Many persons have been instrumental in building strong professional relations between Cornell University and the University of Philippines College of Agriculture at Los Baňos. Many came from the Philippines during the 1950s and 1960s to study agriculture and rural development as UPLB began its climb after the Second World War to become a major Asian university. Dr. Gelia T. Castillo was one of those who earned a PhD at Cornell in the 1960s and returned to The Philippines where she gained recognition as an international authority in agriculture and rural development. She earned her doctorate at Cornell in Rural Sociology which provided a foundation for her study of Filipino farmers. Her book All in a Grain of Rice is the first book written by a Filipino about the Filipino farmers' response to new agricultural technology. She is a consultant for the International Rice Research Institute and has held more than a dozen important science and technology administrative positions during her productive career. In July 2013, Royal Colle met Dr. Castillo in her home at Los Banos to interview her about her experiences at Cornell and her work with agricultural development in The Philippines.