Cotton Production Challenges under Climate Change Anxiety (Hardcover)

Cotton Production Challenges under Climate Change Anxiety offers a detailed, up-to-date analysis of the emerging challenges facing cotton cultivation amid shifting global climate conditions. Cotton is one of the most significant fiber and cash crop in the world and is experiencing unprecedented threats due to global warming, drought, salinity, water shortages, new pests and diseases, and extreme weather events. The book examines the multifaceted relationship between climate variability and cotton agroecosystems, and introduces innovative approaches that can promote the resilience and sustainability of the crop.

Contributions from leading experts from cotton-producing areas bring together new developments in climate-smart agriculture, precision farming, biotechnology, plant breeding, integrated pest management, soil health, water-use efficiency, and digital technologies for growing cotton. Moreover, it underscores new geo-technological solutions, including nanotechnology, artificial intelligence, and remote sensing, to reduce climate-related risk factors. This book will serve as a valuable resource for researchers, agronomists, farmers, policy makers, extension personnel and graduate students interested in developing sustainable approaches to ensure cotton productivity in a changing environment.

Prof. Dr. Kamel A. Abd-Elsalam, Ph.D., is currently a Research Professor and Deputy Director for Research at the Plant Pathology Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt. Dr. Kamel’s research interests include developing and improving plant biosecurity diagnostic tools, understanding fungal pathogen genomes, and creating eco-friendly hybrid nanomaterials for controlling toxigenic fungi and plant diseases as well as applications in agroecosystems. Kamel earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Plant Pathology from Christian Albrechts University of Kiel (Germany) and Suez Canal University (Egypt). In 2008, he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the same institution. Dr. Kamel served as a Visiting Associate Professor at Mae Fah Luang University in Thailand, the Institute of Microbiology at TUM in Germany, the Laboratory of Phytopathology at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, and the Plant Protection Department at Sassari University in Italy. He has published forty-two books related to nanobiotechnology applications in agriculture and plant protection with major publishing houses such as Springer, Taylor & Francis, and Elsevier. Since 2019, he has served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Elsevier book series Nanobiotechnology for Plant Protection and as the Series Editor for Applications of Genome Modified Plants and Microbes in Food and Agriculture. Additionally, he has been an active member of the Elsevier Advisory Panel since 2020, providing feedback and suggestions to improve Elsevier’s products and services. He has published more than 332 scientific research articles in international and regional specialized journals with high impact factors, and has an H-index of 57, an i-10 index of 177, and over 12399 citations. He served as a Guest Editor for the Journal of Fungi, Plants, and Microorganisms, and as a Review Editor for Frontiers in Genomic Assay Technology, Agrochemicals, and Plant Nano Biology. He was ranked in the top 2% of the most influential scientists in the world in nanobiotechnology for 2021–2025 by Elsevier and Stanford University. In 2014, he was awarded the Federation of Arab Scientific Research Councils Prize for excellent scientific research in biotechnology (fungal genomics), ranking first. Additionally, he received the Egyptian State Award for Agricultural Scientific Excellence from ASRT, Egypt, in 2022 with a silver medal.

Prof. Dr. Adel Abdelazeem is the President of the Agricultural Research Centre (ARC), Egypt. He earned his PhD degree from the Department of Agronomy (Cotton), Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Tanta, Egypt in February 2001. He served as the Director of the Cotton Research Institute (ARC) from 2016 to 2018 and went on to become the Vice-President for Extension & Research at the Agricultural Research Centre from 2018 to 2023. Professor Abdelazeem was the Chairman of the Research Team of the Cotton Breeding Research Department at the Sakha Station in Egypt. He was also at one time the Director of the Egyptian Cotton Improvement Fund and Head of the Plant Production Committee of the Agricultural Research Centre. Dr. Adel is currently a member of the Governing Board of the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM) and the Principal Investigator of the National project for vegetable seed production funded by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. He is also the Egyptian Representative at the International Olive Council (IOC) and a member of the Board of Trustees of the Science and Technology Development Fund (STDF). He is a Founding Member of the General Authority for Cotton Arbitration and Testing in Egypt. He has published over 15 scientific research papers both locally and internationally.

Prof. Dr. Waleed M. B. Yehia received his Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Sciences, specializing in Field Crops, from the Faculty of Agriculture, Kafr El-Sheikh, Tanta University, in 1995. He then obtained his PhD in Agricultural Sciences, specializing in Plant Genetics and Breeding, from Mansoura University in 2005. He is a member of the Cotton Breeding Research Department and served as its head in 2015. He then served as head of the Long Staple Cotton Breeding Unit in Lower Egypt in 2017. Subsequently, he served as Vice President of the Egyptian Cotton Improvement Fund from 2018 to 2023. In addition to his role as Head of the Cotton Breeding and Genetics Department from 2019 to 2022, he served as Deputy Director of Production at the Cotton Research Institute from 2023 until November 22, 2025. Dr. Waleed Yehia has been the Director of the Cotton Research Institute since November 23, 2025. Dr. Waleed Yehia has participated in the production of several internationally renowned Egyptian cotton varieties, such as Giza. 85, Giza 86, Giza 87, Giza 88, Giza 89, Giza 94, and Giza 97. He also participated in the production of new recombination of cotton, which is characterized by its tolerance to Unfavorable climatic conditions such as salinity, drought, high temperatures, and diseases. Dr. Waleed Yehia also heads the research team concerned with the production and breeding of foreign cotton varieties, in addition to leading the research team concerned with breeding and producing colored cotton. He has supervised numerous master’s and doctoral theses and has more than ninety-five research papers published in local and international journals and conferences.

Prof. Dr. Abdel Nasser M. R. Abdel Bary received his Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Sciences, specializing in Field Crops, from the Faculty of Agriculture, Assiut University, in 1992. He obtained his PhD in Agricultural Sciences, specializing in Genetics and Plant Breeding, from Mansoura University in 2003. He is a member of the research team of the Cotton Breeding Research Department. He then became the Head of Research at the Cotton Breeding Research Department in 2013. He served as the Head of the Long-staple Cotton Breeding Unit for Lower Egypt from 2008 to 2017. He then served as the Deputy Director for Production at the Cotton Research Institute from 2017 to 2023. He is currently the Director of the Cotton Research Institute from 2023 to 2025. Abdel Nasser participated in the production of several world-renowned Egyptian cotton varieties such as Giza 85, Giza 86, Giza 89, Giza 94, and Giza 97, in addition to evaluating several strains and selections for their tolerance to Unfavorable climatic conditions such as salinity, drought, and high temperatures. Abdel Nasser has participated in numerous workshops and conferences, supervised numerous master’s and doctoral theses, and has twenty-four research papers published in local and international scientific journals and conferences.