Arif Hossain is the executive director of the Dhaka-based Farming Future Bangladesh and a Visiting Fellow at Cornell University. Earlier, he worked for the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) as a senior specialist in outreach and communication. For more than a decade, Arif’s expertise in communication has included hands-on experience with international development organizations, human rights, civil society and community engagement, media, and advertising. His area of professional specialization is the intersection of strategic and development communication, advocacy, policy, and good governance reform.

Prior to IRRI, Arif worked as a communications coordinator at Plan International where he coordinated communications activities with a holistic approach working with policy makers, service providers, national and international partners, and local NGOs. Prior to that, he worked at Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) as assistant manager of outreach and communications. Arif also worked as a copywriter for A Positive Advertising Ltd., newsroom editor for Banglanews24.com, and as an organizer for the Association for Culture and Education (ACE).

Arif completed his MA and BA in English from the University of Rajshahi in Bangladesh. He has a post-graduate diploma in International Relations from the University of Dhaka. He is interested in music and has received a number of national level awards as a vocal artist. He also likes to explore his passion for theater and has performed in several dramas and musical shows.

Topics of expertise: Science communications, food security, climate change, smallholder farm communities, biotechnology crops in Bangladesh (Bt brinjal, LBR potato, Bt cotton, Golden Rice), youth and agriculture, modernization of agriculture, fourth industrial revolution and agriculture, agricultural innovations, etc.

Geographic regions of expertise:  Bangladesh/South-Easth Asia