Ivy's breeding has done is create papaya lines that are gynodioecious: nearly all plants fruit, with a high proportion being female (which bear fruit), reducing wasted space and inputs.
 
These papayas are sweeter, disease‑resistant, and carry better nutritional value (rich in vitamins A & C, and with more papain, which matters for digestion). Their fruits are visually appealing, with yellow‑orange or even red flesh, and the yield per hectare is high – farmers talk of 60‑70 tons per hectare in ideal conditions.
 
Beyond the data, what stands out is the human underpinning: Dr. Ivy speaks often of balancing life, of working in field trials even as children waited patiently, of wanting young women to see that their ambitions in agriculture can bear fruit. She is both a rigorous scientist and a nurturer of dreams.
 
Her advice, especially to women in agriculture wanting to be recognised like bti The Daily Star Stellar Women:
 
Persist. The early years, the failed trials, the long field hours—these are part of the path. If you believe in your work, stay with it through the disappointments; breakthroughs often follow long after many small incremental steps.
 
Seek strong mentorship and community. Having supportive teachers, family, and peers helps carry you over hurdles of access, resources, and recognition. Collaborating widely helps too—sharing ideas, crossing disciplines.

Don't just aim for yield — aim for impact. It's not enough for crops to give more kilos; think about nutrition, farmer welfare, and sustainability. If what you're developing can help reduce malnutrition, improve incomes, and protect soils, that multiplies its value.
 
Own your ideas. When you do good work, speak about it, publish it, share it, even if it feels uncomfortable. Visibility leads to recognition, and recognition opens doors—for funding, for influence, for mentoring others.
 
Support other women. Those ahead of you, those beside you—help them, lift them. Whether it's training, sharing lab time, giving encouragement, or advocating for policy that addresses barriers women face (time, resources, cultural expectations). Together, the path gets easier.
 
Dr. Ivy's work shows that science and agriculture are not separate from community, nutrition, gender, or hope. For women in agriculture who dream of being among the Stellar Women, her map points toward combining rigorous science with compassion, persistent effort, and a vision that goes beyond the field to the dinner table, to national health.